The first of the three Slovansk? rapsodie was composed from February 13 to March 17 of 1878 and received its premiere (along with the second) in Prague's Provisional Theatre on November 17 of the same year in a concert where Dvorak introduced himself as both composer and conductor. Rather than following a classical form, the rhapsodies were intended as absolute music to be enjoyed on their own terms, avoiding any external program. Though conceived...