Like Mendelssohn, Johannes Brahms, 1833-1897, was a conservative composer, eschewing program music and drawing inspiration from the Classical era, especially Beethoven. Brahms was also a music history scholar and, thus, highly cognizant of the styles and masterworks that came before him.
Brahms' Lullaby—Guten Abend, gute Nacht—is his best known work and often mistaken for a folk song:
Life and Times
Johannes Brahms was born to a poor but musical family in Hamburg, Germany. He began music studies at a young age, trained initially by his father, Johann Jakob, a bass violin player. At seven, he studied piano with a local pianist, Otto F.W. Cossel, 1813-1865. Cossel complained that "Brahms could be a great player if he would stop his never-ending composing."
By thirteen Johannes was studying music by day and supporting himself by playing in brothels after sundown. He was a successful local performer by his mid-teens, and composed piano solos, choral pieces and chamber music. Some pieces were published under a pen name, G.W. Marks: Brahms thought his early music wasn't good enough to use his real name. He destroyed many of these manuscripts later in life because he considered them below his artistic standards.
In 1853, after a couple years of touring, twenty year old Brahms met the renowned composer Robert Schumann. Schumann was impressed by Brahms' work and promoted his music in his Neue Zeitschrift für Musik magazine. The article lead to publication of Brahms' music under his own name. His career was now mainstream.
Years later, after Robert Schumann had a mental breakdown, Brahms moved in with Clara Schumann, a concert pianist and Robert's wife, for two years to help out. He called Clara “the most beautiful experience of my life.”
Brahms was self-critical and measured his musical efforts against earlier master composers such as Mozart, Haydn and Beethoven. Thus, it's not surprising his musical style and structure were influenced by Classical era traditions. Nevertheless, Romantic flavor is evident in his music: syncopations, irregular phrases, polyphonic textures, intensity of feeling and dense orchestrations.
“Since Haydn, a symphony is no longer a simple affair, but a matter of life and death.” ― Johannes Brahms
Delayed Symphonic Ambitions
Brahms wrote in all major genres except opera. Up to age forty, he composed piano solos, art songs and chamber music but hid his symphonic writing. At age forty-three, after twenty years of toil, his first symphony appeared. It's often called “Beethoven's Tenth Symphony” due to obvious inspiration and similarities.
This symphony was written in 1883, six years after completion of his Second Symphony. Symphony No. 3 is scored for orchestra and has four movements:
Allegro con brio (F major), in sonata form
Andante (C major), in modified sonata form
Poco allegretto (C minor), in ternary form (A B A′)
Allegro – Un poco sostenuto (F minor/F major), in modified sonata form
Cyclic Technique
Brahms used a three note motive, F-A-F, to bind the movements together. Sharing of a motive or theme between movements is known as cyclic technique.
Frei aber froh
The F-A-F motive is said to symbolize “frei aber froh,” free but happy. Moreover, the first movement’s first theme is quoted near the end of the last movement.
Third Movement
We'll listen to the third movement, Poco allegretto. The third movement of a Classical symphony is usually a minuet and trio. While not indicated as a dance, this movement has ternary structure (A B A') like a minuet and trio and uses triple meter. Brahms reduced instrumentation, omitting some brass, low double reeds and timpani heard in the first and third movements.
The A section theme is cast in minor mode and filled with lilting lyrical melody:
The B section shifts to the major key and a graceful dance-like theme is introduced by the winds:
The strings reveal another distinctive melody before returning to the A' section and original theme:
Symphony No. 3 in F Major Op. 90, III. Poco allegretto (1883) | Johannes Brahms (6:47)
The alluring melody of the Poco allegretto has been arranged by Carlos Santana and Dave Matthews and renamed "Love of My Life."
During the second half of his career, Brahms was a wealthy and dominating figure in the music world. He never married and, despite wealth, lived simply in a modest apartment, adorned himself with funky clothing and grew a beard long enough for birds to nest in. He had a generous heart and gave large sums of money to help students and friends. In 1897, at the age of sixty-four, Brahms passed away after a long and full musical life. The Romantic era was ending and emerging styles were washing away the last vestiges of the nineteenth century.
Vocabulary
Johannes Brahms, cyclic technique, Symphony No. 3 in F Major Op. 90, Requiem
Compositional Style
Farewell to an Era
