I have to admit I know very little of Johannes Brahms’ biographical information. I have read that he was considered by some to be an heir apparent to Beethoven – something he had to “live down” during his own time. Indeed, one of the reasons given for his relatively small output of proper Symphonies (only four) was that he was constantly revising them and agonizing over their construction in case someone were to hold his work up to Beethoven’s. That’s a heck of a lot of pressure to have to deal with, but I would have to say Brahms did an admirable job of cutting his own path musically speaking.
I must also admit I haven’t yet heard nearly as many Brahms compositions as I’d like, but enough to take a public stand to say – “I dig Brahms”. Although he lived and worked in the Romantic era of music, there’s a thoughtfulness to his work – some contemporaries apparently criticized him for being “too intellectual”. Brahms did not write cold music, however. Some composers I have to be in a certain mood for. But for me – it’s always time for Brahms! The two albums pictured here are among some of my favorites.
The record of late piano music features the solo performances of Walter Gieseking – a performer I have come to admire through these and other recorded works (I know I have some Beethoven records of his). These recordings were issued in 1953 originally and I am guessing the sources used for my 2LP set may likely have been original 78’s (though by 1953 magnetic tape had been in use for quite some time – were the original reels preserved? Maybe…). At any rate – this is a great collection of Brahms’ late piano pieces some of which really stretch the boundaries of the era in which they were composed. I am happy to note that the album I have must be a late70’s / early 80’s pressing on the Seraphim label (an offshoot of EMI’s classical imprint “Angel” records whose main purpose was to reissue older recordings at budget prices). By this time, Capitol’s pressings were much nicer than the 60’s and early 70’s deals which tend to be sketchy at best and miserable at the worst. This one is quite nice indeed!
Bruno Walter’s rendering of Brahms’ 4th Symphony (here on a mono Columbia six-eye pressing) is what really got me listening to more Brahms this year. I’m not sure what year this recording came out, but I know there’s a stereo version of this same performance so I’m figuring late-1950’s. Even though my copy is mono – wow does this record sound great! Frequency response is fab – plenty of nice detail in the highs and lows where needed. And this adds to an enjoyable performance. Since getting into this symphony so much I’ve added other 4ths to my collection – Karajan, Dorati, Munch – but none of them hit the mark of this Bruno Walter reading. That’s the fun thing with this hobby – finding alternate versions / performances of a favorite piece can be easy and mainly inexpensive. Since getting into Brahms’ symphonies I’ve racked up several 1sts, about as many 2nds though only two 3rds so far. Although the piece itself is the same, so many other variables can come into play to create a unique listening experience – conductors, symphony orchestras, recording techniques, the cutting & pressing of the records themselves – all kinds of weird stuff can alter the overall experience.
Now, I’m sure there are probably some wonderful modern recordings of these pieces. And I know at some point I ought to seek out some of the latest offerings from modern orchestras and conductors. But getting one’s feet wet with such a vast genre as “classical” represents can be done easily and cheaply – especially if you’re a vinyl record buff. Of course, the best way to get a deeper appreciation for any type of music is to hear it performed live – nothing beats that. I’ll certainly be on the lookout for any live Brahms performances near me!
