Dvorák began to compose his Violin Concerto in 1879 and dedicated it to the great violinist Joseph Joachim. While waiting to finalise the concerto Dvorák composed Legends, a cycle of ten pieces for two pianos, which he shortly afterwards orchestrated.

Performing these two works are the acclaimed Australian violinist Richard Tognetti, as soloist in the concerto, and the Nordic Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Christian Lindberg. The same players have teamed up before on disc, namely on Nordic Showcase, an anthology of works for chamber orchestra. In the reviews of that disc, Tognetti’s performance was described by the reviewer in International Record Review as ‘music-making at a truly exalted level … the most enraptured and heartfelt rendering of the inexplicably neglected Svendsen Romance that I have ever heard.’