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THE
MUSIC TRADE
REVIEW
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THE PLAYER-PIANISTS' DEPARTMENT
[It is in every way eminently desirable that a publication
which undertakes to give so much space and so authoritative
a treatment to the great player industry, as does The Re-
view, should not neglect what is after all the real excuse
for the player's existence, namely, the music that is evoked
from it. Recognizing the extraordinary importance of do-
ing everything possible to spread more widely appreciation
and love for music among player-pianists, The Review's
Player Section for the present month contains below, and
will in future regularly contain, a department devoted to
the musical interests of player-pianists and of the player-
piano. Each month one musical article of general interest
will appear, together with useful hints, notes and comments.
This is in addition to the regular sub-section of the Player
Section which analyzes the monthly issues of music rolls,
Professional demonstrators, salesmen and player-pianists of
every degree will find each month on the "Player-Pianist's"
page of the Player Section much valuable information. And
the Editor of the Player Section will at all times be glad
to answer inquiries on any and all musical player matters.
has made himself indeed a god to so many serious
musical minds.
He uses the simplest material
But he combines this with such rare art, with
such wonderful musical effect, that sometimes one
is induced to neglect the foundation in admiration
for the dizzy superstructure raised upon it.
And doubtless this very fact has done as much
to make people believe Brahms to be uninteresting.
Musicians, unfortunately, who are compelled to
wade through the admittedly great complexities ot
his scores, too often confine their praise of
Brahms to his tricks of technic, his use of ancient
modes, his obvious immediate descent from Bach.
But, to the player-pianist, these incidental consid-
JOHANNES BRAHMS.
erations, interesting as they are, should be laid
The player-pianist, happy above the majority of aside (at first, anyhow), until enough of the music
other music-lovers, is especially fortunate in the has been heard. Only after tin's may one presume
faculty which he possesses, through the medium of to analyze and thus impliedly criticize it.
Johannes Brahms was born on May 7, 1833, in
his most wonderful instrument, of reducing imme-
diately to concrete sounds the inmost mysteries Hamburg, and died in Vienna, April 3, 1897. The
of tonal art. Saved from the irksome necessity sixty-four years of his life were spent in a man-
of pursuing the elusive nuance through the mazes ner singularly uneventful. After his definite pre-
of a complicated keyboard in connection with an dilection for the career of music was discovered,
equally complex score, he avoids all the thousand Brahms began a career of study and composition
and one troubles associated with the process that continued, almost without a break, until his
known as "getting the music into one's fingers." death. Coming under the influence of Robert
He goes at once to the root of things; and the Schumann in 1852, he was greatly encouraged by
penetralia of the subtlest art are without effort the advice, counsel and admiration of the Leipsic
master, whose appreciation of the young genius,
laid open to his senses.
Particularly is this possession of a magic key as expressed through the columns of the power-
which unlocks the gate into the fairyland of music ful New Music Review, first brought Brahms a
a delightful thing, when one approaches the works measure of admiration and praise from musical
of certain modern, highly refined and subtle com- Germany. The sad death of Schumann shortly
posers. Although these men have brought the art after (1856), threw Brahms into a comradeship
of music to a flower of perfection almost incred- with the wonderful woman who, for so many years,
ible, the fact remains that their works are known was to carry to the world the message of the
familiarly to but a few. Nor could a more strik- dead composer's genius—Clara Schumann. Brahms
ing example of quite natural but totally undeserved displayed his good sense in helping the young
unfamiliarity be found than in the case of the widow to arrange her affairs, and ever after re-
mained her constant and devoted friend. Her
music composed by the man who is the subject of
death in 1896 so affected him that he seems never
the present brief sketch.
In drawing the attention of readers to the music to have fully recovered. His own dissolution, al-
of Johannes Brahms, we are not unaware that ibis most exactly a year later, and while still compara-
name is one held, if not as anathema, at least as tively middle-aged, may perhaps be thus explained.
During his life Brahms composed in a variety
caviare, to the multitude. We are told that
Brahms was dry, academic, obscure, and all that of forms. Throughout, however, he preserved the
sort of thing; an opinion which has been fostered care, the closely studious application, the caution.
not a little by the violent and unbalanced out- so characteristic of him. Piano pieces, string
breaks of at least one well-known musical writer quartets, songs, choruses, cantatas, had flowed from
in this country. And a further cause for annoy- his pen, to the admiration of the whole world, for
ance to the genuine lover of Brahms' music is many years before he ventured to bring out an
found in the fact that for years a certain group orchestral symphony. In fact, his first symphony
of critics and musicians in Vienna used him—- was his opus 68. Thus he was fully matured long
much against his own will, by the way—as a sort before he ventured to offer the musical world the
of foil tc Wagner. A word on this may be said supreme flowering of a composer's genius.
later. At present it is only necessary to remark
The first symphony was followed by three others.
that Brahms was a composer whose works have Of them, the first has been called the "Tenth Sym-
been most unjustly neglected, especially by all who phony." Von Bulow, who first made the bon-mot,
do not consider themselves musical specialists.
was referring to the nine symphonies of Beethoven,
And yet the plain fact remains that the piano and was thus telling the world that he believed the
pieces, the songs, the choruses and the chamber First Symphony of Brahms to be the only one com-
music of Johannes Brahms, are filled to overflow- posed until then comparable with the immortal
ing throughout with the most gracious beauty. It nine. Opinions have differed on this point. The
is not the exotic loveliness that we associate with present writer, admiring the C minor symphony
Liszt and Wagner, nor eke the barbaric splendor immensely, yet has felt that Brahms will never be
of Tschaikowsky and the Russians. But it is a judged by this work. The Second Symphony is
tender, simple, yet rugged, beauty, appealing at more genial and less austere, the Third divinely
once to the highest feelings of emotion and will. lovely, and the Fourth, in E minor, the most ma-
Born of sturdy German stock, an omnivorous stu- jestic of modern symphonic creations.
dent of folk-lore and folk-song, Brahms every-
The piano concertos of Brahms were composed
where shot his music through and through with a at an earlier period and a word on them must be
quiet and calm splendor, comparable only to the said later. Nor can we dilate here on the wonder-
holy sweetness that one knows at close of a sum- ful beauties of the Violin Concerto, or the majesty
mer day. True, he is sometimes stormy—witness and might of the great German Requiem, most
the two Rhapsodies for piano—but as a general marvelous of modern works for chorus and or-
rule, a calm, reflective nature shines luminously chestra, which alone would have made the name
through his wonderful pages, in which learning, of Johannes Brahms immortal. Nor can we speak-
science and a profound imagination together work here of the sweet friendship- with Joachim, the
to unite, in one harmonious whole, the simplest lonely bachelor life in Vienna, the quiet travels,
and sweetest of homely German melodies.
the gentle, calm introspection, the occasional storm
It is perhaps in this one special way that Brahms and stress that, sweeping aside the veil for a mo-
ment, enable us to see the workings of the strong,
even passionate, soul within. For these things, go
to Brahms' biography, and especially read what
the versatile and acute Huneker has said in his
essay, "The Music of the Future." Above all, go
to his music.
In appearance Brahms was short, somewhat
stout, benevolent-looking, with a Jovian beard and
the appearance of a majestic, but well-intentioned,
lion. Strange, is it not, that when one thinks of
the immortal trinity of music—the three B's, Bach,
Beethoven and Brahms—one sees three little men,
three short, stocky little fellows, with small bodies
and immense heads. Of them all Bach was the
serene master, Beethoven the heaven-storming
Titan, Brahms the benevolent incarnation of power,
the calm philosopher.
Johannes Brahms died in Vienna amidst the
fast flowing tears of a whole continent, on April
3, 1897. In him passed away a great German
genius, a wonderful prophet, who spoke in tones
a message of peace, of power, of beauty. Learn
to know him, music-lover, whosoever you be or
whatsoever your estate. He does not rush to
your embrace, for you must seek his friendship.
But once this cherished possession is yours, you
will have come into a new world of delight, a
fairyland of serene loveliness, the like of which
hardly another in music's realm can give you.
BRAHMS' PIANO PIECES.
The piano pieces of Johannes Brahms form
the best possible introduction to his music, so
far at least as concerns the player-pianist. For
it is in these gracious and charming works that
one sees Brahms as he should be seen; as the
contemplative philosopher, reading his message of
cheer and contentment to the world. It is too
bad that Brahms' music is comparatively so little
familiar, but it would be even worse were it well-
known and greatly misunderstood. And yet one
might say that Brahms is neither well known or
well understood; which, after all, is better, for at
least that is a natural state of things.
The piano pieces of Brahms which command
the most earnest attention of the music-lover are
the intermezzi, the capriccios, the two sets of
variations on themes by Handel and Paganini,
the two rhapsodies and the two concertos for
piano. A few words as to these will be, perhaps.
useful and valuable.
One could hardly advise the player-pianist who
is beginning on Brahms any better than to start
with the intermezzo, op. 117, No. 1. This is a
most delightful little cradle song or lullaby; a
gentle, sweet little melody, as soothing and simple
as the veriest nursery crooning. No one can pos-
sibly hear this and then say that Brahms is ob-
scure. The other two in the set are also inter-
esting, especially the third.
The Brahms capriccios are wonderful little
things. Very difficult from the technical point of
view, they are revelations of grace, sprightliness,
passion and power. They reveal Brahms on his
stronger side. Especially one should study those
of op. 116.
For the man who can assimilate strong meat,
the rhapsody in G minor is just what he wants.
A thousand stories might be written of this mar-
velous "short story in music." What is it? What
does it mean? Certainly, it is distinctly a narra-
tive. A big story is being told. Some epic per-
haps? Or again a modern man's dream of the
battle story that some old ministrel in mediaeval
hall might have sung to the listening throng of
knight and lady, squire and man at arms? What-
ever it means—and one can fit one's own in-
terpretation—the rhapsody in G minor is a won-
derful, a mighty piece of imaginative writing with
a definite narrative speaking through it striving