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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Kempff plays Brahms
Johannes Brahms, Wilhelm Kempff
Classical - Released by UME - Global Clearing House on 21 Nov 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Johannes Brahms : Complete Music for Cello and Piano (Transcriptions : Hungarian Dances - Lieder - Violin Sonata No.1)
Jonathan Aasgaard, Martin Roscoe
Chamber Music - Released by Avie Records on 8 Apr 2014
Gramophone Editor's Choice16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms Symphony No. 2 & Symphony No. 4
Philharmonia Orchestra, Christoph von Dohnányi
Classical - Released by Signum Classics on 25 Aug 2008
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms - A Classical Morning
Classical - Released by UME - Global Clearing House on 4 Nov 2022
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms : Ein Deutsches Requiem, Op. 45 (Live)
Jan Willem de Vriend, Rotterdam Symphony Chorus, Residentie Orkest The Hague
Classical - Released by Challenge Classics on 7 Oct 2016
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms: Balladen Op. 10, Intermezzi Op. 117 - Klavierstücke Op. 118 & Op. 119 (Deluxe Edition)
Classical - Released by Claves Records on 10 Aug 2021
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms: Piano Concerto No. 1 Op. 15 & Liszt: Trois odes funèbres S. 112
Hungarian National Philharmonic Orchestra
Classical - Released by Celestial Harmonies on 7 Sep 2016
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Schumann & Brahms
Classical - Released by Champs Hill Records on 28 Jul 2017
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Brahms: Liebeslieder Waltzes Op. 521/65A
Classical - Released by Claves Records on 1 Jan 1987
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms: Violin Concerto / Schumann: Symphony No. 4
Classical - Released by Avie Records on 2 May 2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms: 21 Hungarian Dances for Piano Four Hands - 16 Waltzes for Two Pianos
Classical - Released by Int - Bertus on 30 Sep 2016
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Art of the Piano Vol. 2: Brahms, Liszt, Schumann, Schubert
Classical - Released by UME - Global Clearing House on 24 Nov 2023
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A Classical Winter: The Piano
Classical - Released by UME - Global Clearing House on 4 Dec 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Johannes Brahms - Water Drops
Classical - Released by UME - Global Clearing House on 18 Jul 2020
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A Season of Music: Brahms
Classical - Released by UME - Global Clearing House on 21 Sep 2022
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Brahms: The Piano Quartets
Chamber Music - Released by Meridian Records on 29 Mar 2019
24-Bit 192.0 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms: Serenade No. 1 & Variations on a Theme by Haydn
Jan Willem de Vriend, Residentie Orkest The Hague
Classical - Released by Challenge Classics on 6 May 2016
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms / Ravel / Poulenc - Wigmore Hall Live
Chamber Music - Released by Wigmore Hall Live on 1 Apr 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
Classical - Released by UME - Global Clearing House on 2 Apr 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms: All Time Greatest Moments
Academy Of St. Christopher Orchestra
Classical - Released by Big Eye on 1 Jan 2008
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Bernard Haitink - A Portrait
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Johannes Brahms, Bernard Haitink
Classical - Released by UME - Global Clearing House on 2 Sep 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo