Antonín Leopold Dvořák; September 8, 1841 – May 1, 1904) was a Czech composer. Following the nationalist example of Bedřich Smetana, Dvořák frequently employed features of the folk music of Moravia and his native Bohemia. Dvořák's own style has been described as 'the fullest recreation of a national idiom with that of the symphonic tradition. Born in Nelahozeves, Dvořák displayed his musical gifts at an early age. After graduating from an organ school in Prague, he began writing his first composition at the age of 20. In the 1860s, he played as a violist in the Bohemian Provisional Theater Orchestra. In 1873, he married Anna Čermáková, and left the orchestra to pursue another career as a church organist. Dvořák's music attracted the interest of Johannes Brahms, who assisted his career.
