Two Waltzes Op54 #1 & #4

2 Waltzes (Zwei Walzer) Op54 #1 & #4 by Antonin Dvorak
Edited by Frank Michael
For 3 C Flutes and Alto Flute
Includes score and parts; Alto Flute plays out of the score

Of the eight waltzes which Dvorak wrote for piano as Op54 from 1879 to 1880, the composer adapted two for string quartet. These waltzes were given their premiere performance in Prague on March 19, 1880, and must have been extraordinarily well-received by the audience since the second had to be encored immediately following storms of applause. Dvorak, who assigned many grateful passages to the flute in his orchestral works, unfortunately never wrote a piece for the flute in his chamber music. It therefore seems not unjustifiable to arrange both of these waltzes for three flutes and alto flute in G, particularly outstanding original works for four flutes were rare in the romantic period. Dvorak's two versions differ in certain details, of which those favoring the flute have been incorporated in this edition.