…the namesake of Josef Suk’s piano cycle About Mother was Antonin Dvořák’s daughter?
Written in 1907, the five-movement piece evokes memories of a dearly-loved woman who died prematurely, leaving behind her husband and three-year-old son, to whom the piece is dedicated. Suk and his bride, Otilka Dvořák, had happily married less than ten years prior on her father’s silver anniversary. Tragically, both father and daughter died within a year of each other.
Sources:
“Hidden Gems for a Musical Mother’s Day” by Gail Eichenthal, Classical California KUSC, https://www.kusc.org/culture/staff-blog/mothers-day-hidden-gems (accessed 5-4-22).
David Doughty. Liner notes for Anthology of Czech Piano Music. Radoslav Kvapil. Recorded December 1994. Musical Concept ALC6001, streaming audio. Accessed May 4, 2022. Naxos Music Library.
Graham Melville-Mason. Liner Notes for Suk, J.: Piano Music. Margaret Fingerhut. Recorded 1990. Chandos 9026-27, streaming audio. Accessed May 4, 2022. Naxos Music Library.
Image credit: “Mother Playing With Her Child.” https://www.marycassatt.org (accessed 5-4-22).