Brahms

Often called the successor to Beethoven, Brahms achieved greatness in a wide variety of
genres. Despite his intellectual rigor, he is one of the most popular Romantic composers

Biographical Outline
 First gig, late 1840s: Pianist, performing at social gatherings and respectable
entertainment halls. Develops love of books and scholarship while completing
high school and studies with a leading, local piano teacher.
 Friends for life, 1853: Brahms meets the composer Robert Schumann and his
wife, pianist Clara Schumann. Robert writes a rave essay on Brahms and his
music, gets him accepted by a major publisher.
 Disaster and love, 1854: After Robert has a mental breakdown in 1854, Brahms
helps Clara manage her seven-child household, taking charge while she earns
money on concert tours. He falls in love with her, but after Robert’s death in1856
and a holiday along the Rhine with her, they separate, although  Clara remains his
closest friend and advisor..
 Chrysalis, 1855: Dissatisfied with his compositions, Brahms plunges into
counterpoint exercises and study of early music. He emerges, several years later,
with formidable composition technique and rewrites several works previously
begun, particularly his first piano concerto. The concerto flops at its premiere in
Leipzig in 1859 but endures today as one of the great works of the orchestral
repertoire.
 Vienna, 1862: Brahms sees Vienna for the first timeand establishes a presence
there. He becomes director of Vienna’s Singakademie (choral society). Moved by
the death of his mother in 1865, he writes A German Requiem (1868), one of the
major choral works of the century. On the success of  that and  his Hungarian
Dances (1868), Brahms becomes wealthy and famous.
 Better late than never, 1873: Breaks a creative logjam by writing two string
quartets that meet his exacting standards, and the Variations on a Theme of
Haydn. Finally writes his First Symphony, 1876, and nearly all of his most
famous orchestral works afterwards, the last in 1888. He continues to compose
chamber masterpieces, and, in his last years, Brahms sees his music triumph
throughout Europe and America.

Slušamo

Brams je umro na današnji dan, 3. aprila 1897. godine.

Johanes Brams (Johannes Brahms), nemački kompozitor i pijanista, rođen je u porodici

muzičara. Još od malih nogu krenuo je da uči kod svog oca violinu, violončelo i hornu.
Međutim, opredeljuje se za klavir i postaje pravi virtouz već sa 14 godina. Zahvaljujući
odličnoj kritici i preporuci Roberta Šumana, ubrzo postaje poznat i slavan.
Zanimljivo je da je Brams komponovao sve vrste instrumentalnih i vokalnih kompozicija,
osim opera. Njegovo najpoznatije delo su verovatno „Mađarske igre“, koje je prvobitno
napisao u verziji za klavir u 4 ruke, da bi kasnije preradio prvih 10 igara i za solo klavir.
 Whisker legacy: Brahms was famous for his large beard and portly appearance,
but he was quite thin as a youth, with baby-smooth cheeks, and didn’t grow his
beard until he was 45.
 Personality: Brahms was shy and reserved, but he had many friends. Though he
never married, he loved playing favorite uncle to the children in his circle.
 Famous letters: The conductor Hans von Bülow once wrote that he liked the key
of E-flat with its “three Bs, Bach, Beethoven and Brahms." “The Three Bs” has
became a catch-phrase representing musical greatness.
 Fine tobacco: Brahms loved a good cigar, but hated import duties on tobacco. He
once was caught smuggling it, stuffed into stockings in his luggage.
 Picky, picky: Brahms was ruthless about his own music, destroying scores that he
felt were not his best even late in his career, along with all his sketches.
 Where there’s no will...: Brahms died without a will, causing a legal dispute
between rival claimants to his estate.

Muzika koja leči

Iako je otac Johanes Bramsa bio samo amaterski muzičar, koji je svirao
kontrabas po gradskim baštama za sitnu nadoknadu, on je ipak svom sinu bio
uzor do kraja života. Stari Brams bio je veoma ponosan čovek. Čak i kada je
njegov sin postao poznat i počeo da zarađuje više od njega, on je i dalje
odbijao da od njega primi novčanu pomoć. Kada je jednom mladi Brams trebalo
da ode na duži put, obratio se svom ocu rečima:

- „Oče, veruj mi, muzika je najveća uteha, u svakoj situaciji. Ako se ikada
budeš loše osećao, samo prelistaj partituru Hendlovog dela „Saul“ i
garantujem ti da ćeš se posle toga bolje osećati.“

Elem, nije dugo prošlo od Johanesovog odlaska, a stari Brams je već bio zapao
u finansijsku krizu. Bio je potpuno utučen. Setivši se sinovljevih reči, otišao je
do biblioteke i potražio Hendlovu partituru o kojoj mu je sin govorio. Dok je
polako prelistavao note, shvatio je da je njegov sin bio u pravu – u partiturama
je zaista našao utehu. Naime, mladi Brams je između svake stranice umetnuo
po jednu novčanicu…

Transponovanje
Osim što je bio dobar kompozitor, Brams je bio i odličan pijanista. Jednom
prilikom, dok je bio na turneji sa poznatim mađarskim violinistom Ediarom
Remenjijem, trebalo je da sviraju u gradu Celeu, kod Hanovera. Sve je bilo u
redu, dok se nisu popeli na podijum. Tek tada su primetili da je klavir
naštimovan za pola tona niže!

Remenji je odbio da preštimuje svoju violinu, jer se bojao da će Betovenova

sonata u c-molu, koju je trebalo da sviraju, izgubiti na efektu. Brams je tada
seo za klavir i počeo na licu mesta da transponuje deonicu klavira za pola tona
naviše! Tako je nastavio do kraja i odsvirao je celu sonatu u cis-molu, bez i
jedne greške. Publika je, naravno, bila oduševljena…