Symphony No. 4 (Brahms)
Encyclopedia
The Symphony No. 4 in E minor, Op. 98 by Johannes Brahms
is the last of his symphonies
. Brahms began working on the piece in 1884, just a year after completing his Symphony No. 3
, and completed it in 1885.
s (one doubling on piccolo
), two oboe
s, two clarinet
s, two bassoon
s, contrabassoon
, four horns
, two trumpet
s, three trombone
s, timpani
, triangle
(third movement only), and strings
.
A typical performance lasts about 40 minutes.
. The last movement is notable as a rare example of a symphonic passacaglia
, which is similar to a chaconne
with the slight difference that the subject can appear in more voices than the bass. For the repeating theme, Brahms adapted the chaconne theme in the closing movement of Johann Sebastian Bach
's cantata
, Nach dir, Herr, verlanget mich, BWV 150. The symphony is rich in allusions, most notably to various Beethoven compositions. The symphony may well have been inspired by the ancient Greek tragedies of Sophocles
that Brahms had been reading at the time.
Arnold Schoenberg
, in his essay Brahms the Progressive, pointed out several thematic relationships in the score, as does Malcolm MacDonald
in his biography of the composer. The first half of the chaconne theme is anticipated in the bass during the coda at an important point of the preceding movement; and the first movement's descending thirds, transposed
by a fifth, appear in counterpoint
during one of the final variations of the chaconne.
on October 25, 1885 with Brahms himself conducting
. It was well received and has remained popular ever since. The piece had earlier been given to a small private audience in a version for two piano
s (one of them played by Brahms). Brahms' friend and biographer Max Kalbeck
, reported that the critic Eduard Hanslick
, on hearing the first movement in this performance, exclaimed, "For this whole movement I had the feeling that I was being given a beating by two incredibly intelligent people." Hanslick later spoke more approvingly of it, however.
Progressive rock group Yes
' keyboardist Rick Wakeman
used part of the symphony on the song "Cans and Brahms" from the 1971 album Fragile
.
Johannes Brahms
Johannes Brahms was a German composer and pianist, and one of the leading musicians of the Romantic period. Born in Hamburg, Brahms spent much of his professional life in Vienna, Austria, where he was a leader of the musical scene...
is the last of his symphonies
Symphony
A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, scored almost always for orchestra. A symphony usually contains at least one movement or episode composed according to the sonata principle...
. Brahms began working on the piece in 1884, just a year after completing his Symphony No. 3
Symphony No. 3 (Brahms)
The Symphony No. 3 in F major, Op. 90, is a symphony written by Johannes Brahms. The work was written in the summer of 1883 at Wiesbaden, nearly six years after he completed his Second Symphony...
, and completed it in 1885.
Instrumentation
The symphony is scored for two fluteFlute
The flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
s (one doubling on piccolo
Piccolo
The piccolo is a half-size flute, and a member of the woodwind family of musical instruments. The piccolo has the same fingerings as its larger sibling, the standard transverse flute, but the sound it produces is an octave higher than written...
), two oboe
Oboe
The oboe is a double reed musical instrument of the woodwind family. In English, prior to 1770, the instrument was called "hautbois" , "hoboy", or "French hoboy". The spelling "oboe" was adopted into English ca...
s, two clarinet
Clarinet
The clarinet is a musical instrument of woodwind type. The name derives from adding the suffix -et to the Italian word clarino , as the first clarinets had a strident tone similar to that of a trumpet. The instrument has an approximately cylindrical bore, and uses a single reed...
s, two bassoon
Bassoon
The bassoon is a woodwind instrument in the double reed family that typically plays music written in the bass and tenor registers, and occasionally higher. Appearing in its modern form in the 19th century, the bassoon figures prominently in orchestral, concert band and chamber music literature...
s, contrabassoon
Contrabassoon
The contrabassoon, also known as the double bassoon or double-bassoon, is a larger version of the bassoon, sounding an octave lower...
, four horns
Horn (instrument)
The horn is a brass instrument consisting of about of tubing wrapped into a coil with a flared bell. A musician who plays the horn is called a horn player ....
, two trumpet
Trumpet
The trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air...
s, three trombone
Trombone
The trombone is a musical instrument in the brass family. Like all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player’s vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate...
s, timpani
Timpani
Timpani, or kettledrums, are musical instruments in the percussion family. A type of drum, they consist of a skin called a head stretched over a large bowl traditionally made of copper. They are played by striking the head with a specialized drum stick called a timpani stick or timpani mallet...
, triangle
Triangle (instrument)
The triangle is an idiophone type of musical instrument in the percussion family. It is a bar of metal, usually steel but sometimes other metals like beryllium copper, bent into a triangle shape. The instrument is usually held by a loop of some form of thread or wire at the top curve...
(third movement only), and strings
String instrument
A string instrument is a musical instrument that produces sound by means of vibrating strings. In the Hornbostel-Sachs scheme of musical instrument classification, used in organology, they are called chordophones...
.
Movements
The symphony is divided into four movements with the following tempo markings:- Allegro non troppo (E minorE minorE minor is a minor scale based on the note E. The E natural minor scale consists of the pitches E, F, G, A, B, C, and D. The E harmonic minor scale contains the natural 7, D, rather than the flatted 7, D – to align with the major dominant chord, B7 .Its key signature has one sharp, F .Its...
) - Andante moderato (E minor/E majorE majorE major is a major scale based on E, with the pitches E, F, G, A, B, C, and D. Its key signature has four sharps .Its relative minor is C-sharp minor, and its parallel minor is E minor....
) - Allegro giocoso (C majorC majorC major is a musical major scale based on C, with pitches C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. Its key signature has no flats/sharps.Its relative minor is A minor, and its parallel minor is C minor....
[might also be interpreted as E phrygianPhrygian modeThe Phrygian mode can refer to three different musical modes: the ancient Greek tonos or harmonia sometimes called Phrygian, formed on a particular set octave species or scales; the Medieval Phrygian mode, and the modern conception of the Phrygian mode as a diatonic scale, based on the latter...
]) - Allegro energico e passionato (E minor)
A typical performance lasts about 40 minutes.
Analysis
The first movement is dramatic and passionate, while the second movement has an archaic and restrained air. The joyful third movement, which was written last, resounds with a triangleTriangle (instrument)
The triangle is an idiophone type of musical instrument in the percussion family. It is a bar of metal, usually steel but sometimes other metals like beryllium copper, bent into a triangle shape. The instrument is usually held by a loop of some form of thread or wire at the top curve...
. The last movement is notable as a rare example of a symphonic passacaglia
Passacaglia
The passacaglia is a musical form that originated in early seventeenth-century Spain and is still used by contemporary composers. It is usually of a serious character and is often, but not always, based on a bass-ostinato and written in triple metre....
, which is similar to a chaconne
Chaconne
A chaconne ; is a type of musical composition popular in the baroque era when it was much used as a vehicle for variation on a repeated short harmonic progression, often involving a fairly short repetitive bass-line which offered a compositional outline for variation, decoration, figuration and...
with the slight difference that the subject can appear in more voices than the bass. For the repeating theme, Brahms adapted the chaconne theme in the closing movement of Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer, organist, harpsichordist, violist, and violinist whose sacred and secular works for choir, orchestra, and solo instruments drew together the strands of the Baroque period and brought it to its ultimate maturity...
's cantata
Cantata
A cantata is a vocal composition with an instrumental accompaniment, typically in several movements, often involving a choir....
, Nach dir, Herr, verlanget mich, BWV 150. The symphony is rich in allusions, most notably to various Beethoven compositions. The symphony may well have been inspired by the ancient Greek tragedies of Sophocles
Sophocles
Sophocles is one of three ancient Greek tragedians whose plays have survived. His first plays were written later than those of Aeschylus, and earlier than or contemporary with those of Euripides...
that Brahms had been reading at the time.
Arnold Schoenberg
Arnold Schoenberg
Arnold Schoenberg was an Austrian composer, associated with the expressionist movement in German poetry and art, and leader of the Second Viennese School...
, in his essay Brahms the Progressive, pointed out several thematic relationships in the score, as does Malcolm MacDonald
Malcolm MacDonald (music critic)
Malcolm MacDonald is a British author, mainly writing about music. He was born in Nairn, Scotland in 1948 and educated at the Royal High School, Edinburgh and Downing College, Cambridge; he has lived in England since 1971, first in London and since 1992 in Gloucestershire.He has written several...
in his biography of the composer. The first half of the chaconne theme is anticipated in the bass during the coda at an important point of the preceding movement; and the first movement's descending thirds, transposed
Transposition (music)
In music transposition refers to the process, or operation, of moving a collection of notes up or down in pitch by a constant interval.For example, one might transpose an entire piece of music into another key...
by a fifth, appear in counterpoint
Counterpoint
In music, counterpoint is the relationship between two or more voices that are independent in contour and rhythm and are harmonically interdependent . It has been most commonly identified in classical music, developing strongly during the Renaissance and in much of the common practice period,...
during one of the final variations of the chaconne.
Reception
The work was given its premiere in MeiningenMeiningen
Meiningen is a town in Germany - located in the southern part of the state of Thuringia and is the district seat of Schmalkalden-Meiningen. It is situated on the river Werra....
on October 25, 1885 with Brahms himself conducting
Conducting
Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. The primary duties of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble...
. It was well received and has remained popular ever since. The piece had earlier been given to a small private audience in a version for two piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
s (one of them played by Brahms). Brahms' friend and biographer Max Kalbeck
Max Kalbeck
Max Kalbeck was a German writer, critic and translator.-Education:Kalbeck studied music in Munich. In 1875 he became the music-critic for the Schlesische Zeitung and assistant director of the Breslau Museum...
, reported that the critic Eduard Hanslick
Eduard Hanslick
Eduard Hanslick was a Bohemian-Austrian music critic.-Biography:Hanslick was born in Prague, the son of Joseph Adolph Hanslick, a bibliographer and music teacher from a German-speaking family, and one of his piano pupils, the daughter of a Jewish merchant from Vienna...
, on hearing the first movement in this performance, exclaimed, "For this whole movement I had the feeling that I was being given a beating by two incredibly intelligent people." Hanslick later spoke more approvingly of it, however.
Progressive rock group Yes
Yes (band)
Yes are an English rock band who achieved worldwide success with their progressive, art, and symphonic style of rock music. Regarded as one of the pioneers of the progressive genre, Yes are known for their lengthy songs, mystical lyrics, elaborate album art, and live stage sets...
' keyboardist Rick Wakeman
Rick Wakeman
Richard Christopher Wakeman is an English keyboard player, composer and songwriter best known for being the former keyboardist in the progressive rock band Yes...
used part of the symphony on the song "Cans and Brahms" from the 1971 album Fragile
Fragile (Yes album)
Fragile is the fourth studio album from the English progressive rock band Yes, released on Atlantic Records. It is the first to feature keyboardist Rick Wakeman, who replaced Tony Kaye in 1971, and the first to feature cover art by Roger Dean, who would design many of the band's records.Upon its...
.
External links
- Downloadable score of the piece in .pdf format
- Allusive Irony in Brahms's Fourth Symphony. (Analysis of Allusions in the Symphony) by Kenneth Hull
- Detailed Listening Guide using the recording by Claudio AbbadoClaudio AbbadoClaudio Abbado, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI , is an Italian conductor. He has served as music director of the La Scala opera house in Milan, principal conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra, principal guest conductor of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, music director of the Vienna State Opera,...
- Andrew Clements, "Brahms: Symphony No. 4" (from "Building a Classical Library" series). The Guardian, 17 March 2000.