Johannes BrahmsJohannes Brahms , German composer and pianist, was 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...
composed his
Piano Concerto No. 1 in D minor,
Op.Opus , from the Latin word opus meaning "work", is usually used in the sense of "a work of art".The Latin plural of opus, "opera", is used to refer to the genre of music drama Opus (plural opera or opuses), from the Latin word opus meaning "work", is usually used in the sense of "a work of art".The...
15 in 1858, giving the first public performance in
HamburgHamburg is the second-largest city in Germany and the sixth-largest city in the European Union...
,
GermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium,...
the following year.
The concerto is in the traditional three movements and lasts approximately between 40 and 50 minutes.
- Maestoso
Maestoso is an Italian musical term and is used to direct performers to play a certain passage of music in a stately, dignified and majestic fashion or, it is used to describe music as such. The term is commonly used in relatively slow pieces; however, there are numerous examples - such as the...
(D minorD minor is a minor scale based on D, consisting of the pitches D, E, F, G, A, B, and C. In the harmonic minor, the C is raised to C. Its key signature has one flat ....
)
- The first movement is in sonata form, divided into five sections: orchestral introduction, exposition, development, recapitulation, and coda.
Johannes BrahmsJohannes Brahms , German composer and pianist, was 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...
composed his
Piano Concerto No. 1 in D minor,
Op.Opus , from the Latin word opus meaning "work", is usually used in the sense of "a work of art".The Latin plural of opus, "opera", is used to refer to the genre of music drama Opus (plural opera or opuses), from the Latin word opus meaning "work", is usually used in the sense of "a work of art".The...
15 in 1858, giving the first public performance in
HamburgHamburg is the second-largest city in Germany and the sixth-largest city in the European Union...
,
GermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium,...
the following year.
Form
The concerto is in the traditional three movements and lasts approximately between 40 and 50 minutes.
- Maestoso
Maestoso is an Italian musical term and is used to direct performers to play a certain passage of music in a stately, dignified and majestic fashion or, it is used to describe music as such. The term is commonly used in relatively slow pieces; however, there are numerous examples - such as the...
(D minorD minor is a minor scale based on D, consisting of the pitches D, E, F, G, A, B, and C. In the harmonic minor, the C is raised to C. Its key signature has one flat ....
)
- The first movement is in sonata form, divided into five sections: orchestral introduction, exposition, development, recapitulation, and coda. This movement is large, lasting between 20 to 25 minutes. This strict adherence to forms used in the Classical Period earned Brahms a reputation for being musically "conservative." The theme consists heavily of arpeggiated chords and trills. Within the orchestral introduction other themes are introduced, and there exists an integrative development of thematic material by both the orchestra and the soloist.
- Adagio (D major
D major is a major scale based on D, consisting of the pitches D, E, F, G, A, B, and C. Its key signature consists of two sharps. Its relative minor is B minor and its parallel minor is D minor....
)
- This movement is in a ternary form, with the theme being introduced by 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 1800s, the bassoon figures prominently in orchestral, concert band, and chamber music literature...
.
- Rondo
Rondo, and its French equivalent rondeau, is a word that has been used in music in a number of ways, most often in reference to a musical form, but also in reference to a character-type that is distinct from the form...
: Allegro non troppo (D minor → D major)
- The structure of the Rondo finale is similar to that of the rondo of Beethoven's third piano concerto
The Piano Concerto No. 3 in C minor, Op. 37, was composed by Ludwig van Beethoven in 1800 and was first performed on 5 April 1803, with the composer as soloist. During that same performance, the Second Symphony and the oratorio Christ on the Mount of Olives were also debuted...
. There are three themes present in this rondo; the second theme may be considered a strong variation of the first. The third theme is introduced in the episode but is never explicitly developed by the soloist, instead the soloist is "integrated into the orchestral effect." A cadenza follows the bulk of the rondo, with an extensive coda that develops the first and third themes appearing afterwards. The coda is in D majorD major is a major scale based on D, consisting of the pitches D, E, F, G, A, B, and C. Its key signature consists of two sharps. Its relative minor is B minor and its parallel minor is D minor....
.
Composition
Brahms worked on the composition for some years, as was the case with many of his works. After a prolonged gestation period, it was first performed on January 22, 1859, in Hanover, Germany, when Brahms was just 25 years old. Five days later, at
LeipzigLeipzig is, with a population of 515,459, the largest city in the federal state of Saxony, Germany.-Origins:Leipzig's name is derived from the Slavic word Lipsk, which means "settlement where the lime trees stand"....
, an unenthusiastic audience hissed at the
concertoThe term Concerto is usually a three-part musical work in which one solo instrument is accompanied by an orchestra...
, while critics savaged it, labelling it "perfectly unorthodox, banal and horrid". In a letter to his close personal friend, the renowned violinist
Joseph JoachimJoseph Joachim was a Hungarian violinist, conductor, composer and teacher. He is widely regarded as a great and significantly influential violinist of the late 19th century.-Origins:...
, Brahms stated, "I am only experimenting and feeling my way", adding sadly, "all the same, the hissing was rather too much!"
Brahms originally conceived the work as a sonata for two pianos. Seeking a grander and fuller sound, Brahms later
orchestratedOrchestration is the study or practice of writing music for an orchestra or of adapting for orchestra music composed for another medium...
the work in an attempt to transform it into a four-movement
symphonyA symphony is an extended musical composition, scored almost always for orchestra. "Symphony" does not necessarily imply a specific form though most are composed according to the sonata principle...
. This was, if not his first, one of his first attempts at orchestral writing, and he sought much advice from his friend
Julius Otto GrimmJulius Otto Grimm was a composer, conductor and musician of Westphalia. He is best remembered today as one of the best friends of Johannes Brahms, whom he met in Leipzig in 1853...
. However, he also found that unsatisfactory. Brahms ultimately decided that he had not sufficiently mastered the nuances of orchestral color to sustain a symphony, and instead relied on his skills as a pianist and composer for the piano to complete the work as a concerto. Brahms only retained the original material from the work's first movement; the remaining movements were discarded and two new ones were composed, yielding a work in the more usual three-movement concerto structure.
Biographical points
Brahms' biographers often note that the first sketches for the dramatic opening movement followed quickly on the heels of the 1854 suicide attempt of the composer's dear friend and mentor,
Robert SchumannRobert Schumann, sometimes given as Robert Alexander Schumann, was a German composer, aesthete and influential music critic...
, an event which caused great anguish for Brahms. He finally completed the concerto two years after Schumann's death in 1856, by which time his love for Schumann's widow,
Clara SchumannClara Schumann was a German musician and composer, considered one of the most distinguished pianists of the Romantic era...
, had fully blossomed.
The degree to which Brahms' personal experience is embedded in the concerto is hard to gauge since several other factors also influenced the musical expression of the piece. The epic mood links the work explicitly to the tradition of the
Beethoven symphonyLudwig van Beethoven is generally viewed as one of the most influential figures in the history of European classical music. Since his lifetime, when he was "universally accepted as the greatest living composer," Beethoven's music has remained among the most performed, discussed and reviewed...
that Brahms sought to emulate. The finale of the concerto, for example, is clearly modeled on the last movement of
Beethoven's third piano concertoThe Piano Concerto No. 3 in C minor, Op. 37, was composed by Ludwig van Beethoven in 1800 and was first performed on 5 April 1803, with the composer as soloist. During that same performance, the Second Symphony and the oratorio Christ on the Mount of Olives were also debuted...
, while the concerto's key of
D minorD minor is a minor scale based on D, consisting of the pitches D, E, F, G, A, B, and C. In the harmonic minor, the C is raised to C. Its key signature has one flat ....
is the same as both Beethoven's
Ninth SymphonyThe Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125 "Choral" is the final complete symphony of Ludwig van Beethoven. Completed in 1824, the symphony is one of the best known works of the Western classical repertoire and is considered one of Beethoven's greatest masterpieces.The symphony was the first example of...
and
MozartWolfgang Amadeus Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart , was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical era. He composed over 600 works, many acknowledged as...
's dramatic
Piano Concerto No. 20The Piano Concerto No. 20 in D minor, K. 466, was written by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in 1785. The first performance was at the Mehlgrube Casino in Vienna on February 11, 1785, with the composer as the soloist....
.
Symphonic and chamber techniques
The work reflects Brahms' effort to combine the piano with the
orchestraAn orchestra is an instrumental ensemble, usually fairly large with string, brass, woodwind sections, and possibly a percussion section as well. The term orchestra derives from the name for the area in front of an ancient Greek stage reserved for the Greek chorus...
as equal partners, unlike earlier classical concertos, where the orchestra effectively
accompaniedIn music, accompaniment is the art of playing along with a soloist or ensemble, often known as the lead, in a supporting manner as well as the music thus played...
the pianist. Even for the young Brahms, the concerto-as-showpiece had little appeal. Instead, he enlisted both orchestra and soloist in the service of the musical ideas; technically difficult passages in the concerto are never gratuitous, but extend and develop the thematic material. Such an approach is thoroughly in keeping with Brahms' artistic temperament, but also reflects the concerto's symphonic origins and ambitions. His effort drew on both
chamber musicChamber music is a form of classical music, written for a small group of instruments which traditionally could be accommodated in a palace chamber. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small number of performers with one performer to a part...
techniques and the pre-classical
BaroqueBaroque is an artistic style prevalent from the late 16th century to the early 18th century. The popularity and success of the Baroque style was encouraged by the Roman Catholic Church, which had decided at the time of the Council of Trent that the arts should communicate religious themes in...
concerto grossoThe concerto grosso is a form of baroque music in which the musical material is passed between a small group of soloists and full orchestra ....
, an approach that later was fully realized in Brahms'
Second Piano ConcertoThe Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-flat major, Op. 83 by Johannes Brahms is a composition for solo piano with orchestral accompaniment. It is separated by a gap of 22 years from the composer's first piano concerto. Brahms began work on the piece in 1878 and completed it in 1881 while in Pressbaum near...
. This first concerto also demonstrates Brahms' particular interest in scoring for the
timpaniTimpani 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, and more recently, constructed of more lightweight fiberglass. They are played by striking the head with a specialized drum stick...
and the
hornThe 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 ....
, both of whose parts are notoriously difficult, with the timpani playing repeated notes for extended periods of time and the horn part being difficult for its many prominent usages with or without the piano.
Although a work of Brahms' youth, this concerto is a mature work that points forward to his later concertos and his
First SymphonyThe Symphony No. 1 in C minor, Op. 68, is a symphony written by Johannes Brahms. Brahms spent at least fourteen years completing this work, whose sketches date from 1854. Brahms himself declared that the symphony, from sketches to finishing touches, took 21 years, from 1855 to 1876...
. Most notable are its scale and grandeur, as well as the thrilling technical difficulties it presents. As time passed, the work grew in popularity until it was recognized as a masterpiece.
Notable interpretations
- Claudio Arrau
Claudio Arrau León was a Chilean pianist known for his interpretations of a vast repertoire spanning from the baroque to 20th-century composers, especially Beethoven, Schubert, Chopin, Schumann, Liszt, Brahms and Debussy...
with Bernard HaitinkBernard Johan Herman Haitink CH KBE is a Dutch conductor and violinist.-Early life:Haitink was born in Amsterdam, the son of Willem Haitink and Anna Haitink. He studied music at the conservatoire in Amsterdam...
and Royal Concertgebouw OrchestraThe Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra is a symphony orchestra of the Netherlands, based at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam. In 1988, Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands conferred the "Royal" title upon the orchestra...
. Haitink and the Concertgebouw Orchestra have also recorded the concerto with Vladimir AshkenazyVladimir Davidovich Ashkenazy is a Russian conductor and virtuoso pianist. He has been a citizen of Iceland, the home of his wife Þórunn, since 1972 and currently lives with his family in Switzerland.- Early life :...
.
- Clifford Curzon
Sir Clifford Michael Curzon, CBE was an English pianist.Clifford Michael Siegenberg was born in London to Michael and Constance Mary Siegenberg...
with George SzellGeorge Szell , originally György Széll or Georg Szell, was a Hungarian-born American conductor and composer...
and the London
- Nelson Freire
Nelson Freire is a Brazilian classical pianist.Freire began playing the piano when he was three years old, amazing everyone around him by replaying from memory pieces his elder sister had just performed. His teachers in Brazil were Nise Obino and Lucia Branco, who had studied with a pupil of Liszt...
with Riccardo ChaillyRiccardo Chailly is an Italian conductor. He started his career as an opera conductor and gradually extended his repertoire to encompass symphonic music.-Biography:...
and the Leipzig Gewandhausorchester.
- Emil Gilels
Emil Grigoryevich Gilels was a Soviet pianist, widely considered one of the greatest pianists of the twentieth century.His last name is sometimes transliterated Hilels.-Biography:...
with Eugen JochumEugen Jochum was an eminent German conductor.Born in Babenhausen, near Augsburg, Germany, Jochum studied the piano and organ in Augsburg until 1922. He then studied conducting in Munich...
- Glenn Gould with Leonard Bernstein and the New York Philharmonic
The New York Philharmonic concert of April 6, 1962 is widely regarded as one of the most controversial in the orchestra's history. It featured a performance by Glenn Gould of the First Piano Concerto of Johannes Brahms, with the orchestra led by its music director, Leonard Bernstein...
, famous for Bernstein's remarks on Gould's "remarkably broad tempi and ... frequent departures from Brahms' dynamic indications."
- Glenn Gould
Glenn Herbert Gould was a Canadian pianist who became one of the best-known and most celebrated classical pianists of the twentieth century. He was particularly renowned as an interpreter of the keyboard music of Johann Sebastian Bach...
with Peter Adler and the Baltimore Symphony OrchestraThe Baltimore Symphony Orchestra is a major American symphony orchestra based in Baltimore, Maryland.-Intro:The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra is a major American orchestra....
- Radu Lupu
Radu Lupu is a Romanian concert pianist. He has won a number of the most prestigious awards in classical piano, including first prizes in the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition and the Leeds International Pianoforte Competition.-Life:Lupu was born in Galaţi, the son of Meyer Lupu and Ana...
with Edo de Waart and London Symphony OrchestraThe London Symphony Orchestra is a major orchestra of the United Kingdom, as well as one of the best-known orchestras in the world. Since 1982, the LSO has been based in London's Barbican Centre.-History:...
- Maurizio Pollini
Maurizio Pollini is an Italian classical pianist.- Biography and career :Pollini was born in Milan, his father being the Italian rationalist architect Gino Pollini. Maurizio studied piano first with Carlo Lonati, until the age of 13, then with Carlo Vidusso, until he was 18...
with Claudio AbbadoClaudio Abbado, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI , is an Italian conductor. Claudio Abbado 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...
and the Berlin Philharmonic OrchestraThe Berlin Philharmonic , is an orchestra based in Berlin, Germany. In 2006, a group of ten European media outlets voted the Berlin Philharmonic number three on a list of "top ten European Orchestras", after the Vienna Philharmonic and the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra...
. Pollini has also recorded the work with Karl BöhmKarl August Leopold Böhm was an Austrian conductor.-Biography:Born in Graz, Austria, Böhm studied law and earned a doctorate on this subject. He later studied music at the Graz Conservatory. On the recommendation of Karl Muck, Bruno Walter engaged him at Munich's Bavarian State Opera in 1921...
and the Vienna Philharmonic OrchestraThe Vienna Philharmonic is an orchestra in Austria, regularly considered one of the finest in the world....
- Krystian Zimerman
Krystian Zimerman is a Polish classical pianist, who is widely regarded as one of the finest pianists in the world.-Biography:...
with Leonard BernsteinLeonard Bernstein was an American conductor, composer, author, music lecturer and pianist. He was among the first conductors born and educated in the United States of America to receive worldwide acclaim...
and Vienna Philharmonic OrchestraThe Vienna Philharmonic is an orchestra in Austria, regularly considered one of the finest in the world....
. Zimerman has also recorded the concerto with Simon RattleSir Simon Denis Rattle, CBE, FRSA, is an English conductor. He rose to international prominence as conductor of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and since 2002 has been principal conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic ....
and the Berlin Philharmonic OrchestraThe Berlin Philharmonic , is an orchestra based in Berlin, Germany. In 2006, a group of ten European media outlets voted the Berlin Philharmonic number three on a list of "top ten European Orchestras", after the Vienna Philharmonic and the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra...
.
- Leon Fleisher
Leon Fleisher is an American pianist and conductor.He was born in San Francisco, California, where he started studying the piano at age 4...
with George SzellGeorge Szell , originally György Széll or Georg Szell, was a Hungarian-born American conductor and composer...
and the Cleveland OrchestraThe Cleveland Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Cleveland, Ohio. It is one of the five American orchestras commonly referred to as the "Big Five". Founded in 1918, the orchestra plays most of its concerts at Severance Hall...
- Daniel Barenboim
Daniel Barenboim is an Argentinian-born pianist and conductor. He lives in Berlin and holds citizenship in Argentina, Israel, and Spain. He also holds a passport issued by the Palestinian Authority. Barenboim first came to prominence as a pianist but is now perhaps better known as a conductor...
with Sir John Barbirolli
Use in film
The concerto was used as background music to the film
The L-Shaped RoomThe L-Shaped Room is a 1962 British drama film, directed by Bryan Forbes, which tells the story of a young French woman, unmarried and pregnant, who moves into a London apartment building, befriending a young man in the building...
, in the recording by
Peter KatinPeter Roy Katin is a British pianist.He was admitted to the Royal Academy of Music at the age of 12, four years younger than the official entry age, where he studied under Harold Craxton. Katin made his debut at the Wigmore Hall on 13 December 1948 where the programme included works by Scarlatti,...
.
External links