在《音乐会随想（上）：流淌的岁月》中分享了昨晚音乐会交响乐团上半场演奏的是德沃夏克代表作之一《斯拉夫舞曲》和柴科夫斯基浪漫的《第一钢琴协奏曲》；音乐会下半场演奏的则是被誉为德沃夏克一生中最重要的作品第九交响曲《自新大陆》（Symphony No. 9, From the New World；也被翻译成《自新世界》，并且被认为此翻译更准确）。
网上有许多第九交响曲《自新大陆》的赏析，中英文皆有，在此就不重复了。感兴趣可以阅读相关英文网站https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Symphony_No._9_(Dvo%C5%99%C3%A1k)或中文网站http://baike.baidu.com/view/1329097.htm?fromtitle=%E5%BE%B7%E6%B2%83%E5%A4%8F%E5%85%8B%E7%AC%AC%E4%B9%9D%E4%BA%A4%E5%93%8D%E6%9B%B2&fromid=3235103&type=syn。我最初是从我父亲那里知道这首著名的第九交响曲，同时知道了《思故乡》歌曲就是根据《自新大陆》中部分旋律改编，并且也了解到这是德沃夏克在美国这个新世界任职3年期间完成的作品。第一次聆听，我就喜欢上了这首交响曲，被它那气势磅礴、悠远婉转、忧愁哀怨、温暖深情等交织的旋律深深地打动。后来，远离故国在欧洲留学时，对这首交响曲第二乐章中的思乡旋律多了一份特别的感受，经常倒磁带重复听第二乐章，多次眼睛湿润；毕业后，来到美国工作，对第一乐章暗喻的美国紧张忙碌的快节奏生活多了一份特别的理解；而第三乐章和第四乐章中欢快谐谑、纤丽多姿、威武辉煌、以及柔美抒情共存的旋律仿佛是如今安居“新大陆”生活的写照。
昨晚的音乐会上，本市交响乐团在其音乐艺术总监Andres Orozco-Estrada的指挥下将这首著名的第九交响曲演绎的非常成功。我们非常有幸坐在最佳位置的一部位，能近距离欣赏到Orozco-Estrada极富激情的指挥，时而严肃、时而诙谐、时而紧张、时而闲适、时而忧愁、时而欢乐。。。。。。我们能清楚看到他额头上和脸侠上的汗珠。演出结束后，观众们掌声经久不息。我们非常感恩所在城市有这样的交响乐团和指挥，将继续做他们的粉丝：-）））。
音乐《Dvorak- New World Symphony , Part Two, 4th Movement》
注：当最初知道昨晚音乐会的节目中有德沃夏克第九交响曲《自新大陆》（From the New World），我不禁想起一篇高中生写的同名获奖作文“From the New World”。这位女孩的父母是羊爸羊妈，感恩的是这位女孩是一个好养、省心的孩子。她从初中开始到高中毕业大大小小的作文比赛得奖都是由她的英文老师们将她的文章送出去参赛，而她的父母都是在事后才知道。非常感恩在孩子成长过程中遇到那么多的好老师们。老师们推荐的作文比赛有些是没有奖金，有些是包括奖金，小到几百美元，大到几千美元。不过，这些奖金都不是当时给这位女孩，而是在她上大学后，直接付给大学，作为女孩学费的一部分。以下这篇附带奖金的获奖作文《From the New World》是可口可乐瓶装公司（Coca -Cola Bottle Company）在高中生中发起的如何看待和对付“同龄人压力”（peer pressure）为主题的作文竞赛，题目和表达形式自选。而那位女孩那次参赛就运用了德沃夏克第九交响曲的题目“From the New World”。
From the New World My mother once told me that life flows like a ceaseless symphony, majestic, riveting, mysterious, composed by the individual and made complete by the rhythmic throbs of the human spirit. During every strain, someone, somewhere, listens intently. The audience’s face promises an infinite folio of expressions—adoration, disdain, nonchalance… These responses, at times inspiring, at times cruel, and always judging, determine how the composer weaves the ensuing melody. All of us, authors from birth, hope that our works, our lives, win the approval of others. Sometimes, we yearn so ardently that if time were man’s to command, then its frames would forever freeze upon moments where acceptance is mirrored back. However, the pressure stemmed from the opinions of our peers is double-edged; if handled carelessly, we risk disillusionment and the cacophony of lifeless melodies that no longer promise rebirth.
I am but a child, with neither foresight like that of the prophets within Homeric epics nor wisdom granted so profusely to Solomon. I stumble. I get up, and I carry on, as all students do, with a fervent longing for acceptance. Personal identify seems all the more opaque as society offers clashing molds of truth, of morality, of purpose. Others want us to believe what they believe and pursue what they pursue, for in this relative and impressionable age, their vindication flows from the magnitude of their followers. On this journey, conforming is easy; but before you, before we all, jump onto the bandwagon, stop and listen; listen to the mind that seeks understanding beyond passive acceptance and to the heart that hopes for color in a sea of gray. For when we cultivate curiosity and ambition, we summon the courage to carve our own paths and pursue the inexplicable majesties of our own dreams.
Indeed, individualism does not foreshadow a life of solitude. True friends will walk alongside us, carry us, and push us beyond even our own faith in ourselves. They rejoice in our victories and grieve in our losses, and they are the ones whose opinions are truly substantial. But to have such friends, we must also reflect qualities we ourselves seek—compassion, love, loyalty, individuality. In first grade, when we chose to laugh at the boy with the funny accent, we were too young to understand; but today, as we all are older and hopefully wiser, ignorance is no longer excused. Today, we heed the consequences of our choices and bear the fruits of our actions.
For better or for worse, peer pressure was, is, and always will be a contributor to personal identity. But whatever the circumstances may be, if we learn to fix our eyes on aspirations greater than ourselves and take in the lessons of the present, our future will flower in magnificent beauty. And at that ultimate stage of understanding, we perhaps will be able to grasp and live out the timeless melodies of the world’s Masters…Mozart, Tchaikovsky, and Dvorak, his Symphony No.9, “From the New World.”
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