Very true. Although Richard uses musical terminology (inversion, cadence, canon) he often qualifies what he says by using a basic English explanation to clarify. He gives his time and his rich musical knowledge to enrich our musical understanding. Many thanks to him.
I a SO late to the Brahms game. in my 20's I thought he was boring old-fashioned and lame...I liked Shostakovich, Bartok, Debussy, Stravinsky, Strauss then.... I mean I still those guys.. but comparatively I am RADICALLY more obsessed with Brahms symphony 4. For about the last year or 2. I listen to it quite frequently now. whereas I'm just not that into Shostakovich right now. I first had my breakthrough with Brahms just as my Dad was dying of cancer in 2015. He struggled with it for a while and I was 2500 miles away for most of his last year. I do have regrets about that. But that Violin Concerto by Brahms!!! Wow!! I just happened to give it a chance and it blew my mind. It took several more years for me to get into the symphonies.. and the 4th is just MINDBLOWINGLY phenomenal!!! Thank you for covering this.
I love it how you are discussing Brahms, then take a detour to mention some favorite Dies Irae motives in other works, after which you take a detour to mention a Haydn symphony which has a melody related to Dies Irae, and then you again take a detour to remind us of Haydn's great sense of humour. That's just amazing!
This work is one of the greatest creations of the human mind. I've listened to this work for 60 years and it always deeply moves me. I love all of his symphonies but the Fourth holds a special place in my heart. As a 15 year old, it took me awhile to "get it" but, once I did, it became a part of my DNA. My favorite renditions are by Bruno Walter and Karl Bohm. Astonishing analysis. I will listen to it again and again.
Wow! I played this piece in college as a violinist. One of my favorites. Never really analyzed a Brahms symphony. Didn't know how they were constructed. Thankyou so much for for your insight.
those last four timpani blows before the final note are absolutely brutal. thank you for dissecting amazing works like this to make insight a little easier for people like us
What a well researched analysis. Thank you for showing your love of this piece to me. I was in tears at the end, as I could feel your connection to this music.
i don't make many comments, but wow. this technical analysis was such an eye opener to me - ive loved this symphony for years but ive never seen such a well done and in depth analysis of this symphony, and this video is just so marvellous. edit: may i also kindly and sincerely request for an analysis of brahms's piano quintet in f minor? it's also been one of my favourite works and i wld love to see your take and meticulous analysis on that work.
@@Richard.Atkinson I rank both his string quintets and his piano quartet equal to the piano quintet, but it's tough to think of an overall single greatest non symphonic work. This is arguably your best one too
It’s superbly done that Brahms “steal” this sweeping melody from Beethoven’s Hammerklavier Sonata 3rd movement, the section before the recapitulation! Everytime hearing the section reminds me of how much Brahms lived under Beethoven.
How you have been on UA-cam for 10 years and escaped my searchlight is beyond me but you have won a new subscriber. While watching your presentation and believing you to be some kind of musicologist I was a bit disheartened and critical of your approach to this miracle of human creation but looking further for more information about you and how you came to make such videos I was a bit impressed. You realize of course how the perspective of your profession infuses your approach to understanding musical expression but I wonder if you also realize how no matter how much you dissect, examine and analyze the subject of your attention you will never understand or know what it is that makes you love. Life and "soul" are beyond the human mind and to know them well one must surrender to what they give you without mental interference. Compliments on your graphic technique of presentation which only a mind like your own could have devised.
What a lovely gift for the (lunar) new year! :D I love how your admiration for this piece is so palpable that your enthusiasm is barely contained as you analyze it. This is peak content.
Much appreciation & admiration, Richard. You've done it again. A splendid dissection of Brahms crowning achievement. It's fitting & illuminating that you refer to figures so influential on Brahms (Bach, Haydn, Beethoven). There's so much to say about this wonder-work. But your study unifies its most important elements. A sublime example of musical analysis at its finest. Thank you.
I'm just starting my journey into composing classical music in a somewhat romantic style and your analysis are invaluable to me. Thank you for all these shared knowledge!
Well done! I'm always amazed by how naturally you weave in intricate details into your analysis, while always making sure that everything is coherent and understandable. As an analyst myself, I know how hard it is to achieve this balance, and you've clearly perfected it. Thank you for your work!
The Dies irae motif also dominates Chopin's prelude in a minor Op.28 No.2 and this new knowledge further enhances the funeral march like impression of the prelude to me!
My favorite symphony. My parents only had classical music records and baby sitter put the same records on every day, over and over. I started humming this whole symphony-still can do it-when I was 4-5. True story
this movement is everything Brahms was building up to in his entire life, my mind can't comprehend what the 5th Symphony would be like. also would love videos about the 4th movements of his 3rd Symphony and F minor Quintet, or anything by him... I just want more Brahms :D
It’s funny you specifically mention those two movements (finale of 3rd Symphony and finale of piano quintet) because I consider those his two greatest movements that aren’t from the 4th Symphony. I will definitely make videos on both one day.
Thankyou so much for these videos! I really love the long tangents you go on, they open my eyes to the rich history of and linkage between so much of western music! I would really love a video on Mahler 9's Adagio
Brahms was for me one of the greatest challenges; I've been listening to his music since I was a child and it was only after entering my mid-40s that I began to truly synthesize each of his symphonies as the immense, brilliantly organic masterpieces that they are. It was Hugo Wolf who, in what I believe was a written newspaper critique of Brahms, one day chastised Brahms for his ability to "create something out of nothing." For me, THAT is the mystery and the appeal of Brahms and perhaps the singular key to understanding his prodigious genius: how a simple turn of one melodic phrase leads, ineluctably, to another, and then another, each more seamless, powerful, unique and seemingly irreplaceable than the next. Needless to say, his music, like that of JS Bach, will live on forever. Thanks for this terrific video, by the way, real value added and greatly appreciated. regards
thank you for this brilliant and insightful piece of analysis!! i thought it rather apt that the number of references to other works diminishes as the video progresses, both relative to your other (also consistently thoughtful) videos and the first half of the video, almost as if brahms' work is both so sufficiently rich that it demands such deep analysis by itself, and completely original that there is simply no precedent for this spectacular symphonic movement. looking forward to the rest of this series!
That apocalyptic cadence clearly imitates the organ the way that the chord is held by the woodwinds, and the fact that it is a baroque like plagal cadence itself. In the exposition, the first repeat of the theme with decoration also really reminds me of Bach’s famous passacaglia where he uses similar winding scaling ornamentation.
awesome video! i just look away from the typical superlative and misleading youtube title. The plagal there is harmonically not the most especial, but maybe the interruption in the voice leading is especial, and was not pointed. Pls do the whole video again lol
Mentioning Chopin, and since Mr. Atkinson may be not a great Chopin fan, I'm also glad to point out that the "mysterious pink arch" bears close resemblance with the very beginning of Chopin's 1st Ballade, Op.23.
Also there is an interesting connection you could have done with the descending 3rds motif. It is one of the main elememts of Brahms' Op.119 No.1 as well. But I guess too many examples can be an overkill.
And op. 116 n°1 has this motif too (ascending 6ths and descending 3th). You should also check the finale of clarinet trio op.114. The first mesure of the first theme is an "ascending 6th/descending 3ds motif" in canon between the clarinet and the right hand of the piano. Wealso find the descending thirds in the development of this movement. The descending 3rds/ascending 6th motives really are an obsession of Brahms.
The first time I heard of this piece was once I performed in an orchestra (I played the second violin part). This is an enjoyable piece, not only for the audience, but also very enjoyable for the player. And now I’m addicted to this piece and I need to hear it once a day.
Came here to say this; when I orchestrated that sonata myself I noticed in particular a moment in the slow movement that suddenly jumps out as "oh that's Brahms 4!"
After hearing your explanation and examination of this wonderful piece of music, I look forward to this Brahms symphony being played at a concert with a completely new set of eyes and ears!! Huge thanks!!
Yet another important discovery: at what you mean by "the final culmination by the now ascending faster entries of the blue sceme" 49:25, the downbeats (C-B-D-C#) actually marks a BACH motif. To make it not just a coincidence, at the repeat at 49:31 the BACH is directly presented in the flute and oboe parts (which you just normally outline in the ubiquitous blue color).
I'm simultaneously so familiar with this piece that none of the deceptive cadences are at all "deceptive" (at this point it'd sound a lot more strange if it wasn't a deceptive cadence!), yet so unfamiliar that I didn't know about the woodwinds echoing the main theme right at the beginning! The most mindblowing for me was all the times I never noticed the green theme show up.
I feel the same, John. But my favorite assertion in music theory studies was by Henry Onderdonk, an incredible pedagogue and Modernist composer. He said that sheer generativity is not so unusual in the arts. What distinguishes the greatest master composers is a sense of judgement in architecture, which then allows them to make the surprising sound inevitable.
@@rosiefay7283 deceptive cadence is a term used in music theory. an authentic (or perfect) cadence starts on the 5 chord (dominant) and resolves to the 1 chord (tonic). A deceptive cadence starts on the 5 chord, but does not resolve to 1. 5 to 6 is a pretty typical kind of deceptive cadence and that's what we see her. B major to E minor would be a perfect cadence, but B major to C major is a deceptive cadence (in the key of E minor). the thing is though, cadences in Brahms are usually a whole lot less obvious than in works of earlier classical composers, so the expectation of a clearly punctuated perfect cadence is smaller, therefore the "deception" of the deceptive cadence is less striking.
I've really learnt a lot from you. Great analysis. Any chance you would consider doing something similar with symphonies of Mahler, Tchaikovsky or Shostakovich?
@@Richard.Atkinson This video was amazing and I think I've never been more stunned by the web of musical structure present in a piece. Shostakovich, in my opinion, is also absolutely brilliant in terms of thematic complexity so I can't wait to hear what you have to say about his symphonies!
Yes please Tchaikovsky 4 first movement which I love but have never got my head around. Fate bashing at the door without hearing Beethoven in the background.
Does anyone have any information on the person behind this channel?? He is very handsome in his photo and I'm just wondering if I can set him up with one of my granddaughters -- they're all ballerinas and FIDE candidate grandmaster and would love this channel!!!!
Wow. Your best video yet. Superbly done, and has given me further insights into, I agree with you, Brahms' most perfect creation. I'm presenting the 4th in my Sunday spinning class with a program associated with it. Really jumping off the deep end with this. You've helped me get this in my ears at an even more granular level. Will be exhausted at the end. Thanks.
Sorry, but Brahms has never impressed me. The offset thirds at the beginning seems contrived - a quasi-mathematical device. A nice enough intellectual exercise for those who 'get' Brahms' formula. The 'appropriation' from Bach may be perceived by some to be an example of 'Good composers borrow, great composers steal.' But Bach was an absolute genius when it came to mathematical symmetry, whether consciously or intuitively composed.. I guess someone had to be the 'bridge'' composer who provided the transitional ideas between Beethoven and Mahler but failed to break with Beethoven. His obsession with 3 against 2 is also tiresome. Haters have at it! You are as entitled to your opinion as am I!😁 Please prove to me that Brahms is worth my listening time. Really! I'd love to find why some of you and some of my my musician colleagues are so enamoured.
@@Richard.Atkinson Hi Richard, Your response is appreciated. But really, do you have any insight or guidance on how I should approach Brahms? I'd like to know 'why' his music does not excite me. I remember the 1st clarinetist in the community orchestra saying that Brahms' 1st Symphony is actually 'Beethoven's 10th'. I could not hear the progression (no pun intended). It did not perceive the passion that I hear in Beethoven's works. Maybe it's like my aversion to cilantro because I do not have the gene that makes it 'not' taste like soap. 😁
@@chong2389 It's hard for me to answer questions like this, because art really is subjective. For example, I can barely sit through a Rachmaninov piano concerto without wanting to pull out all my hair from boredom. Probably half my subscribers would revolt if I said this in a video. It just does nothing for me, and it's hard to explain why - so I'm not saying you are wrong, I'm just saying I disagree.
HOLY ****!!!! IT'S FINALLY HAPPENING!!! I always loved this Symphony! Also.... after you're done with the Brahms Symphony, will you analyze Mozart? Analyze the Great C Minor Mass, K. 546, K. 466 and I'll die happy. Among Mozart's Piano Sonatas, which ones do you consider masterpieces? Just curious.
By far the most masterful Mozart piano sonatas are the sonata for two pianos and the last two four-hands sonatas (K. 448, 497, 521). But if you’re talking about the regular piano sonatas, I’d say K 533 is probably the greatest?
Wonderful analysis. But an even more direct source of the first theme is found in the middle of the slow movement of the Beethoven opus 106 sonata-- a piece marked structurally by downward thirds-- where it appears essentially verbatim.
I played the timp part for this symphony a few months ago. Kind of wish I'd seen this video before now. I had no idea I was the star of the movement! Sometimes when you're behind the battle lines you can't see the big picture, especially when you spend minutes at a time counting rests.
Thank you for the astonishing analysis. This is the kind of insight students want to hear from a good teacher after working hard and for longtime on complex classical repertoire like this symphonic gem. Not only you reveal ideas, process, structures and relationships but also we see intertextuality working with clarity : inner, withing Brahms' own thematic world as well as external, with works of other composers. The evolution of musical language seems to be such that the thematic material and stylistic signatures of a passed era becomes so generic comparing to the following one that a deceptive simplicity takes place and veils deep structure of music. Analyzing Brahms by a musician from the XXI century seems as challenging as Brahms himself analyzing XVIth century polyphony. I could not resist noticing, at the end of your second chapter, that the imitative figures (green highlighted) accompanying the theme do morph, from measure 98, into a “cryptomnesic” quotation of the Beethoven's’ 7th symphony's scherzo. As for the 16th notes (@31’43’’), It might be simply the march like character and the tempo choice that makes this interpretation inevitable. Hope my comment is not pedantic, this is just a way to express gratitude for so generously sharing knowledge that takes a lot of time and patience to work.
I didn't understand your sentence about Beethoven's 7th when I first read it last year because I was thinking of the scherzo itself and not the trio. Now it makes sense!
@@Richard.Atkinson Are you answering for him? 😉The 4 + 4 half notes in those 8 bars of the theme are turns around F# and in the second group around B. Thematic permutations or whatever he would call it. 😄
@@Richard.Atkinson I think he's saying the f# at the beginning of this section in the horns in C is the melody for half a bar (one half note). For a natural horn f# is half stopped. Pretty easy to get tuning right. If it were in the horns in E it would have been a written d which is not reliably in tune and much more stuffy. More stopped and requires some bending with the lips. The rest of the melody would certainly have been playable for the horns in c, but it sit on the higher f#, the 11th harmonic, which is a bit harder to tune. Whereas the horns in e would be on the 9th harmonic which is great for tuning. Brahms made the right decision to split it like he did.
@@LucasHagemans Sorry, I didn't originally understand what you were saying, but now I do. Yes, I should've highlighted that note (actually, the first two notes!).
@@Richard.Atkinson Very possible! Brahms knew Schumann's scores intimately, even preferring and publishing the original version of the Symphony no. 4. Brahms' use of the triangle in his own 4th might have been inspired by Schumann's 1st and Tchaikovsky was certainly referencing Schumann's 2nd (Adagio) when composing his Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture. The Overture, Scherzo, and Finale was a favorite of Rimsky-Korsakov, especially admired for its orchestration. Take that, haters! :D
Some other good examples are: Mendelssohn Reformations-Sinfonie, mov. 1 Bruckner Symphony 8, mov. 2 Bruckner Symphony 4, mov. 1 Bruckner Mass D-Minor, Gloria Dvorak Mass D-Major, Quoniam tu solus sanctus And a rather interesting example is Bruckners 6th Symphony, mov. 1: the final cadence goes from D-major to d-minor, and then to an chord which looks like an inversion of an E-major dominant 7-9 chord with d in the bass, but with the e omitted and finally resolves to the home key of A-major. (After that, the chords alter between A- Major and d-minor+6 which transitions to D-major+6 and resolves back to A-major ) So the cadence sounds quite similar to a plagal cadence, especially because of the enforcement of the bass d, but with a nice twist.
I clearly remembered when I was in high school I got a free ticket to the concert of our city (3rd tier) symphony orchestra playing Brahms Symphony No.4. They didn't play it well but still I fall in love with this symphony and Brahms' work deeply, after I heard this coda section, especially the ending chords. Now for the first time I know it is Brahms' iconic *Plagal Cadence*
Director: I need music for my _[insert 17th-18th-19th century]_ period drama starring Emma Thompson, Gerard Depardieu, and some new American actress Soundtrack Composer: I have just the thing (I can rip off)
Furtwängler’s 1943 live recording is about as apocalyptic as it gets. Thanks for your analysis. Looking forward to the IVth movement video! ua-cam.com/video/9I-Ovumi9mA/v-deo.html
This finale is clearly inspired by Schuman symphony No 2, as most Brahms symphonies are half Beethoven, half Schuman in Inspiration, as Brahms would probably readily admit.
What do you think of Max Reger? If you like it wound be fantastic if you could make a video on some of his music, piano concerto, "An die Hoffnung" or "Gesang der Verklärten"? ^^
@@flugelflugel4556 Yup, haha true, it surely is a monster. But so are opp. 106, 112, 119, 124, You would talk less about the themes, contrapunctual aspects and such but way more about "music philosophy" of the late Romantic era. So perhaps the piano concerto op. 114 would be more convenient. Or the variations opp. 86 or 132 (or 81, but that one already is wellknown ;P )
You made us wait 9 months(!!) for this next Brahms symphony installment, but I daresay it was well worth the wait! Thank you for sharing your thorough & informative analysis of this magnificent movement. The Brahms symphonies have always occupied a special place in my heart ever since I borrowed a score containing all 4 beautiful works from the library decades ago & enjoyed hours of exploring / discovering the musical magic & mysteries Brahms so brilliantly buried within them. Your insightful & well thought out commentary & clarification on how the entire movement is thematically constructed & connected adds layers of appreciation & even more meaning to the untold hours of enjoyment the symphony has brought to all of us music lovers throughout the 130+ years since its premiere. Lastly, I really love how your cogent analysis fits in to the whole Wagner program music vs. Brahms absolute music debate. All the thematic richness, inversions, development, inventiveness & innovation on display in this movement, which are so clearly communicated in your wonderful analysis, provide powerful proof & confirmation that no program is needed to bring the dramatic effect! In Brahms' masterful hands, this movement uses the thematic musical information so deftly woven into the textures of the various sections to build the richness & tension until the climactic moments in the coda that bring the movement to a resounding close with those impactful timpani plagal cadence beats in the final measures. It is no wonder we all respond so fervently & lovingly to this beautifully & brilliantly constructed masterpiece! Bravissimos to Brahms & kudos to you on yet another great addition to your channel! I look forward to your commentary on the other Brahms movements yet to come- especially on the 2nd symphony, which is my personal favorite.
Symphony 2 will probably be last (my least favorite... but even so, still one of the greatest masterpieces in the literature). For me, its finale is by far its greatest movement.
the final movement of the 2nd is my go-to, my pick me up, my lift my spirit sure thing whenever i feel in need of some musical joy to balance out all the insanity of this world we find ourselves living in. it never ceases to have its enchanting effect on me! & trust me, i do not mind waiting for you to hit the rest of the movements of the 4th & 3rd wonders by Brahms with your insightful analysis & deeply revealing words of clear commentary on the way until you arrive at #2!
Richard, how do you do that? I am shattered! Nearly an hour analysis for one movement. Even the whole symphony is not that long. I have heard the Brahms symphonies for very long years now, but I haven't understood them so far, I think. I and I am sure I will never understand them fully, but I am so thankful , that you enlight them for us all. Thank you so much !
Can't believe I'm late to the party; must've been youtube being stupid again. I feel like I've been waiting my whole life for you to do a video on Brahms 4!
What about Furtwangler interpretation of this piece? The recordings are a bit old and not of the same quality than the one in here, but the interpretation is really nice.
I think you need to define Apocalyptic. The apocalypse of the gospels by the Jesus of the gospels has three parts: Tribulation Judgment Glorious Kingdom of Heaven ruled by God's #2: Son of Man/Enoch/Jesus Descent would appear in the first two movements of the Apocalypse of Jesus of the gospels: 1) Tribulation and 2) Judgment. I got more Apocalypse from Götterdämmerung. = = = I searched UA-cam for Brahms Symphony No. 4. I saw Bernstein, but I'm going to try the Karajan first. There's a Celibidache version, too.
It's incredible, flawless, marvelous how you explain all the secrets so that the big picture can be seen and heard! Admirable! I love your channel and appreciate your dedicated work. Thank you so much for sharing your skills with us! So great!
I notice how you sneakily skipped the most glaring error in the Bernstein recording, a wrong note by a horn at the recapitulation version of 18:17. An imperfection that I've come to tolerate (and brace myself for) after so many listens, in a list that includes the ludicrous cough in Bernstein's Mahler 1 mvmt 1 and another wrong note by brass in Gergiev's Tchaikovsky 4 mvmt 2
I used to listen to a Bruno Walter recording of Mahler’s 9th symphony in which the horns completely crack at the most climactic moment of the 1st Mvt. Even though I graduated to better performances, I always hear that part in my head with a monumental horn flub.
I once heard Shubert's Wanderer played on an out of tune upright with wrong notes all over the place. It was lovely. I shall never forget it and the thought of it still beings a lump to my throat. Amateur musicians playing with passion and understanding give some of the best performances.
There is also the 2nd movement of Bruckner Symphony 7 (Karajan/Berlin). The 1st trumpet cracks the note at the climax of the movement. However, I listened to a dozen other recordings that don't have the same emotional impact, so I feel inclined to give a pass. I will take an error in the heat of the moment over a "polished and perfect" run that lacks passion.
It’s incredible how this man single handedly brought top quality musical analysis to the mass audience. Really an achievement in its own right
Very true. Although Richard uses musical terminology (inversion, cadence, canon) he often qualifies what he says by using a basic English explanation to clarify. He gives his time and his rich musical knowledge to enrich our musical understanding. Many thanks to him.
Some of the best analytic content I’ve ever seen. This has taught me so much about a work I’ve loved for decades. Thank you dearly.
I a SO late to the Brahms game. in my 20's I thought he was boring old-fashioned and lame...I liked Shostakovich, Bartok, Debussy, Stravinsky, Strauss then.... I mean I still those guys.. but comparatively I am RADICALLY more obsessed with Brahms symphony 4. For about the last year or 2. I listen to it quite frequently now. whereas I'm just not that into Shostakovich right now. I first had my breakthrough with Brahms just as my Dad was dying of cancer in 2015. He struggled with it for a while and I was 2500 miles away for most of his last year. I do have regrets about that. But that Violin Concerto by Brahms!!! Wow!! I just happened to give it a chance and it blew my mind. It took several more years for me to get into the symphonies.. and the 4th is just MINDBLOWINGLY phenomenal!!! Thank you for covering this.
This coda is one of the few musical moments I know that literally make me cry and give me goosebumps EVERY SINGLE TIME I listen to it.
I love it how you are discussing Brahms, then take a detour to mention some favorite Dies Irae motives in other works, after which you take a detour to mention a Haydn symphony which has a melody related to Dies Irae, and then you again take a detour to remind us of Haydn's great sense of humour. That's just amazing!
But the best is the tango at 21:13 …
This work is one of the greatest creations of the human mind. I've listened to this work for 60 years and it always deeply moves me. I love all of his symphonies but the Fourth holds a special place in my heart. As a 15 year old, it took me awhile to "get it" but, once I did, it became a part of my DNA. My favorite renditions are by Bruno Walter and Karl Bohm. Astonishing analysis. I will listen to it again and again.
You discuss composers who used the Dies Irae theme... and you leave out Rachmaninov? Seriously, those four notes are EVERYWHERE in his oeuvre!
And what about Liszt in his Totentanz from 1850 many years before Brahms had a hand at it (the Dies irae theme)?
Wow! I played this piece in college as a violinist. One of my favorites. Never really analyzed a Brahms symphony. Didn't know how they were constructed. Thankyou so much for for your insight.
those last four timpani blows before the final note are absolutely brutal. thank you for dissecting amazing works like this to make insight a little easier for people like us
What a well researched analysis. Thank you for showing your love of this piece to me. I was in tears at the end, as I could feel your connection to this music.
i don't make many comments, but wow. this technical analysis was such an eye opener to me - ive loved this symphony for years but ive never seen such a well done and in depth analysis of this symphony, and this video is just so marvellous.
edit: may i also kindly and sincerely request for an analysis of brahms's piano quintet in f minor? it's also been one of my favourite works and i wld love to see your take and meticulous analysis on that work.
It's probably his greatest work that isn't a symphony. It's definitely on my list!
@@Richard.Atkinson I rank both his string quintets and his piano quartet equal to the piano quintet, but it's tough to think of an overall single greatest non symphonic work. This is arguably your best one too
I much prefer the third and second piano quintet over the first
@@cschlums2235 You're thinking of the quartets. There's only one quintet!
@@necroyoli08 And there are 3 piano quartets!
"Sometimes these world-class musicians don't practice enough."
I heard Sergiu Celibidache scream *_"VIOLAAAAAA!"_* when you said that.
It’s superbly done that Brahms “steal” this sweeping melody from Beethoven’s Hammerklavier Sonata 3rd movement, the section before the recapitulation! Everytime hearing the section reminds me of how much Brahms lived under Beethoven.
It is so hot when u call Bernstein’s conducting “sloppy”😩😩😩
10:00 - classic Atkinson: a tangent in a tangent in yet another tangent! :)
If that’s what it takes to get to Haydn…
@@Richard.Atkinson haha, fair enough! And it’s not a complaint - we learn more this way!
Inception
How you have been on UA-cam for 10 years and escaped my searchlight is beyond me but you have won a new subscriber. While watching your presentation and believing you to be some kind of musicologist I was a bit disheartened and critical of your approach to this miracle of human creation but looking further for more information about you and how you came to make such videos I was a bit impressed. You realize of course how the perspective of your profession infuses your approach to understanding musical expression but I wonder if you also realize how no matter how much you dissect, examine and analyze the subject of your attention you will never understand or know what it is that makes you love. Life and "soul" are beyond the human mind and to know them well one must surrender to what they give you without mental interference.
Compliments on your graphic technique of presentation which only a mind like your own could have devised.
I've only been doing this kind of video for 5 of those 10 years, so that could be why.
What a lovely gift for the (lunar) new year! :D
I love how your admiration for this piece is so palpable that your enthusiasm is barely contained as you analyze it. This is peak content.
I'm glad my enthusiasm is still obvious, despite the monotone delivery!
Much appreciation & admiration, Richard. You've done it again. A splendid dissection of Brahms crowning achievement. It's fitting & illuminating that you refer to figures so influential on Brahms (Bach, Haydn, Beethoven). There's so much to say about this wonder-work. But your study unifies its most important elements. A sublime example of musical analysis at its finest. Thank you.
I'm just starting my journey into composing classical music in a somewhat romantic style and your analysis are invaluable to me. Thank you for all these shared knowledge!
A fascinating insight into one of my favourite symphonies, that I first played over 25 years ago. Still very powerful indeed.
Well done! I'm always amazed by how naturally you weave in intricate details into your analysis, while always making sure that everything is coherent and understandable. As an analyst myself, I know how hard it is to achieve this balance, and you've clearly perfected it. Thank you for your work!
you deserve millions of subscribers i am NOT lying... the amount of effort you put in ALL of your videos... wow.. i really love your channel
This is..... I have chills. Didn't think my estimation of Brahms could be any higher, but thank you.
This might be your best video. I loved it and I'm sure it will help a lot of young and not so young musicians to appreciate music even more.
The Dies irae motif also dominates Chopin's prelude in a minor Op.28 No.2 and this new knowledge further enhances the funeral march like impression of the prelude to me!
My favorite symphony. My parents only had classical music records and baby sitter put the same records on every day, over and over. I started humming this whole symphony-still can do it-when I was 4-5. True story
There's also Dies Irae in Rachmaninoff's piano rhapsody
The "mysterious" wash of sound at the start/before the recap is somewhat similar to what he does in his Gminor op.79 rhapsody btw.
I just now discovered your channel, so glad I did! Great stuff!😊
There are multiple parts where 8ths are played as 16ths. I can only think that this is intentional direction by ol' Lenny
this movement is everything Brahms was building up to in his entire life, my mind can't comprehend what the 5th Symphony would be like.
also would love videos about the 4th movements of his 3rd Symphony and F minor Quintet, or anything by him...
I just want more Brahms :D
It’s funny you specifically mention those two movements (finale of 3rd Symphony and finale of piano quintet) because I consider those his two greatest movements that aren’t from the 4th Symphony. I will definitely make videos on both one day.
awesome video, bro! Greetings from Berlin!
Thankyou so much for these videos! I really love the long tangents you go on, they open my eyes to the rich history of and linkage between so much of western music!
I would really love a video on Mahler 9's Adagio
What a fantastic analysis! Thank you for your tremendous work!
Brahms was for me one of the greatest challenges; I've been listening to his music since I was a child and it was only after entering my mid-40s that I began to truly synthesize each of his symphonies as the immense, brilliantly organic masterpieces that they are. It was Hugo Wolf who, in what I believe was a written newspaper critique of Brahms, one day chastised Brahms for his ability to "create something out of nothing." For me, THAT is the mystery and the appeal of Brahms and perhaps the singular key to understanding his prodigious genius: how a simple turn of one melodic phrase leads, ineluctably, to another, and then another, each more seamless, powerful, unique and seemingly irreplaceable than the next. Needless to say, his music, like that of JS Bach, will live on forever. Thanks for this terrific video, by the way, real value added and greatly appreciated. regards
Thank you so much for this, I really appreciate all the hard work that went into this analysis!
I learn so much from these videos! Every sentence is packed with knowledge
thank you for this brilliant and insightful piece of analysis!! i thought it rather apt that the number of references to other works diminishes as the video progresses, both relative to your other (also consistently thoughtful) videos and the first half of the video, almost as if brahms' work is both so sufficiently rich that it demands such deep analysis by itself, and completely original that there is simply no precedent for this spectacular symphonic movement. looking forward to the rest of this series!
That apocalyptic cadence clearly imitates the organ the way that the chord is held by the woodwinds, and the fact that it is a baroque like plagal cadence itself. In the exposition, the first repeat of the theme with decoration also really reminds me of Bach’s famous passacaglia where he uses similar winding scaling ornamentation.
So revealing and amazing work. Thank you!
Great and interesting analysis. Playing this soon. I have subbed!
Honey wake up a new Richard Atkinson analysis dropped
Thank you. This was super fun
11:46 Liszt Totentanz is a great example too
awesome video! i just look away from the typical superlative and misleading youtube title. The plagal there is harmonically not the most especial, but maybe the interruption in the voice leading is especial, and was not pointed. Pls do the whole video again lol
Mentioning Chopin, and since Mr. Atkinson may be not a great Chopin fan, I'm also glad to point out that the "mysterious pink arch" bears close resemblance with the very beginning of Chopin's 1st Ballade, Op.23.
I’m very much a Chopin fan! I’m planning a video on the Barcarolle.
Also there is an interesting connection you could have done with the descending 3rds motif. It is one of the main elememts of Brahms' Op.119 No.1 as well. But I guess too many examples can be an overkill.
Not only No.1! The whole opus 119 uses the falling thirds motive
@@dancohenhemsi163 Oh, interesting. I haven't checked that opus in a long time so it makes sense I didn't notice back then.
The key of op. 119 Nr. 1 is b minor. And the b minor fuge of Bach‘s WTC 1 starts with the same motive as the 4th Symphony.
@@violinscratcher True, it is kinda similar.
And op. 116 n°1 has this motif too (ascending 6ths and descending 3th).
You should also check the finale of clarinet trio op.114. The first mesure of the first theme is an "ascending 6th/descending 3ds motif" in canon between the clarinet and the right hand of the piano. Wealso find the descending thirds in the development of this movement.
The descending 3rds/ascending 6th motives really are an obsession of Brahms.
The first time I heard of this piece was once I performed in an orchestra (I played the second violin part). This is an enjoyable piece, not only for the audience, but also very enjoyable for the player. And now I’m addicted to this piece and I need to hear it once a day.
The Hammerklavier also plays with thirds/tenths in a very similar way, throughout all the movements (especially in key relations)
True! I’ll be discussing key relationships in my videos on the two middle movements.
The Weingartner orchestration of the Hammerklavier sounds like a lost Brahms symphony in many places indeed, especially the slow movement.
Came here to say this; when I orchestrated that sonata myself I noticed in particular a moment in the slow movement that suddenly jumps out as "oh that's Brahms 4!"
also in the third movement there is a burst of energy that sounds extremely similar to brahms 4th first theme
@@cschlums2235 When it suddenly switches to duple meter?
...I wasn't going to watch this whole thing... I did. I was mesmerized. Thank you.
After hearing your explanation and examination of this wonderful piece of music, I look forward to this Brahms symphony being played at a concert with a completely new set of eyes and ears!! Huge thanks!!
Atkinson exposing sloppy performance of Bernstein's Vienna Philharmonic is the content internet is for.
Yet another important discovery: at what you mean by "the final culmination by the now ascending faster entries of the blue sceme" 49:25, the downbeats (C-B-D-C#) actually marks a BACH motif. To make it not just a coincidence, at the repeat at 49:31 the BACH is directly presented in the flute and oboe parts (which you just normally outline in the ubiquitous blue color).
meh...
I'm simultaneously so familiar with this piece that none of the deceptive cadences are at all "deceptive" (at this point it'd sound a lot more strange if it wasn't a deceptive cadence!), yet so unfamiliar that I didn't know about the woodwinds echoing the main theme right at the beginning! The most mindblowing for me was all the times I never noticed the green theme show up.
I feel the same, John. But my favorite assertion in music theory studies was by Henry Onderdonk, an incredible pedagogue and Modernist composer. He said that sheer generativity is not so unusual in the arts. What distinguishes the greatest master composers is a sense of judgement in architecture, which then allows them to make the surprising sound inevitable.
"Deceptive" is just Richard Atkinson's description of them, right? So, just an opinion of his that he might or might not think we share?
@@rosiefay7283 deceptive cadence is a term used in music theory. an authentic (or perfect) cadence starts on the 5 chord (dominant) and resolves to the 1 chord (tonic). A deceptive cadence starts on the 5 chord, but does not resolve to 1. 5 to 6 is a pretty typical kind of deceptive cadence and that's what we see her. B major to E minor would be a perfect cadence, but B major to C major is a deceptive cadence (in the key of E minor).
the thing is though, cadences in Brahms are usually a whole lot less obvious than in works of earlier classical composers, so the expectation of a clearly punctuated perfect cadence is smaller, therefore the "deception" of the deceptive cadence is less striking.
@@OboeJDub Thanks. No need for me to add to this!
Every time you played part of the piece I had an immense urge to close the video and just listen to the whole symphony…
I've really learnt a lot from you. Great analysis. Any chance you would consider doing something similar with symphonies of Mahler, Tchaikovsky or Shostakovich?
Yes to all of those!
@@Richard.Atkinson This video was amazing and I think I've never been more stunned by the web of musical structure present in a piece. Shostakovich, in my opinion, is also absolutely brilliant in terms of thematic complexity so I can't wait to hear what you have to say about his symphonies!
Yes please Tchaikovsky 4 first movement which I love but have never got my head around. Fate bashing at the door without hearing Beethoven in the background.
Just so you know, I've already done two videos on Mahler's symphonies and one on Shostakovich's 4th.
@@Richard.Atkinson yes I also really enjoyed those :D
i always feel Brahms' unrequited love when I litstened to the beginning of this movement.
Does anyone have any information on the person behind this channel?? He is very handsome in his photo and I'm just wondering if I can set him up with one of my granddaughters -- they're all ballerinas and FIDE candidate grandmaster and would love this channel!!!!
😂
Wow. Your best video yet. Superbly done, and has given me further insights into, I agree with you, Brahms' most perfect creation. I'm presenting the 4th in my Sunday spinning class with a program associated with it. Really jumping off the deep end with this. You've helped me get this in my ears at an even more granular level. Will be exhausted at the end. Thanks.
Sorry, but Brahms has never impressed me. The offset thirds at the beginning seems contrived - a quasi-mathematical device. A nice enough intellectual exercise for those who 'get' Brahms' formula. The 'appropriation' from Bach may be perceived by some to be an example of 'Good composers borrow, great composers steal.' But Bach was an absolute genius when it came to mathematical symmetry, whether consciously or intuitively composed.. I guess someone had to be the 'bridge'' composer who provided the transitional ideas between Beethoven and Mahler but failed to break with Beethoven. His obsession with 3 against 2 is also tiresome.
Haters have at it! You are as entitled to your opinion as am I!😁 Please prove to me that Brahms is worth my listening time. Really! I'd love to find why some of you and some of my my musician colleagues are so enamoured.
"Art is subjective" is the only reply I can muster to a comment like this.
@@Richard.Atkinson Hi Richard, Your response is appreciated. But really, do you have any insight or guidance on how I should approach Brahms? I'd like to know 'why' his music does not excite me. I remember the 1st clarinetist in the community orchestra saying that Brahms' 1st Symphony is actually 'Beethoven's 10th'. I could not hear the progression (no pun intended). It did not perceive the passion that I hear in Beethoven's works. Maybe it's like my aversion to cilantro because I do not have the gene that makes it 'not' taste like soap. 😁
@@chong2389 It's hard for me to answer questions like this, because art really is subjective. For example, I can barely sit through a Rachmaninov piano concerto without wanting to pull out all my hair from boredom. Probably half my subscribers would revolt if I said this in a video. It just does nothing for me, and it's hard to explain why - so I'm not saying you are wrong, I'm just saying I disagree.
@@chong2389 That said, videos like this one have my best arguments for why Brahms is worth listening to and why.
I had such a giddy reaction when I saw this in my notifications, I can't wait to re-watch this 50 times
The legend has returned... And what a video it is!
HOLY ****!!!! IT'S FINALLY HAPPENING!!!
I always loved this Symphony!
Also.... after you're done with the Brahms Symphony, will you analyze Mozart? Analyze the Great C Minor Mass, K. 546, K. 466 and I'll die happy.
Among Mozart's Piano Sonatas, which ones do you consider masterpieces? Just curious.
I would love to see the Great Mass!
By far the most masterful Mozart piano sonatas are the sonata for two pianos and the last two four-hands sonatas (K. 448, 497, 521). But if you’re talking about the regular piano sonatas, I’d say K 533 is probably the greatest?
@@Richard.Atkinson You chose K. 533 because of it's slow movement, right? I'd say that Fantasia and Sonata in C Minor is the best one.
@@Richard.Atkinson I think is should be K. 457 (with 475) and the sonata for two pianos.
@@DanielFahimi No. 15 and 18 are good candidates too!
Watching this while I avoid abusive family members at a party. Thank you
Wonderful analysis. But an even more direct source of the first theme is found in the middle of the slow movement of the Beethoven opus 106 sonata-- a piece marked structurally by downward thirds-- where it appears essentially verbatim.
Quite phenomenal. Thank you for all the work you put into this.
Every time I come back to Brahms, I’m reminded of how moving his music is.
Great way to make music theory fascinate the mind of one who's not normally interested, it hasn't yet realised it can be.
Omfg that coda. I have no idea how to describe the feelings it brought to me exactly.
I played the timp part for this symphony a few months ago. Kind of wish I'd seen this video before now. I had no idea I was the star of the movement! Sometimes when you're behind the battle lines you can't see the big picture, especially when you spend minutes at a time counting rests.
Thank you for the astonishing analysis. This is the kind of insight students want to hear from a good teacher after working hard and for longtime on complex classical repertoire like this symphonic gem. Not only you reveal ideas, process, structures and relationships but also we see intertextuality working with clarity : inner, withing Brahms' own thematic world as well as external, with works of other composers.
The evolution of musical language seems to be such that the thematic material and stylistic signatures of a passed era becomes so generic comparing to the following one that a deceptive simplicity takes place and veils deep structure of music. Analyzing Brahms by a musician from the XXI century seems as challenging as Brahms himself analyzing XVIth century polyphony.
I could not resist noticing, at the end of your second chapter, that the imitative figures (green highlighted) accompanying the theme do morph, from measure 98, into a “cryptomnesic” quotation of the Beethoven's’ 7th symphony's scherzo.
As for the 16th notes (@31’43’’), It might be simply the march like character and the tempo choice that makes this interpretation inevitable.
Hope my comment is not pedantic, this is just a way to express gratitude for so generously sharing knowledge that takes a lot of time and patience to work.
I didn't understand your sentence about Beethoven's 7th when I first read it last year because I was thinking of the scherzo itself and not the trio. Now it makes sense!
Nice one! thanks! Why not include that first note of the horns in C in the theme? 18:51
Is that a question for Brahms?
@@Richard.Atkinson Are you answering for him? 😉The 4 + 4 half notes in those 8 bars of the theme are turns around F# and in the second group around B. Thematic permutations or whatever he would call it. 😄
@@Richard.Atkinson I think he's saying the f# at the beginning of this section in the horns in C is the melody for half a bar (one half note). For a natural horn f# is half stopped. Pretty easy to get tuning right. If it were in the horns in E it would have been a written d which is not reliably in tune and much more stuffy. More stopped and requires some bending with the lips.
The rest of the melody would certainly have been playable for the horns in c, but it sit on the higher f#, the 11th harmonic, which is a bit harder to tune. Whereas the horns in e would be on the 9th harmonic which is great for tuning.
Brahms made the right decision to split it like he did.
@@LucasHagemans Sorry, I didn't originally understand what you were saying, but now I do. Yes, I should've highlighted that note (actually, the first two notes!).
For another great plagal cadence with solo timpani, give a listen to the end of Schumann's Symphony no. 2.
I should’ve mentioned that in the video! I wonder if that’s where Brahms got the idea?
@@Richard.Atkinson Very possible! Brahms knew Schumann's scores intimately, even preferring and publishing the original version of the Symphony no. 4. Brahms' use of the triangle in his own 4th might have been inspired by Schumann's 1st and Tchaikovsky was certainly referencing Schumann's 2nd (Adagio) when composing his Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture. The Overture, Scherzo, and Finale was a favorite of Rimsky-Korsakov, especially admired for its orchestration. Take that, haters! :D
Some other good examples are:
Mendelssohn Reformations-Sinfonie, mov. 1
Bruckner Symphony 8, mov. 2
Bruckner Symphony 4, mov. 1
Bruckner Mass D-Minor, Gloria
Dvorak Mass D-Major, Quoniam tu solus sanctus
And a rather interesting example is Bruckners 6th Symphony, mov. 1: the final cadence goes from D-major to d-minor, and then to an chord which looks like an inversion of an E-major dominant 7-9 chord with d in the bass, but with the e omitted and finally resolves to the home key of A-major. (After that, the chords alter between A- Major and d-minor+6 which transitions to D-major+6 and resolves back to A-major ) So the cadence sounds quite similar to a plagal cadence, especially because of the enforcement of the bass d, but with a nice twist.
@@arzini6580 And the end of Sibelius 2nd which I think rivals this Brahms.
I clearly remembered when I was in high school I got a free ticket to the concert of our city (3rd tier) symphony orchestra playing Brahms Symphony No.4. They didn't play it well but still I fall in love with this symphony and Brahms' work deeply, after I heard this coda section, especially the ending chords. Now for the first time I know it is Brahms' iconic *Plagal Cadence*
Director: I need music for my _[insert 17th-18th-19th century]_ period drama starring Emma Thompson, Gerard Depardieu, and some new American actress
Soundtrack Composer: I have just the thing (I can rip off)
15:08 this is how my mother says my name when I leave the stove on
Furtwängler’s 1943 live recording is about as apocalyptic as it gets. Thanks for your analysis. Looking forward to the IVth movement video! ua-cam.com/video/9I-Ovumi9mA/v-deo.html
Check the chords at letter K, bottom notes of the root position: (D#-Db-D#-C) (F-Eb-F-D). The chords are in a way playing the Dies Irae melody.
I have absolutely zero formal training in music and yet I am enjoying this thoroughly. Incredibly well done !
As always great video!!
I was just wondering what you thought of the Carlos Kleiber recording of this symphony.
This finale is clearly inspired by Schuman symphony No 2, as most Brahms symphonies are half Beethoven, half Schuman in Inspiration, as Brahms would probably readily admit.
I’m wondering why the pink arch isn’t tremolo until the coda, seems like the obvious thing to do so it must be deliberate
What do you think of Max Reger? If you like it wound be fantastic if you could make a video on some of his music, piano concerto, "An die Hoffnung" or "Gesang der Verklärten"? ^^
Op.71?? I love Richard but I wouldn't want to inflict that beautiful monster of a work on him.
@@flugelflugel4556 Yup, haha true, it surely is a monster. But so are opp. 106, 112, 119, 124, You would talk less about the themes, contrapunctual aspects and such but way more about "music philosophy" of the late Romantic era. So perhaps the piano concerto op. 114 would be more convenient. Or the variations opp. 86 or 132 (or 81, but that one already is wellknown ;P )
I never noticed the potential Dies Irae in here, but what do you think about the bass line in the Variations for Clara Schumann/Op. 18 slow movement?
You made us wait 9 months(!!) for this next Brahms symphony installment, but I daresay it was well worth the wait!
Thank you for sharing your thorough & informative analysis of this magnificent movement.
The Brahms symphonies have always occupied a special place in my heart ever since I borrowed a score containing all 4 beautiful works from the library decades ago & enjoyed hours of exploring / discovering the musical magic & mysteries Brahms so brilliantly buried within them.
Your insightful & well thought out commentary & clarification on how the entire movement is thematically constructed & connected adds layers of appreciation & even more meaning to the untold hours of enjoyment the symphony has brought to all of us music lovers throughout the 130+ years since its premiere.
Lastly, I really love how your cogent analysis fits in to the whole Wagner program music vs. Brahms absolute music debate. All the thematic richness, inversions, development, inventiveness & innovation on display in this movement, which are so clearly communicated in your wonderful analysis, provide powerful proof & confirmation that no program is needed to bring the dramatic effect!
In Brahms' masterful hands, this movement uses the thematic musical information so deftly woven into the textures of the various sections to build the richness & tension until the climactic moments in the coda that bring the movement to a resounding close with those impactful timpani plagal cadence beats in the final measures.
It is no wonder we all respond so fervently & lovingly to this beautifully & brilliantly constructed masterpiece!
Bravissimos to Brahms & kudos to you on yet another great addition to your channel!
I look forward to your commentary on the other Brahms movements yet to come- especially on the 2nd symphony, which is my personal favorite.
Symphony 2 will probably be last (my least favorite... but even so, still one of the greatest masterpieces in the literature). For me, its finale is by far its greatest movement.
the final movement of the 2nd is my go-to, my pick me up, my lift my spirit sure thing whenever i feel in need of some musical joy to balance out all the insanity of this world we find ourselves living in. it never ceases to have its enchanting effect on me!
& trust me, i do not mind waiting for you to hit the rest of the movements of the 4th & 3rd wonders by Brahms with your insightful analysis & deeply revealing words of clear commentary on the way until you arrive at #2!
The 2nd is my favorite, too! I think the fourth mvt could save the world.
Any works by Mozart (that you've not discussed on your channel) that has this level of motivic ingenuity?
Richard, how do you do that? I am shattered! Nearly an hour analysis for one movement. Even the whole symphony is not that long. I have heard the Brahms symphonies for very long years now, but I haven't understood them so far, I think. I and I am sure I will never understand them fully, but I am so thankful , that you enlight them for us all. Thank you so much !
This was like watching a Marvel movie. Made me gasp out loud several times.Thank you for this beautiful, insightful and clear analysis.
IT’S HERE!! …some of my days are framed by this work…one takes in these notes like they were always there…. by design ..innately. Love your work!
Can't believe I'm late to the party; must've been youtube being stupid again. I feel like I've been waiting my whole life for you to do a video on Brahms 4!
I see that B did not write symphonic music after this symphony. That's a 12 year span till his death. Curious
Checking wikipedia it says the Double Concerto was composed in 1887
@@scottweaverphotovideo True, but "symphonic" doesn't mean "orchestral." This was definitely his last symphony.
The first Brahms I listened to is this Symphony and until now it amazes me especially the opening.
Best Brahms creation. Totally agree
could you analyze the works of the Brazilian composer Villa Lobos?
More, more. This is a great tool for teaching analysis. Good, clear presentation.
Also one thing I think may just be a coincidence, or a quote, is his viola/clarinet sonata 1 quoting the descending thirds here
What about Furtwangler interpretation of this piece? The recordings are a bit old and not of the same quality than the one in here, but the interpretation is really nice.
I think you need to define Apocalyptic.
The apocalypse of the gospels by the Jesus of the gospels has three parts:
Tribulation
Judgment
Glorious Kingdom of Heaven ruled by God's #2: Son of Man/Enoch/Jesus
Descent would appear in the first two movements of the Apocalypse of Jesus of the gospels: 1) Tribulation and 2) Judgment.
I got more Apocalypse from Götterdämmerung.
= = =
I searched UA-cam for Brahms Symphony No. 4. I saw Bernstein, but I'm going to try the Karajan first. There's a Celibidache version, too.
I wasn't using the word in the mythological sense. I just meant it as a synonym of cataclysmic.
It's incredible, flawless, marvelous how you explain all the secrets so that the big picture can be seen and heard! Admirable!
I love your channel and appreciate your dedicated work. Thank you so much for sharing your skills with us!
So great!
Richard, why do you think Schoenberg wrote his essay "Brahms the Progressive"?
I notice how you sneakily skipped the most glaring error in the Bernstein recording, a wrong note by a horn at the recapitulation version of 18:17. An imperfection that I've come to tolerate (and brace myself for) after so many listens, in a list that includes the ludicrous cough in Bernstein's Mahler 1 mvmt 1 and another wrong note by brass in Gergiev's Tchaikovsky 4 mvmt 2
I used to listen to a Bruno Walter recording of Mahler’s 9th symphony in which the horns completely crack at the most climactic moment of the 1st Mvt. Even though I graduated to better performances, I always hear that part in my head with a monumental horn flub.
I once heard Shubert's Wanderer played on an out of tune upright with wrong notes all over the place. It was lovely. I shall never forget it and the thought of it still beings a lump to my throat. Amateur musicians playing with passion and understanding give some of the best performances.
There is also the 2nd movement of Bruckner Symphony 7 (Karajan/Berlin). The 1st trumpet cracks the note at the climax of the movement. However, I listened to a dozen other recordings that don't have the same emotional impact, so I feel inclined to give a pass. I will take an error in the heat of the moment over a "polished and perfect" run that lacks passion.
😳 I fail to hear a wrong note in this passage in the Horns, at least at 18:17 … maybe it‘s s tradition of us Horn players😉.
What's the error ?