Brahms: Variations and Fugue on a Theme by Handel, Op.24 (Kovacevich)
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- Опубліковано 7 лип 2024
- Brahms was, along with Bach and Beethoven, one of the true masters of variation form, and this set of variations is testament to his genius. Unlike Beethoven, Brahms never departs radically from the theme, but the structure of the Op.24, its incredible harmonic discipline (Brahms focuses with laserlike intensity on the bass line and uses it to control the structure and character of variations) and its dramatic scope put it easily alongside such works as the Diabelli and Goldberg Variations. Especially notable in the Op.24 is the use of Baroque forms - a siciliana, musette, canon, and fugue all feature.
Also of interest is the exquisite organisation of the work: each variation gains meaning not only from the theme, but from its exact placement in the set. Often consecutive variations are paired, or groups will share a common variational idea. Brahms pays careful attention to the dramatic arc of the set: he maintains a state of flux in the first half, allowing the music to reach a peak in V.13-15. After that he keeps the temperature perceptibly low, until a massive drama swarms out of blackness starting in V.23. And then that incredible fugue caps it all off.
Kovacevich’s performance fully justifies his reputation as a great player of Brahms. He restrains himself in the more superficially attractive variations, but devotes much of his energy to the more abstract ones, eventually saving his strength for what must be the finest performance of the concluding fugue ever put on record.
00:00 - Aria.
00:56 - Var.1. Introducing the first group of variations (1-4). A busily syncopated variation that sticks closely to the theme.
01:46 - Var.2. Like Var.1, it traces out the melodic line of the aria, but adds in chromatic sliding.
02:23 - Var.3. Delicate rhythmic wrongfooting of the melodic contour of the aria.
03:00 - Var.4. More rhythmic trickery, with the accents coming on the last semiquaver of each beat.
03:48 - Var.5. Introducing the second group of variations (5-8). The first change in key. This variation is obviously paired with the next - they both employ the same melodic line.
05:00 - Var.6. A canon at the octave, with inverted canon in the second half.
06:02 - Var.7. Paired with the next variation. Fast and high-spirited, and fundamentally rhythmic in nature. A sustained drumbeat effect emphasises the inner voices.
06:37 - Var.8. And now the variation rockets up the keyboard over the LH's galloping rhythm, and the emphasis is on the voices in the RH, which flip in the variation’s second half.
07:13 - Var.9. Introducing the third group of variations (9-18). A grand statement in chromatic octaves.
08:29 - Var.10. Exhilarating use of melodic displacement.
09:03 - Var.11. The beginning of a pair of gently melodic variations.
09:58 - Var.12. While paired with Var.11, the LH anticipates Var.17.
10:50 - Var.13. A florid funeral march, the first variation without repeats.
12:14 - Var.14. The first of a trio of virtuosic variations built around similar rhythms and figuration.
12:52 - Var.15. A gloriously propulsive showpiece.
13:32 - Var.16. Note the use of canonic imitation.
14:01 - Var.17. This and the next variation are built around the device of a (nearly identical) rising figure in the LH recalling the aria’s melody, while the RH provides ornamentation.
14:27 - Var.18.
15:33 - Var.19. The beginning of the last group of variations. A siciliana.
16:34 - Var.20. Darkly wending chromatic chords.
17:53 - Var.21. In the relative minor, with the theme beautifully disguised in the grace notes.
18:44 - Var.22. A lovely music-box variation, recalling the drone of a musette.
19:41 - Var.23. The build-up to the fugue begins. This variation is clearly paired with the one that comes after it - they are both nearly identical.
20:16 - Var.24. Harmonically and rhythmically identical to Var.23, but with massive scales that boil restlessly in both hands.
20:52 - Var.25. A harmonically straightforward statement of the opening aria that leads triumphantly into the closing fugue. An interesting symmetry with the first variation is formed by the fact that every pause in one hand is filled by activity in the other.
21:33 - The concluding fugue. The subject comes solely from the ascending major second from the first two beats in the top voice of Handel's theme. The ascending second is stated twice in sixteenth notes, and repeated again a minor third higher. This parallels the first measure of Handel's theme, which ascends from B-flat to C to D to E-flat. The fugue itself is breathtaking, featuring inversions, augmentation, double counterpoint, and a huge (leaping) pedal on the F. There is quite literally no moment in this entire section which does not use material from the subject (*both* the head and the tail, often inverted) or the countersubject. The textures are unmistakably Brahmsian - large, dense, exultant.
![Brahms - Variations & Fugue on a Theme by Händel, Op. 24 (Audio+Sheet) [Arrau]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/ke42V9y1Etg/mqdefault.jpg)
I'm ever so grateful for folks like this who take the trouble to upload not just the audio, but also the score of the music. I love reading the music as I listen. Thank you!
Me too
Wagner (after hearing the Variations on a Theme of Handel): "The old forms are not dead so long as there is someone who is truly the master of them." "The Symphony Since Beethoven", Felix Weingartner, Translated by H.M. Schott.
That's very nice words from Wagner.
@@segmentsAndCurves and very interesting!
@@sanderspoelstra8961 Indeed.
Probably the only nice thing Wagner ever said abut Brahms.
Great quote - this channels brahms' Paganini commenter says liszt admited brahms variations were better - but his were first. Personally i like the handel variations - the last few then a straight lead into the fugue - amazing. My personal favorite recordings #1 van cliburn, #2 manny ax.
One of my favorite set of variations.
I adore this gem. I first heard Lance Dossor play it in one of my piano lessons at Adelaide's Elder Conservatorium in 1959 when I was 17.. It was the best ever lesson.-made me realise I never would reach the heights I had thought to aspire to, and freed me from the agony for the first time in 12 years, which may have been Mr Dossor's aim! I particularly like the delicate humour in Variation 10.
I love that build-up after the "music-box" variation, through variations 23 and 24 until the theme explodes to life in 25, and then the fugue takes wing afterwards.
Fantastic performance of one of the milestones of the piano repertoire!
This was a delight. Thank you for posting this recording -- Kovacevich's performance is one of the steadiest, and at the same time one of the most incisive interpretations of this piece I've ever heard.
GREAT commentary, btw!
Bravo! What a climax! Thank you for uploading this version.
Une version *équilibrée* de cette œuvre magnifique : sobre et sensible, sans pathos, sans recherche exagérée "d'effets". Simplement superbe...
[Thanks for sharing!]
I have long admired immeasurably this recording by Kovacevic. Bravo! (Amazing what a treasure trove lies in store for hapless people - like me!)
Magnificent performance of a masterpiece!
I love everything SBK does. He is truly one of the greats and a little underappreciated in my mind. thanks for posting
Such delicate touch in Variation 5: great playing.
Great playing, great commentary!
Thank you for sharing this masterpiece and all of these infos!
i really really love this piece
The most intelligent reading of this piece I ever heard. Just stunning in every way. Thanks for the upload.
Agreed, it is great playing.
This set, and the intensely romantic and virtuosic Paganini Variations which followed, are the finest examples of the form since Beethoven's epic Diabelli Variations.
@@timothythorne9464 I would say that Schumann also did miraculous work with his Symphonic Etudes
Caleb Hu I don't know this Schumann piece, and really haven't listened to a lot of Schumann. I've heard people swear that Schumann is one of the greatest composers, and others say he's second rate. What I've heard by Schumann I really like, his concerti and symphonies. I probably need to listen to his solo piano works and then I'll get back to you
@@timothythorne9464 His solo piano works are not the easiest to decipher but they are far and away his greatest works. Listen to the Fantasy, Carnaval, Fantasiestucke Op.12, along with the Symphonic etudes.
there are many distinguished versions of this masterpiece and this one is definitely in the top echelon! he manages better than many those last couple of pages where the subject often gets buried. We can be very thankful for such a life affirming joyous piece of music. It 'lights up our life'!
This 2nd best to Dovgan. ua-cam.com/video/JiLFJUrAzh/v-deo.html
Thank you for posting! Gotta look into some more Brahms ::::: ^) Happy new year!
Fantastic performance!
Wonderful performance of this masterpiece!
Нет слов для выражения,насколько прекрасные вариации! Фуга исключительна,обладающая неповторимым,свежим музыкальным содержанием!! Я сравниваю И.Брамса,как продолжателя,по силе музыкальной мысли с Великим Л.Ван Бетховеном!!! Трижды,Браво! Великий Мастер!!!! 🎹👏👏👏👏👏❤🎹👏👏👏👏👏
The best version I ve ever heard. The fugue in wonderfull
Thanks so much for this video so I can read along with the music!
Hi
A great tribute to the amazing Handel
1:47 var2
2:23 var3
2:59 var4
5:00 var6
7:13 var9
8:29 var10
16:33 var20
Really enjoyed the finale!
I remember when I asked my piano teacher how about my studying these variations and he replied : "Nope, t's too dangerous" 🤭😁
Marvellous! Thanks.
Kovacevich is truly a GREAT musician!!!
GREAT performance.
I love how clean Brahms' scores look. There's no unnecesary cadenzas nor pauses.
Jorge González Brahms was a Classicist living in the wrong time. And, like Mozart, he had entire four-movement sonatas and symphonies thought out in his mind before committing them to a score.
He followed in Schumann's footsteps, and I don't think Schumann wrote a single cadenza in his life
@@calebhu6383 Schumann has one in his piano concerto, although I am not sure if that's quite what you're referring to? Let me know
@@classicalpublisher0218 Hardly a cadenza by Romantic standards, definitely not for showing off
@@calebhu6383 I agree, but a very beautiful one at that! :D
Did someone notice that the final part of the fugue (from 24:45) may well have been an inspiration for Modest Mussorgski in "the Great Gate of Kiev" from "Picrures at an Exhibition" ? There is even the same bell tolls and carillons from 25:02.
It's more likely to be a development of the theme/motif.
Beautiful effect indeed.
Variations 9 and 23 are amazing!
#9 is so jazzy, I love it!
Never heard this before. A great step up from original.
My favorite Brahms piece along with the Schumann Variations. I'm not a Brahms fan (unpopular opinion, I know, I can already hear the typing in the comments calling me "tasteless"), but this is a piece I frequently come back to.
I think its not that unpoular an opinion. I think quiet many people say or think they are not that big fans of Brahms because Brahms is not so easy to get into or immediately lovable. Often times one has to listen to a Piece by Brahms several times to understand and like it. But then you really start to like it. Atleast thats how got into Brahms, i started out thinking i didnt care for him and by now he has become my favourite composer.
Esplêndida interpretação, enriquecida por esplêndidas e didáticas explicações. Como aprendi, o que aumentou o prazer de ouvir. A fuga, então, é extraordinária. Realmente, “breathtaking”.
My absolute favorite interpretation of this piece.
how about Kätchen
You should listen to Perahia's as well.
Alexandra Dovgan. ua-cam.com/video/JiLFJUrAzhQ/v-deo.html
The trills oh my
Listen to Wang Yujia. She gets them right!
My daily exercise to make my dogs listen to me !
nonon, listen to Sokolov, you will see
BLOP888 zd
Did they trill you?
spectacular！
Wonderful!!
i really love this piece. thank you for the notes. they are very helpful. mr. brahms could've made the rain dance for him, i think. :-)
My Top 10 Variations pieces:
1. Bach Goldberg Variations
2. Beethoven Diabelli Variations
3. Brahms Handel Variations
4. Rachmaninoff Chopin Variations
5. Beethoven Eroica Variations
6. Mendelssohn Variations Sérieuses
7. Brahms Paganini Variations
8. Beethoven 32 Variations in C minor
9. Brahms Variations Op.21 no.1
10. Chopin Variations Brillantes
Chopin "La ci darem la mano"?
Anyway, that is a nice set!
finale of the ninth and eroica
Schumann symphonic etudes
Also "The People United Will Never Be Defeated"! Takes a while to get used to if you aren't into atonal stuff, but its amazing!
I love the 5th variation
This should be Brahms making a case for his music....absolutely stunning!
Johannes Brahms:Variációk és Fúga egy Händel témára Op.24
Ária 00:00
1. Variáció 00:55
2. Variáció (Animato) 01:46
3. Variáció (Dolce) 02:24
4. Variáció (Risoluto) 03:00
5. Variáció (Espressivo) 03:48
6. Variáció 05:00
7. Variáció (Con vivacita) 06:02
8. Variáció 06:37
9. Variáció (Poco sostenuto) 07:13
10. Variáció (Energico)
Stephen Kovacevich-zongora
That fugue is so incredible, similar in brilliance to Beethoven's fugue in the final movement of the Hammerklavier sonata.
Although I love this piece, and the fugue is credible, it's not remotely up to Beethoven, to whom fugue was a mother tongue. The driving intensity of the fugues that conclude the Diabelli Variations and the Op. 106 sonata are without comparison in anyone outside Bach. I would even say Beethoven and Bach stand together as equals in this form. Nevertheless this is a great and fascinating piece and fully worthy of Diabelli and Goldberg.
Ultrametric Please listen intensely to Serkin's rendition of Max Reger's Bach-Variations opus 81, esp. the fugue!! You won't regret it. Imho at the same level as Bach's Goldberg and Beethoven's Diabelli Variations.
Ultrametric Don't forget the fugues in his Misha Solemnis.
I wonder if Beethoven took it as an inspiration
Ah yes, I recognise that leitmotif.
Superbe.
I read in a biography of Brahms that he composed these as a gift for a birthday of Clara Schumann and that she prepared them in a week’s time for a concert .
Two genius at work
dang the Schumanns knew everybody
I also read that he was quite dissappointed with her performance!
that's crazy
@@nestor4249 Although the senior Schumann was definitely superior.
Best set of theme and variations ever, by any composer.
In the oppinion of several critics, greatest cycle of variations are "Diabelli Variations", from L.V. Beethoven... Alfred Brendel, Donald Tovey, and several more. 🤔
Goldberg and Diabelli are far above
Alberto Lorenzo that's definitely arguable. Neither of those has a crowning fugue. Diabelli Variations, while interesting, is way too long. I usually fall asleep long before it ends. Same with the Goldberg variations but I find most of Bach's music academic and boring.
Brahms built upon his predecessors, particularly Bach, Mozart and Beethoven, to create music of supreme excellence with not one wasted note anywhere in his scores.
@@timothythorne9464 I have to disagree with you, "Diabelli Variations" have a fugue at final and It has more sense of variation of the main theme, with absolutely no waste of any note. They are vastly superior to Brahms' work.
@@timothythorne9464 Goldberg don't have a fugue hahahaha. Ok they probably don`t have a formal fugue, but the counterpoint on each variation is way larger than in all Brahms. If you find Bach academic maybe the problem is that you don't have the kwoledge required yet. Or that you don't have the sensibility required. In any of both cases, I'm not gonna argue with someone who says that Bach's music is academic.
eesh! Those Romantic composers had a hard time writing fugues
@JASON P. Roberts Yawn!
Lol, I'm sorry? It's a romantic fugue. Get over it
Haha, all the good subjects already written by you Bach
ua-cam.com/video/rbCwkXP2oTI/v-deo.html
ua-cam.com/video/QijUP_0yehw/v-deo.html
Get your dentures 'round that, Bach!
My favorite pianist of this amazing piece written by Brahms is Emmanuel Ax.
Yo, for real! I got his recording recommended by spotify, loved it immediately. Haven't heard a better recording of the piece, it's so energetic and lively, yet precise, crystal clear and he just gets the mood soo right for each variation.
That indeed is another excellent rendition of the op.24.
This piece (and this particular interpretation) presages Bartok in my jumbled old brain. Not sure if anyone else needed to know that however, sorry folks....
The perfect pair to the Paganini variations
17:17 and 17:36 has the BACH motif... anyone else notice? Perhaps this foreshadows the coming fugue!
there is no way this was intentional, I was just continuing the same idea, but cool
Holy shit.
I know I’m late, but I love the fact that you uploaded the variations of the Aria right after the Suite that it came from. IMO, Brahms was at his best when composing variations - I can listen to them and think ‘Yep, that’s Brahms’. The fugue, though, I find a bit forced musically. Other than that, great set of variations!
Julius Kätchen on Decca also did it very well. Brahms his best piece (opus 24) for the piano perhaps.
Juiius Katchen's performances of Brahms were among the best I have heard. His recording of the violin / piano sonatas with Josef Suk are brilliant We lost Katchen to cancer at age 42.
23:31 reminds me Toccata and Fugue in d-minor Bach-Busoni (piano version)
I agree
Mussorgski probablyt took an inspiration from the finale (25:01) for his greatest work (Pictures from an Exhibition) in the last part The Gate of Heroes in Kiev), when the Great Bell on left hand fights the carillon of right hand.
The last few measures are a quote of Schumann's toccata.
Une version "idéale" de cette magnifique oeuvre de Brahms
Magnificent rendition. Thanks for uploading.
It seems to me that Katchen's accentuation of the var. 3 fits better the music written by Brahms: the first quaver must bear more accentuation that the second, because the bar/beat begins with it, etc.
Me parece que la acentuación de Katchen refleja mejor la escritura musical: la primera corchea debe estar más acentuada que la segunda porque por ella comienza el compás/parte, etc.
The fact that this piece doesn't have over 1 million views -- AT LEAST -- is borderline criminal.
However, worry not! I'm doing my best to increase that number as quickly as possible!
**EDIT**: For those who want additional background on the piece, it even has a Wikipedia page -> en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Variations_and_Fugue_on_a_Theme_by_Handel
Here from appergio on sea surface 😭😭😭😭🥀❤
It's a cathedral.
I usually judge var22 on through the fugue - i don't know the performer - but bravo! This is excellent
I love variation 23
Kumar you are a great teacher !
This is just such a definitive performance.
Do you happen to know where I can get a theory analysis of this piece?
What kind of analysis are you looking for? There's not a lot beyond what's already in the description, since it's quite a straightforward form.
23:57
Variation n 5 reminds me the beginnin of the second Ballade of Chopin
J F Thompson Listen the 6:51 minute of the 2nd Ballade (its the end)
J F Thompson The recording of Zimermann, after the powerful coda lol
Just sight read this at my school 😅
Var 22 18:44
16:20 intentional f instead of f#?
Like.. very good..
The fugue reminds me the final of Hammerklavier!
Variation 13: 10:49
Who here from that vinyl in an abandoned school exploration by UrbexHill?
Wait wait - how on earth did this end up in an UrbexHill vid? I’m pretty intrigued
@@AshishXiangyiKumar not this video, but the piece of music was on a vinyl in one of UrbexHill’s videos. One of the abandoned school videos
Var. 1 - 0:56 🧡
Fugue - 21:33 💜
Have you done your thing with the two Brahms piano concerto yet? Wouldn't mind the Piano Quintet, three piano trios, three piano quartets, and his other solo works as well... (sorry, I am a Brahms simp)
Beautifully played in mostly strict time, which is very suitable for a Baroque composer, who Handel was. However, this is a composition by a composer in the late romantic era which should be enhanced by some give and take called rubato. Rostropovitch, teaching a pupil, once said 'Where were YOU in this?'
♥️ Operette ♥️♥️🤩💪 zu viel Werbung?!!!!!
22:40
21:33 Fuga
Clear nod to Diabelli variations ? [Var 9]
which composer wrote the most 3-against-2 rhythms (like in Var. 2)? It might well be Brahms--he does that a *ton*.
Yeah, he definitely had a major thing for hemiolas. But who's to begrudge him - he does such amazing things with them (in his piano concertos, for instance)!
@@AshishXiangyiKumar Hemiolas seems to be Brahms' "thing", like triplets for Schubert and dotted rhythms for Schumann.
6:55
I tend to like Kovacevich in quite a lot of things. I feel this is played a little too "straight." Brahms is always a conundrum. He is so strict in his own adherence to form and yet he is without doubt a romantic composer. I have a Richter recording of this which maybe goes a little too far in the other direction but it's quite dramatic and the fugue is breathtaking.
I work with communits in ireland
Veronica Rawlings ??
Wolfgang would say...Yes!🥰
What are your thoughts on the Perahia recording?
That one goes in the "awesome, but a bit too well-known" box.
Marvellous comment. It is indeed awesome.
I love Perhaps recording. His sound plans are very clear.
brahms ~! greatest composer~!!
사마천원리적인식 I agree. Like Beethoven, but better because with Brahms it's all about the music, with no external programs.
@@timothythorne9464 I didn't understand your point.
Eduardo Guerra Ávila Beethoven composed lots of program music, as did Lizst, Wagner, Tchaikovsky and most 19th century composers. In someway Brahms emulated Beethoven in his obsession with musical form, and Brahms was more meticulous than Beethoven in getting rid of unnecessary notes and passages in his music. And most importantly, Brahms, like Bach from an earlier generation, composed ABSOLUTE music--the art of Brahms was music for music's sake, without any external program. For all these reasons, in addition to the passion, tenderness, and sentiment found throughout his scores, Brahms > Beethoven. I know that's controversial, but that's really the way I feel.
@@timothythorne9464 I couldn't be in more disagreement with you (I am a loyal Beethoven's follower) but I do respect your point of view. Regards.
@@timothythorne9464 I like absolute music, but some programmes don't hurt, right?
ey this is back up
variation 23
6:37 :)
WHO IS PLAYING THIS? Kumar or Kovacevich?
サムネにコバチェビチと書いてます
Someone asked me for the fact I said but there's a YT glitch which makes my reply disappear, so here's the source senar.ru/memoirs/Goldenweiser/
My college roommate learned the Rachmaninoff Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini in a weekend,, He told me he was starting work on it one Saturday morning and Sunday evening he invited me over to the music department , where he played the whole thing through from memory, all the notes too. People like this are another breed of cat!
@@robertgreene2684 this is extremely impressive! :o
Why is the piano off tune??
No it’s not lol
strong like all kovacevich but this is rather pushed, I find
"Like" on 18 December 2016