Johannes Brahms
The stature of Johannes Brahms among classical composers is best illustrated by his inclusion among the "Three Bs" triumvirate of Bach, Beethoven, and Brahms. Of all the major composers of the late Romantic era, Brahms was the one most attached to the Classical ideal as manifested in the music of Haydn, Mozart, and especially Beethoven; indeed, Hans von Bülow once characterized Brahms' Symphony No. 1 (1855-1876) as "Beethoven's Tenth." As a youth, Brahms was championed by Robert Schumann as music's greatest hope for the future; as a mature composer, Brahms became the most potent symbol of musical tradition for conservative musical journalists, a stalwart against the "degeneration" represented by the music of Wagner and his school. Brahms' symphonies, choral and vocal works, chamber music, and piano pieces are imbued with strong emotional feeling, yet take shape according to a thoroughly considered structural plan.
The son of a double bassist in the Hamburg Philharmonic Society, Brahms demonstrated great promise at a young age. He began his musical career as a pianist, contributing to the family coffers as a teenager by playing in restaurants, taverns, and even brothels. By his early twenties he enjoyed associations with luminaries like violinists Eduard Reményi and Joseph Joachim, but the friend and mentor who was most instrumental in advancing his career was Schumann, who all but adopted him and became his most ardent admirer -- their esteem was mutual. Following Schumann's death in 1856, Brahms became the closest confidant and lifelong friend of the composer's widow, pianist and composer Clara Wieck Schumann. After a lifetime of spectacular musical triumphs and failed loves (the composer was involved in several romantic entanglements but never wed), Brahms died of liver cancer on April 3, 1897.
In every genre in which he composed, Brahms produced works that have become staples of the repertory. His most ambitious work, the German Requiem (1863-1867), is the composer's singular reinterpretation of an age-old form. The four symphonies -- lushly scored, grand in scope, and deeply expressive -- are cornerstones of the symphonic literature. Brahms' concertos are in a similarly monumental, quasi-symphonic vein: the two piano concertos (1856-1859 and 1881), and the Violin Concerto (1878) call for soloists with both considerable technical skill and stamina. His chamber music is among the most sophisticated and exquisitely crafted of the Romantic era; his works that incorporate clarinet (e.g., the Trio in A minor, Op. 114 and the two Sonatas, Op. 120), the latter an instrument largely overlooked by his contemporaries -- remain unsurpassed. Though the piano sonata never held the same appeal for Brahms as it did for Beethoven (Brahms wrote three to Beethoven's 32), he produced a voluminous body of music for the piano. He showed a particular affinity for variations -- notably, on themes of Schumann (1854), Handel (1861), and Paganini (1862-1863) -- and likewise produced a passel of national dances and character pieces such as ballades, intermezzi, and rhapsodies. Collectively, these constitute one of the essential bodies of work in the realm of 19th century keyboard music.
© Rovi Staff /TiVo
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Brahms: Violin Sonatas 1-2-3
Música de cámara - Editado por Onyx Classics el 3/11/2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Kempff plays Brahms
Johannes Brahms, Wilhelm Kempff
Clásica - Editado por UME - Global Clearing House el 21/11/2020
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Brahms - A Classical Morning
Clásica - Editado por UME - Global Clearing House el 4/11/2022
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Brahms : Ein Deutsches Requiem, Op. 45 (Live)
Jan Willem de Vriend, Rotterdam Symphony Chorus, Residentie Orkest The Hague
Clásica - Editado por Challenge Classics el 7/10/2016
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms: Balladen Op. 10, Intermezzi Op. 117 - Klavierstücke Op. 118 & Op. 119 (Deluxe Edition)
Clásica - Editado por Claves Records el 10/08/2021
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms: Liebeslieder Waltzes Op. 521/65A
Clásica - Editado por Claves Records el 1/01/1987
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Art of the Piano Vol. 2: Brahms, Liszt, Schumann, Schubert
Clásica - Editado por UME - Global Clearing House el 24/11/2023
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A Classical Winter: The Piano
Clásica - Editado por UME - Global Clearing House el 4/12/2023
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Johannes Brahms - Water Drops
Clásica - Editado por UME - Global Clearing House el 18/07/2020
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Brahms: The Piano Quartets
Música de cámara - Editado por Meridian Records el 29/03/2019
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Brahms Symphony No. 2 & Symphony No. 4
Philharmonia Orchestra, Christoph von Dohnányi
Clásica - Editado por Signum Classics el 25/08/2008
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A Romantic Melody
Johannes Brahms, Franz Liszt, Robert Schumann
Clásica - Editado por UME - Global Clearing House el 10/04/2024
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Brahms: Serenade No. 1 & Variations on a Theme by Haydn
Jan Willem de Vriend, Residentie Orkest The Hague
Clásica - Editado por Challenge Classics el 6/05/2016
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Brahms / Ravel / Poulenc - Wigmore Hall Live
Música de cámara - Editado por Wigmore Hall Live el 1/04/2016
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GRANDI VOCI - RENATA TEBALDI - Canzoni italiane, canzoni napoletane, arie sacre e canti di Natale Una collana con registrazioni originali Decca e Deutsche Grammophon rimasterizzate con tecniche moderne che ne garantiscono eccellenza tecnica e artistica
Renata Tebaldi, Johannes Brahms, Gaetano Donizetti
Clásica - Editado por UME - Global Clearing House el 2/04/2021
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Bernard Haitink - A Portrait
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Johannes Brahms, Bernard Haitink
Clásica - Editado por UME - Global Clearing House el 2/09/2020
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A Journey with Romantic Piano
Clásica - Editado por UME - Global Clearing House el 23/03/2024
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Ouvres pour piano à 4 mains
Clásica - Editado por Claves Records el 1/01/1987
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Classical Sonosphere Vol. 1
Johannes Brahms, Franz Liszt, Camille Saint-Saëns
Clásica - Editado por UME - Global Clearing House el 22/06/2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms, Debussy & more - Masters of the Piano, Vol II
Pyotr Illitch Tchaïkovski, Claude Debussy, Johannes Brahms
Clásica - Editado por UME - Global Clearing House el 17/07/2023
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Peaceful Classical
Johannes Brahms, Georg Friedrich Händel, Claude Debussy
Clásica - Editado por UME - Global Clearing House el 11/03/2024
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo