Brahms - Symphony No. 3 In F Major

Johannes Brahms is often held up as an example of a composer who wrote absolute music, music that does not represent anything or is not about anything,  music purely for the sake of music. There was an ongoing debate about the idea of absolute music that began in the late 17th century and continues to this day.  In Brahms' time the debate was especially strong, as Wagner and Liszt (leaders of the new music movement) were proponents of program music; with Wagner's operas and Liszt's symphonic poems, while Brahms was used as the figurehead for absolute music by the Viennese critic Eduard Hanslick who wrote:

Music has no subject beyond the combinations of notes we hear, for music speaks not only by means of sounds, it speaks nothing but sound.

 Whether a particular piece of music can be considered absolute or programmatic is not so easy to determine.  Is there such a thing as music that is purely absolute, with no reference within it to anything more than sound? When Beethoven referred to the theme that began his 5th Symphony as 'fate knocking at the door', the composer himself put a non-musical meaning to the theme and perhaps the entire symphony. This doesn't make it a work with a program like a Liszt symphonic poem,  but then again it is not a piece of absolute music in the strict sense.  The argument between absolute versus program music is an attempt to pigeon-hole works into one or the other, and at least in the late 19th century, a way to try and make one kind of music superior to the other. In that regard the whole discussion (and historical arguments) about absolute music are moot points.

Brahms was a highly private man and very rarely gave a clue to any outside meanings in his music, but that doesn't mean there weren't any.  Some of his close friends were able to determine what the meaning of certain pieces may have been,  and so it was with his friend Clara Schumann, widow of the composer Robert Schumann. Brahms was a devoted friend to her after her husband died, some think to the point that his friendship went beyond the platonic. Brahms valued her musical opinion very much and would send his new compositions to her. Clara noticed that the notes F-Aflat -F were the top notes of the three chords that open the 3rd Symphony. These three notes are the first letters of Brahms'  motto, in German Frei aber froh which translates to Free but happy.  Brahms had adopted the motto in response to the motto of his friend Joseph Joachim Frei aber einsam which translates to Free but lonely. Brahms used his three note motto in all four movements in different guises.

Symphony No. 3 In F Major is in 4 movements:
I. Allegro con brio - The three note motto begins the movement and is found throughout, sometimes in the treble, sometimes as a bass line. This motto is full of conflict from the start as the A-flat sandwiched between the two F's shifts the music off of F major (A is natural, not flat), to F minor,  where the A is flat. This conflict occurs on and off through the movement. The second theme is in A-flat major, and is of a more gentle nature.  The music works its way through different material to the repeat of the exposition. The development section continues the interplay between major and minor, especially when the gentle second theme is changed to minor mode with increased tension and drama. The recapitulation plays through the themes and in the coda it gradually winds down and the music ends with a gentle repeat of the opening motto.

II. Andante -  Within the theme of this movement in C major is the three note motto. After the initial theme is played through, a second more passionate theme emerges.  The motto keeps appearing throughout the movement, but the gentle nature of the music doesn't allow it any of the drama that the listener already knows it is capable of.  The movement ends with the initial theme played very quietly.

III. Poco allegretto - In C minor, the music is in scherzo form, but is not a scherzo in mood. The melody is a sad, gentle dance. The three note motto is to be found in the accompaniment.  There is a brief middle section in A-flat major that is lighter in mood. The dance begins again and progresses to a short coda. The movement ends quietly with string chords played pizzicato over woodwind accompaniment.

 IV. Allegro -  The last movement renews the passion and drama of the first as the shifting between major and minor mode resumes.  Brahms uses his own style of sonata form to present and develop themes that lead to the coda that contains some of the most beautiful music Brahms ever wrote.  With muted strings in the background, woodwinds and brass gently move the music to a final unwinding as the three note motto is played one last time.

Brahms - Piano Trio No. 3 In C minor Opus 101

Brahms wrote his third piano trio in 1886 while vacationing at Lake Thun in Switzerland. The scenery inspired Brahms, for in addition to the piano trio he wrote a cello sonata and violin sonata. It was a time in Brahms' life when all but one of his orchestral works (the Double Concerto for violin and cello) had been composed. He grew more introspective in his final years, writing mostly works for voice, solo piano and chamber ensembles.

The Piano Trio No. 3 is one of Brahms' shorter chamber works.  All of the movements are short but full of intensity. This trio was a favorite of Brahms' good friend Clara Schumann who turned pages for Brahms when he played the work with his two good friends the cellist Robert Hausmann and violinist Joseph Joachim. It is in 4 movements and takes just over 20 minutes in a typical performance:

I. Allegro energico - The work begins with a shout to grab the attention of the listener as the first theme rolls out of the three instruments with passion. The second theme is more lyrical but the restlessness of the first theme lurks in the background. There is not repeat of the exposition. A very short development section and condensed recapitulation lead to an impassioned coda that brings this very terse movement to a close.  

II. Presto non assai - The violin and cello are muted throughout this movement.  The music is quirky but it also has an underlying sense of melancholy. The movement is short, and ends abruptly.

III. Andante grazioso - A mellow theme, the strings have moments when they play a duet without the piano, and the piano has its solo moments also. Brahms has time signature changes of 9/8, 6/8, 3/4 and 2/4, which gives a slight hesitating quality to the music. This movement also ends abruptly in the key of C major.

IV. Allegro molto - The passion of the the opening movement returns in C minor until near the end when Brahms writes in C major. The music maintains its hectic pace and passion despite the major mode all the way to the end.

Brahms - Piano Quintet In F Minor Opus 34

Some of the early works of Johannes Brahms are works full of drama contrasted with moments of  great tenderness and beauty. The Piano Quintet In F Minor is one of those works, but at the same time some have called it the first work of his early maturity. The drama and fire are obvious, but what is not so obvious is Brahms inner workings of phrase structure, harmony and what has been called the principle of continuing variation.

Brahms began work on what was to become the Piano Quintet in 1862. He had recently visited Vienna and eventually made it his home. The work was originally written for string quintet; two violins, one viola and two cellos.  Brahms was a great admirer of Schubert and he may have used Schubert's String Quintet as a model for his own.  The following year Brahms revised the work and turned it into a sonata for two pianos. This was not the only one of his early works that went through growing pains, as his first piano concerto began life as a symphony and was also rewritten as a sonata for two pianos.  His great friend Clara Schumann expressed admiration for the two piano version, but suggested that it would benefit by being re-scored for different instruments. Finally in 1864 Brahms rewrote it as for piano and string quartet. Brahms was but 31 years old when the final version of the quintet was written, but the two piano version must have satisfied Brahms as well for that version was also published. The two years the Brahms worked on this piece entailed a struggle over what instrumental forces to use. The final version of the work had very few actual musical changes to it from the two piano version.

The Piano Quintet is in 4 movements:
I. Allegro non troppo - A fragment of what is to become the first theme is stated in unison by the instruments to open the movement. A dramatic section leads to the theme being played out completely and with more force.  The second theme is a lyrical contrast to the first, but there is still a feeling of tension.  There is a third theme that appears towards the end of the exposition that relieves some of the drama of the previous themes. The exposition is repeated. The development section has fragments of the first two themes slowly play off of each other until they slowly build tension that leads to the recapitulation. After the recapitulation, there is a brief calm before the storm of the coda that dramatically ends the movement.

II. Andante, un poco adagio - A Schubertian theme begins the movement. Brahms makes variations on the theme as it plays out. A middle section of gentle music leads to a repeat of the main theme which continues to be developed until the movement gently ends.

III. Scherzo : Allegro - The movement begins with a low C on the cello played pizzicato as a rising melody is played over it. A rhythmic section follows, after which a march-like motive plays. These  three motives make up the scherzo itself. They are repeated and developed until at the end of the scherzo the strings play a searing two sixteenth note fragment that alternates between D-flat and C as the piano plays C major chords. The trio is in C major and is inspired by the march-like motive of the scherzo.  This scherzo is one of the most impassioned movements that Brahms ever wrote. Near the end the strings lend an atmosphere of violence to the scherzo before the sudden resolution of it with the end chord in C major.

IV. Finale: Poco sostenuto - Allegro non troppo - Presto, non troppo - The movement begins with a slow, mysterious introduction that builds in intensity until the movement proper begins with a theme that has the mood of a Hungarian Dance. This theme is varied, which leads to a more lyrical second theme. The next theme is a lively dance. These three themes are repeated and varied as they vie for supremacy throughout the movement. The competition of themes is brought to a sudden halt as a short coda returns the mood to tragic as the work ends.

Brahms - Six Pieces For Piano Opus 118

Brahms wrote nothing for the piano that can be called easy. Brahms piano writings abound with technical difficulties, especially for a small hand, and challenge pianist's musicality. The ultimate in what Brahms demands of a pianist can be seen with his Studies For Pianoforte, Variations On A Theme Of Paganini Opus 35, a work of daring virtuosity and extreme technical demands.

Later in his life Brahms began to mellow somewhat. His music became more introspective, with his six piano pieces of Opus 118 being a prime example. Brahms still makes demands on the pianist, but gone is any outwardly flashy virtuosity. But any pianist that has worked their way through them can tell you they are far from simple.

The pieces have no obvious musical connection between each other; each one is a self-contained work. But the mood of each seems to compliment the next, as Brahms well understood.  They were published in 1893 and dedicated to Clara Schumann.

1.Intermezzo in A minor. Allegro non assai, ma molto appassionato - This opening piece is the only one in the set that is in binary form and with its restless nature acts as a prelude or introduction to the rest of the set.

2. Intermezzo in A major. Andante teneramente - A mellow piece that has a middle section that has the melody played in the right hand and as it plays the left hand plays the melody a quarter beat behind creating a canon along with the accompaniment.  The first eight-bar section is repeated, and then it is developed. The music smoothly flows into a repeat of the opening section of the piece. This piece as well as the rest of the pieces are in ternary form

3.Ballade in G minor. Allegro energico - A passionate piece, with a melody that floats above the crashing chords in both hands. A gentle middle section is in B major. The opening section is repeated, but the middle section comes back as a short coda in the minor to end the piece.

4.Intermezzo in F minor. Allegretto un poco agitato - A restless first section leads to a contrasting middle section that moves at a steady pace. The restless beginning returns and plays until it shifts key into the major mode at the end.

5. Romanze in F major. Andante - The melody is carried by the highest voice and doubled in the bass. Other notes add to the texture of the harmony and enrich the melody. The middle section is in D major and consists of a melody that repeats over an ostinato bass. The melody varies each time it repeats until it melts into a series of trills. The beginning returns and the melody is reinforced by octaves in the right hand.

6.Intermezzo in E flat minor. Andante, largo e mesto - Written in the rare key of E-flat minor, the piece begins with dark rumblings that lead to a march-like middle section that swells in tone and harmony. This collapses into the dark rumblings of the beginning. There are a few shafts of light as the major mode is invoked, but the tragedy of the opening returns. The end is near, as the music swells in volume once more before it fades away into the abyss.

Brahms/Schoenberg - Piano Quartet No. 1

With this work there is the rare opportunity of listening to what is one master composer's opinion of another master composer's work. Schoenberg orchestrated the 1st Piano Quartet of Brahms in 1937 after he had moved to Los Angeles, California to escape Germany and the persecution of Jews.  Schoenberg had converted to Christianity early in his life but in 1933 he changed back to Judaism, partly out of protest against the Nazi regime. He was soon labeled a decadent composer. His works were no longer allowed in the concert hall and he was most likely a doomed man.

He wrote a letter to a music critic in 1939 and explained his reasons for arranging Brahms' work for orchestra:

"My reasons: I like the piece. It is seldom played. It is always very badly played, because, the better the pianist, the louder he plays and you hear nothing from the strings. I wanted once to hear everything, and this I achieved. My intentions: To remain strictly in the style of Brahms and not to go farther than he himself would have gone if he lived today. To watch carefully all the laws to which Brahms obeyed and not to violate them, which are only known to musicians educated in his environment."

Perhaps another reason he did it was that at this time Schoenberg had already developed his "method of composing with twelve tones which are related only with one another". His method shook the world of serious music so he may have been trying to add legitimacy as a composer by orchestrating Brahms' work. He also gave a lecture and wrote a subsequent essay called Brahms The Progressive.  Schoenberg's objective was “to prove that Brahms, the classicist, the academician, was a great innovator in the realm of musical language, that, in fact, he was a great progressive.” He considered Brahms his musical ancestor, along with Wagner, Beethoven and Mozart. His new method of composing was not so much revolutionary as evolutionary, at least to Schoenberg.

Schoenberg began his composing life as a Late Romantic, but his compositions showed signs of breaking with tonality early on. Even after he developed and used his method, he would lapse back into his earlier style, especially in his older years.  Schoenberg was in some ways a paradox, as he expanded upon what Wagner and Liszt had begun while at the same time he championed Brahms as a progressive composer.  In his own compositions Schoenberg could be conservative in form as in many instances he stuck with traditional forms used by Romantic composers.

Schoenberg was faithful to Brahms' original work in that he changed no notes. His brilliant orchestration is another matter. Brahms' orchestration was like his solo piano music; not outwardly brilliant and colorful, but complex and well written. Brahms' orchestration suited the character of his symphonic works perfectly. Schoenberg's orchestration of the work is radically different from what Brahms would have done.  My post of Brahms original version of this work can be found here.

I wouldn't say that Schoenberg's arrangement suits Brahms' music like a glove, but it does have its moments. Shoenberg begins with a rather straightforward arrangement of the first movement, but after that each movement gets stamped with Schoenberg's style more and more. It leads to the final movement, an absolutely wild rendition of Brahms' Rondo alla Zingarese. With more and more percussion and quirky orchestral techniques, Shoenberg  pulls out all the stops and makes music that is pretty wild in its original form completely over the top.  Schoenberg had a liking for and understanding of Brahms' music, that much shows in the arrangement. Schoenberg's orchestration doesn't cancel out the greatness of the original, but it is interesting. And frankly, Schoenberg's last movement is incredible.

Brahms - Studies For Pianoforte, Variations On A Theme Of Paganini Opus 35

Johannes Brahms' music for solo piano is not usually filled with brilliant effects or obvious virtuosity. The difficulties in Brahms music are covert, and many times not obvious to the listener.  But his music is not easy to play. It can be dense of texture and complicated in structure. It takes a great technician and fine musician to play Brahms and bring out all of the voices (he was a master of counterpoint) and details. After Robert Schumann heard the young Brahms play his early piano sonatas, he called them not sonatas but, "veiled symphonies".

Brahms himself was no slouch as a pianist. He had the technique and knowledge of the keyboard to write a brilliant virtuoso work. His Opus 35 set of variations prove it. He wrote them for the virtuoso Carl Tausig who was a student of Liszt and a pianist Brahms admired.  He wrote the variations on a theme of Paganini taken from the 24th Caprice For Solo Violin In A Minor, a work that Liszt had already written a transcription for piano for, and a work that was to inspire many other composers in the future.

Brahms had something different in mind, even in the title of the work. He called the work Studies For Pianoforte, Variations On A Theme Of Paganini, with the implication being that each of the variations are an etude that explores a particular aspect of piano playing.   The work is divided into two books of 14 variations, each one being an independent work in itself.  Many times both books are played in recitals. Brahms version of the theme is played to lead off both books, and most of the variations are in the original key of A Minor.

Book One
Theme - Brahms begins with the theme, but not in its original form. He adds grace notes to the melody in the right hand in the first section, adds grace notes to the left hand in the second section and, unlike the original, repeats the second section thus making the theme 24 bars long instead of the original 16:

Brahms keeps the general outline of the theme throughout the first thirteen variations, with all the variations being in the key of A minor except the 11th and 12th, which are in A major. But that is not to say that the variations are simple variants. The variations throw every kind of technical challenge at the pianist; intervals of all kinds, huge jumps, hand crossings, etc. The 13th variation is noteworthy for its use of octave glissandos in the right hand, quite difficult on the piano of Brahms day as well as the modern piano. The 14th variation is an extended section that goes beyond the 24-bar length of the theme and previous thirteen variations. Brahms introduces music that sounds like yet another variation before he adds a coda that rounds out and ends the first book.

Book Two
The theme is played again, all of the variations are in A minor, except for Variation 4 which is in A major and Variation 12 which is in F major. Again, Brahms writes variations of great difficulty but still stays within the same general outline of the theme. As with Book One, the 14th variation is an extended section that adds yet another two un-numbered variations that lead material that fully closes out Book Two.

Clara Schumann, widow of Robert Schumann called the piece Hexenvariationen (Witch's Variations) because they were so fiendishly difficult, and though she was one of the great pianists of the 19th century she could not play them. The piece remains one of the few examples of outwardly virtuosic piano music Brahms ever wrote. Along with the Goldberg Variations of J.S. Bach and the Diabelli Variations of Beethoven, Brahm's set is one of  the greatest variations written.

Brahms - Piano Quartet No. 1

Johannes Brahms composed his first piano quartet while still in his 20's. By this time he had been on concert tour with the Hungarian violinist Ede Reményi, and had met Franz Liszt and Robert Schumann. By contemporary accounts, the meeting with Liszt didn't go so well as Brahms fell asleep while Liszt was playing the piano (due to exhaustion from the concert tour according to Brahms) but the meeting with Schumann went much better. Schumann recognized Brahms' genius, and Brahms became like a family member to Schumann and his wife Clara.

The first piano quartet was premiered in Hamburg in 1861 with Clara Schumann at the piano. Brahms himself was at the piano at the Vienna premiere. The piece wasn't a resounding success with the critics, probably due to the complexity of the music. The first piano quartet is written for the traditional instruments of piano, violin, viola and cello.

I. Allegro - This first movement no doubt caused some of the negativity towards the piece at the premiere, because of Brahms stretching and manipulation of sonata form. Some of his music contemporaries considered him conservative and traditional, but the structure of this movement disproves that. Brahms loads up the first movement with (depending on who is doing the counting) 4 or 5 themes, all of them based on the opening stated in octaves in the piano alone. The movement contains many key changes from the home key of G minor, some closely related, others (as D major) quite distant from the home key. After all the themes are heard, the initial theme is heard again and is briefly developed. The exposition is not repeated. All of the themes are heard in the development. Modulations of key and variations of the themes are done, and Brahms keeps the listener off-kilter when he signals the recapitulation not with the initial theme but one of the others. There is a short coda that leads the music back to the desolation of the home key of G minor.

II. Intermezzo: Allegro - This movement serves the function of a scherzo, but for the first time Brahms uses the designation Intermezzo. It is in the same form as a scherzo, and is in the key of C minor, a closely related key to G minor. The music is agitated and somewhat reserved while the trio (which is in A-flat major) is at a slightly quicker tempo and more extroverted.  The opening material is repeated and a coda in C major repeats part of the trio section.

III. Andante con moto - This movement is also in ternary form with a lyrical first section in E-flat major. Brahms' change to C major for the march-like middle section is abrupt. C minor also makes an appearance before the repeat of the first section. This movement ends quietly.

IV. Rondo alla Zingarese: Presto -  The saving grace of this composition at both the premieres in Hamburg and Vienna was probably this movement, written in 'Gypsy Style'. Brahms had learned the style while touring with Reményi. The initial theme's feeling is achieved by Brahms writing phrases in irregular numbers of bars. Instead of more common 4-bar phrases he throws phrases of 3-bars (or 6-bars, depending how you count them) with 4-bar phrases mixed in. Brahms did this throughout his composing career, and it is one of the reasons why his music can sound so different, even to someone who knows nothing about phrasing in music. It creates a subtle difference in his music that can be sensed by the sensitive listener. The movement is no less complex than the music in the rest of the composition, but the rondo form seems to make it more accessible to the listener, not to mention the fire and panache Brahms writes into the movement.

The above description is brief in the extreme for such a complex work. But while the inner working of the quartet are interesting and can add to the enjoyment of it, I don't think Brahms expected all of his listeners to be able to give a detailed analysis of it. His purpose was musical expression, and while his compositions can be highly complex there must be an understanding or enjoyment of his works on a 'gut' or emotional level to remain popular. As with all great artists, Brahms manages to touch the audience. That in the end is what counts.

Brahms - Variations and Fugue On A Theme Of Handel

Variations on a theme are a standard form for many classical works, and most composers have used the form and all composers have used the variation technique within other works. The very core of sonata form is variation, as in the development section and the recapitulation when the themes are transposed into the home key of the piece.

The first examples of theme and variations can be traced back to the 14th century and the form was popular in the Baroque era of music. The chaconne, passacaglia and groundbass are all forms of the variation and theme format. They can even be called variations on the format themselves.

Some of the masterpieces of the form of theme and variations have been written for keyboard from a theme that is far from complicated. The Diabelli variations of Beethoven derive from a simple march, the famous set of variations that comprise Paganini's 24th Caprice for Solo Violin also uses a fairly simple tune that has the distinction of not only inspiring the composer of the tune to vary it, but many other composers as well. And of course the famous Goldberg Variations by Bach that inspired many to write their own set of variations.

Brahms wrote his Variations And Fugue On A Theme Of Handel  in 1861 when he was 28 years old and dedicated the work to his dear friend Clara Schumann, the widow of Robert Schumann. Brahms was not only a composer, but he was a scholar, particularly of older music. He had written other sets of variations before, but the Handel Variations came after his study of Baroque forms.  It is this duality of Brahms, the scholar of older music that was none the less a product of the Romantic era he lived, that makes his music so interesting. Some have called him ultra conservative, but the ultra modern composer Schoenberg always considered Brahms a progressive. So there is much more to Brahms than appears to the ear. Some of his progressiveness is of a technical nature, such as his odd number of bars in his phrases for example. These technical devices are hard to explain to non-musicians, but they can certainly be heard as something different by the attentive listener.

The basis of the variations is an aria from Handel's Harpsichord Suite No. 1 in B-flat Major, a tune that is varied by Handel himself in the suite. It is a two-part tune that Brahms composed 25 variations for. Brahms used some Baroque forms for some of the variations in accordance with his study of the era but he didn't restrict himself to these forms at all. There are some free form variations also, and Brahms manages to keep things together as a structure by having sub-divisions within the whole where some of the variations are 'related' to one another, while also managing to keep the intensity level moving forward to the crown of the work, the fugue.  It is a testament to Brahms' skill as a composer that the fugue is never played without the variations. The fugue is a complicated, contrapuntal masterpiece in its own right, but it is an organic growth of what has preceded it. To divorce it from its parent variations would make the fugue, despite all of its wonders, unintelligible.

The 28-year old Brahms was still perfecting has mastery of the piano when he wrote this piece. He played them in public on occasion and it was the piece that he played for his first meeting with Richard Wagner. Evidently Wagner was impressed enough to tell Brahms that it was a good example of what could still be done with the old forms with someone who knew how to use them.

It wasn't the last time Brahms wrote a set of variations. He continued to use the form, it expand and deepen his expression of his musical ideas.  Ahead lay the Paganini Variations and the chaconne of the 4th symphony, but the Handel Variations marked an important period in the development of Brahms.