Slawische Tänze op. 46

In his Slavonic Dances Op. 46, Dvorák did not draw on pre-existent music, but created something original and new, projecting his own compositional will into the creative process. What we hear are Dvoráks melodies,and that it is due to his creative will that he cast them as in Dance 3, for example in the form of a melodic four-tone model which is common to many folk songs and childrens songs. Finally, it is his rhythmic invention and shaping of the musical character of each dance that breathe life into the elements of Slavonic dance music.