Comments on BWV622: Tonal Relationships: Transposition

Yes this pairing is exquisite. I assume you are fa...

2008-03-26T18:42:00.000-04:00

Yes this pairing is exquisite. I assume you are familiar with the others in op. 118 - G minor, F minor, F major, E flat minor. The only other pair with related keys would be the F minor [#4] to the F major [#5]. In looking at all the 'sets' of piano pieces of Brahms - op. 76, 79, 116, 117, 118 and 119, we often find unrelated keys in immediate succession. For this reason, I believe that Brahms didn't intend them to be played as sets. On the other hand, taking the first two of op. 118 and then going to op. 117 #3 [C sharp minor] makes for an excellent group, for example. There are innumerable combinations one can put together with these magnificent works.

I totally agree that the first three notes of op. 118 #2 are among the most beautiful gestures in all of music.

Thank you for writing and please drop in again.

Robert

One reason the Brahms Op. 118 (# 1 and #2) work so...

2008-03-25T14:12:00.000-04:00

One reason the Brahms Op. 118 (# 1 and #2) work so well as a recital opener has to do with the tonality; #1 ending in a beautifully arpeggiated A major seems to lead so naturally into the opening of # 2.
By the way, the pickup and downbeat of the Brahms Intermezzo Op. 118/2 contains more soul than everything composed in the 20th or 21st century.

I consistently do exactly the same thing, Justin. ...

2008-03-16T06:21:00.000-04:00

I consistently do exactly the same thing, Justin. I remember attending a recital once. The pianist started with Bach's Prelude and Fugue in B flat major {Bk. I), and after approximately 4 seconds of applause, moved right into Haydn's E minor Sonata. It was as if someone had juxtaposed a painting of Van Gogh and one of Rembrandt - each one great, but they don't belong together. Our fellow musicians might give this some consideration when programming their repertoire for concert.

An additional thought: any multi-movement masterwork obviously exhibits beauty of tonal organization. Take Mendelssohn's Elijah, for example, or the Messiah, the Verdi Requiem, Schumann's Carnaval or Kinderscenen, Missa Solemnis, Winterreise, Don Giovanni, La Boheme. The classical four-movement design, tonic - dominant or subdominant - tonic - tonic [or tonic - relative major - tonic - tonic in minor] was destined to evolve. Little did anyone in 1815 realize that the late works of Faure and Debussy were only 100 years away.

I believe the same goes for playing concert repert...

2008-03-15T19:17:00.000-04:00

I believe the same goes for playing concert repertoire - for example I just played a 1/2 piano recital and constructed the sequence of pieces around a tonal organization. I began with an original composition that is in a minor (ending in A major). I followed this with an e minor composition and then finally a G major work.