Variations on a Theme by Joseph Haydn
Encyclopedia
The Variations on a Theme by Joseph Haydn, , is a work in the form of a theme
and variations
, composed by Johannes Brahms
in the summer of 1873. It consists of a theme in B-flat major, eight variations and a finale.
It was published in two versions: for two piano
s, written first but designated Op. 56b; and for orchestra
, designated Op. 56a. The orchestral version is better known and much more often heard than the two-piano version. It is often said to be the first independent set of variations for orchestra in the history of music, although there is at least one earlier piece in the same form, Antonio Salieri
's Twenty-six Variations on 'La folia di Spagna written in 1815.
Brahms' orchestral variations are scored for piccolo
, 2 flute
s, 2 oboe
s, 2 clarinet
s, 2 bassoon
s, contrabassoon
, 4 horn
s (2 in E flat, 2 in B flat), 2 trumpet
s, timpani
, triangle
, and the normal string section of first and second violin
s, viola
s, cello
s and double bass
es.
The first performance of the orchestral version was given on 2 November 1873 by the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra under Brahms's baton.
The piece usually takes about 18 minutes to perform.
. In 1870, Brahms's friend Carl Ferdinand Pohl, the librarian of the Vienna Philharmonic Society, who was working on a Haydn biography at the time, showed Brahms a transcription he had made of a piece attributed to Haydn titled Divertimento No. 1. The second movement bore the heading "St. Anthony Chorale," and it is this movement which, in its entirety, forms the theme on which the variations are based. Brahms's statement of the theme varies in small but significant ways from the original, principally with regard to instrumentation. Some sources state the Divertimento was probably written by Ignaz Pleyel
, but this has not been definitely established. Even so, a further question is whether the composer of the Divertimento actually wrote the "St. Anthony Chorale" or simply quoted an older theme taken from an unknown source.
While current usage still prefers the original title, Variations on the St. Anthony Chorale is the name favored by those who object to possibly perpetuating a misattribution. Even that name, however, tells us very little. To date, no other mention of the so-called "St. Anthony Chorale" has been found.
seldom encountered in Romantic
music.
The finale is a magnificent theme and variations on a ground bass, five measures in length, derived from the principal theme. Its culmination, a restatement of the chorale, is a moment of such transcendence that the usually austere Brahms permits himself the use of a triangle
.
Just before the end of the piece, in the coda
of the finale, Brahms quotes a passage that really is by Haydn. In mm. 463-464, the violas and cellos echo the cello line from m. 148 of the second movement of the latter's "Clock" Symphony
, one of the finest examples of Haydn's pioneering work in the symphonic variation
form. The reader may compare the two passages by following these links: Brahms, Haydn (see below for link credits). Ironically, this fragmentary allusion may be the music's sole remaining link to Haydn.
Theme (music)
In music, a theme is the material, usually a recognizable melody, upon which part or all of a composition is based.-Characteristics:A theme may be perceivable as a complete musical expression in itself, separate from the work in which it is found . In contrast to an idea or motif, a theme is...
and variations
Variation (music)
In music, variation is a formal technique where material is repeated in an altered form. The changes may involve harmony, melody, counterpoint, rhythm, timbre, orchestration or any combination of these.-Variation form:...
, composed by Johannes Brahms
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...
in the summer of 1873. It consists of a theme in B-flat major, eight variations and a finale.
It was published in two versions: 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, written first but designated Op. 56b; and for orchestra
Orchestra
An orchestra is a sizable instrumental ensemble that contains sections of string, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. The term orchestra derives from the Greek ορχήστρα, the name for the area in front of an ancient Greek stage reserved for the Greek chorus...
, designated Op. 56a. The orchestral version is better known and much more often heard than the two-piano version. It is often said to be the first independent set of variations for orchestra in the history of music, although there is at least one earlier piece in the same form, Antonio Salieri
Antonio Salieri
Antonio Salieri was a Venetian classical composer, conductor and teacher born in Legnago, south of Verona, in the Republic of Venice, but who spent his adult life and career as a faithful subject of the Habsburg monarchy....
's Twenty-six Variations on 'La folia di Spagna written in 1815.
Brahms' orchestral variations are scored for 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...
, 2 flute
Flute
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, 2 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, 2 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, 2 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...
, 4 horn
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 ....
s (2 in E flat, 2 in B flat), 2 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, 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...
, and the normal string section of first and second violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
s, viola
Viola
The viola is a bowed string instrument. It is the middle voice of the violin family, between the violin and the cello.- Form :The viola is similar in material and construction to the violin. A full-size viola's body is between and longer than the body of a full-size violin , with an average...
s, cello
Cello
The cello is a bowed string instrument with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is a member of the violin family of musical instruments, which also includes the violin, viola, and double bass. Old forms of the instrument in the Baroque era are baryton and viol .A person who plays a cello is...
s and double bass
Double bass
The double bass, also called the string bass, upright bass, standup bass or contrabass, is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra, with strings usually tuned to E1, A1, D2 and G2...
es.
The first performance of the orchestral version was given on 2 November 1873 by the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra under Brahms's baton.
The piece usually takes about 18 minutes to perform.
Origin of the theme
Despite the title of the work, there has been much debate since about 1950 over whether the theme is actually by HaydnJoseph Haydn
Franz Joseph Haydn , known as Joseph Haydn , was an Austrian composer, one of the most prolific and prominent composers of the Classical period. He is often called the "Father of the Symphony" and "Father of the String Quartet" because of his important contributions to these forms...
. In 1870, Brahms's friend Carl Ferdinand Pohl, the librarian of the Vienna Philharmonic Society, who was working on a Haydn biography at the time, showed Brahms a transcription he had made of a piece attributed to Haydn titled Divertimento No. 1. The second movement bore the heading "St. Anthony Chorale," and it is this movement which, in its entirety, forms the theme on which the variations are based. Brahms's statement of the theme varies in small but significant ways from the original, principally with regard to instrumentation. Some sources state the Divertimento was probably written by Ignaz Pleyel
Ignaz Pleyel
Ignace Joseph Pleyel , ; was an Austrian-born French composer and piano builder of the Classical period.-Early years:...
, but this has not been definitely established. Even so, a further question is whether the composer of the Divertimento actually wrote the "St. Anthony Chorale" or simply quoted an older theme taken from an unknown source.
While current usage still prefers the original title, Variations on the St. Anthony Chorale is the name favored by those who object to possibly perpetuating a misattribution. Even that name, however, tells us very little. To date, no other mention of the so-called "St. Anthony Chorale" has been found.
Form
The theme begins with a repeated ten-measure passage which itself consists of two intriguing five-measure phrases, a quirk that is likely to have caught Brahms's attention. Almost without exception, the eight variations follow the phrasal structure of the theme and, though less strictly, the harmonic structure as well. Each has a distinctive character, several calling to mind the forms and techniques of earlier eras, with some displaying a mastery of counterpointCounterpoint
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,...
seldom encountered in Romantic
Romantic music
Romantic music or music in the Romantic Period is a musicological and artistic term referring to a particular period, theory, compositional practice, and canon in Western music history, from 1810 to 1900....
music.
The finale is a magnificent theme and variations on a ground bass, five measures in length, derived from the principal theme. Its culmination, a restatement of the chorale, is a moment of such transcendence that the usually austere Brahms permits himself the use of a 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...
.
Just before the end of the piece, in the coda
Coda (music)
Coda is a term used in music in a number of different senses, primarily to designate a passage that brings a piece to an end. Technically, it is an expanded cadence...
of the finale, Brahms quotes a passage that really is by Haydn. In mm. 463-464, the violas and cellos echo the cello line from m. 148 of the second movement of the latter's "Clock" Symphony
Symphony No. 101 (Haydn)
The Symphony No. 101 in D major is the ninth of the twelve so-called London Symphonies written by Joseph Haydn. It is popularly known as The Clock because of the "ticking" rhythm throughout the second movement....
, one of the finest examples of Haydn's pioneering work in the symphonic variation
Variation (music)
In music, variation is a formal technique where material is repeated in an altered form. The changes may involve harmony, melody, counterpoint, rhythm, timbre, orchestration or any combination of these.-Variation form:...
form. The reader may compare the two passages by following these links: Brahms, Haydn (see below for link credits). Ironically, this fragmentary allusion may be the music's sole remaining link to Haydn.
Movements
The movements are named and tempo markings given as follows. Where the tempo markings of the two versions differ, the one for Op. 56b is shown in parentheses.- Thema. Chorale St. Antoni. Andante
- Variation I. Poco più animato (Andante con moto)
- Variation II. Più vivace (Vivace)
- Variation III. Con moto
- Variation IV. Andante con moto (Andante)
- Variation V. Vivace (Poco presto)
- Variation VI. Vivace
- Variation VII. Grazioso
- Variation VIII. Presto non troppo (Poco presto)
- Finale. Andante
Media
This is a performance of the version for two pianos. The pianists are Neal and Nancy O'Doan.External links
- The score of Brahms's Variations has been posted by the William and Gayle Cook Music Library at the Indiana University School of Music. The same library is the source of the Haydn link included in the comparison above.
- Program Notes by Richard E. Rodda for the Apr 9-11, 2009 Kennedy Center performances featuring Kurt MasurKurt MasurKurt Masur is a German conductor, particularly noted for his interpretation of German Romantic music.- Biography :Masur was born in Brieg, Lower Silesia, Germany and studied piano, composition and conducting in Leipzig, Saxony. Masur has been married three times...
, conducting the U.S. National Symphony Orchestra.