The Music of The Underground Railroad

[Jonathan]

I'm a musician in my free time, and ran across something cool while listening to The Underground Railroad tonight.

Composer Antonin Dvorak wrote his Symphony #9, "The New World", in 1893 while traveling to America. He wanted to use part of the symphony to touch on the issue of slavery, and, finding a melody he liked from an old African spiritual, adapted it to form the basis of his second movement. (An aside, I've played movements 2 and 4 of this with the Golden Valley Orchestra, and both are favorites of mine. Mvt 4 is wildly exciting and was written not far from where I live.)

While listening to The Underground railroad I noticed for the first time that John Campbell used the melody Dvorak incorporated in his symphony. When Caroline and Henry are talking right before she dies, he works it in for two measures, and then repeats it the phrase in full when Carl comes afterwards to address Caroline's death. Given the history of the piece and John's musical knowledge, this was certainly intentional. This tidbit seems to have faded from memory; there is nothing about it it in the Guide.

If you want to hear the source material for the music, here is movement 2 of symphony 9. The melody first appears right near the start in the oboe.

And for fun, here is movement 4, though it's unrelated to the episode. You'll recognize it as the inspiration for a famous movie theme. edit--I was wrong, now that I'm listening to movement 4 I realize that it is related. The melody briefly reappears in mvt 4 in the flutes.

[Catspaw]

That's so cool! Thanks for sharing, Jonathan. I never would have known that or recognized it.

[Thursday Next]

As a musician myself I do find that interesting. I'll have to listen to it. I've never played Dvorak, but one of my sisters has and is one of her favorite composers.