Brahms
Brahms composed for symphony orchestra, chamber ensembles, piano, organ, and voice and chorus. A virtuoso pianist, he premiered many of his own works. He worked with some of the leading performers of his time, including the pianist Clara Schumann and the violinist Joseph Joachim (the three were close friends). Many of his works have become staples of the modern concert repertoire. An uncompromising perfectionist, Brahms destroyed some of his works and left others unpublished.
Brahms has been considered, by his contemporaries and by later writers, as both a traditionalist and an innovator. His music is firmly rooted in the structures and compositional techniques of the Classical masters. While many contemporaries found his music too academic, his contribution and craftsmanship have been admired by subsequent figures as diverse as Arnold Schoenberg and Edward Elgar. The diligent, highly constructed nature of Brahms's works was a starting point and an inspiration for a generation of composers. Embedded within his meticulous structures, however, are deeply romantic motifs.
Brahms
BRAHMS Symphony No. 4 in E minor
R. STRAUSS Death and Transfiguration
WAGNER Tristan und Isolde: Prelude & Liebestod
VERDI Aïda: Prelude to Act 1
KODALY Dances of Galánta
RESPIGHI Feste Romane
Studio Recordings · 1939
Total duration: 2hr 06:21
Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
BRAHMS Piano Trio No. 1 in B, Op. 8
SCHUMANN Piano Trio No. 1 in D minor, Op. 63
Recorded 8 August 1953 at the Mozarteum, Salzburg
Total duration: 58:58
Edwin Fischer, piano
Wolfgang Schneiderhan, violin
Enrico Mainardi, cello
BRAHMS Violin Sonata No. 3
BRAHMS Viola Sonata No. 1
BRAHMS Rhapsodies, Intermezzi, Ballades*
Studio recordings, 1937-1955
Total duration 86:40 (CD: 76:59*)
Egon Petri, piano
Joseph Szigeti, violin
Samuel Lifschey, viola
*CDs omit the final two Ballades due to time constraints, but come with a free download that includes these recordings in both MP3 and CD-quality FLAC formats
TCHAIKOVSKY Violin Concerto
BRAHMS Hungarian Dances
VIVALDI Violin Sonata in D
music by Ravel, Sarasate, Schubert, Schumann, Wieniawski, Zarzycki, Godard, Svendsen, Toselli, Tobani, Lange
Studio recordings, 1921-1945
Total duration: 2hr 3:22
Erica Morini, violin
Alice Morini, piano
Emanuel Balaban, piano
Sàndor Vas, piano
Kurt Hetzel, piano
Nathaniel Shilkret, piano
Max Lanner, piano
Artur Balsam, piano
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
conducted by Désiré Defauw
SCHUBERT Arpeggione Sonata in A minor, D.821
BRAHMS Cello Sonata No. 1 in E minor, Op. 38
REGER Suite for Unaccompanied Cello in G Major, Op. 131c, No. 1
Recorded 1934-39
Total duration: 72:59
Emanuel Feuermann, cello
Myra Hess, piano
Gerald Moore, piano
Theo van der Pas, piano
GRIEG Haugtussa, Op. 67
BRAHMS, SCHUBERT, CHARLES Short songs
Studio recordings, 1950 and 1952
Total duration: 76:59
Edwin McArthur piano