Christopher Webber wrote about my criticism of the end of Dvorak's Ninth:

>"Undignified" in what sense? And why is dignity a desirable ingredient for
>the coda of this most unconventional, fiery and impassioned of all Dvorak's
>symphonies?

I like Dvorak's Ninth a lot, and I agree that it is unconventional, fiery,
and impassioned.  In the coda of the finale, it seems to be rising to a
grand finish, using the first phrase of the main theme, when all of a
sudden things seem to speed up and a jaunty march rhythm enters (DA,
duh-duh-duh DA, duh-duh-duh DA etc.).  I've heard it played many many
times, and for me, it never fails to sound trivial.

Peter Goldstein
Juniata College
Huntingdon, PA