About the Book
Since its first publication in 1990, "Brahms and His World" has become a key text for listeners, performers, and scholars interested in the life, work, and times of one of the nineteenth century's most celebrated composers. In this substantially revised and enlarged edition, the editors remain close to the vision behind the original book while updating its contents to reflect new perspectives on Brahms that have developed over the past two decades. To this end, the original essays by leading experts are retained and revised, and supplemented by contributions from a new generation of Brahms scholars. Together, they consider such topics as Brahms' relationship with Clara and Robert Schumann, his musical interactions with the 'New German School' of Wagner and Liszt, his influence upon Arnold Schoenberg and other young composers, his approach to performing his own music, and his productive interactions with visual artists.
The essays are complemented by a new selection of criticism and analyses of Brahms' works published by the composer's contemporaries, documenting the ways in which Brahms' music was understood by nineteenth- and early twentieth-century audiences in Europe and North America. A new selection of memoirs by Brahms' friends, students, and early admirers provides intimate glimpses into the composer's working methods and personality. And a catalog of the music, literature, and visual arts dedicated to Brahms documents the breadth of influence exerted by the composer upon his contemporaries.
Table of Contents:
Preface and Acknowledgments ix Preface and Acknowledgments from the First Edition xi Permissions and Credits xiii PART I: ESSAYS Time and Memory: Concert Life, Science, and Music in Brahms's Vienna by LEON BOTSTEIN 3 Johannes Brahms, Solitary Altruist by PETER F. OSTWALD 27 Brahms the Godfather by STYRA AVINS 41 Clara Schumann and Johannes Brahms by NANCY B. REICH 57 The Pianos of Johannes Brahms by GEORGE S. BOZARTH AND STEPHEN H. BRADY 73 Brahms, the Third Symphony, and the New German School by DAVID BRODBECK 95 The "Brahms Fog": On Analyzing Brahmsian Influences at the Fin de Siecle by WALTER FRISCH 117 Between Work and Play: Brahms as Performer of His Own Music by ROGER MOSELEY 137 Brahms, Max Klinger, and the Promise of the Gesamtkunstwerk: Revisiting the Brahms-Phantasie (1894) by KEVIN C. KARNES 167 PART II: RECEPTION AND ANALYSIS Five Early Works by Brahms (1862) by ADOLF SCHUBRING 195 TRANSLATED, INTRODUCED, AND ANNOTATED BY WALTER FRISCH Piano Sonata in C Major, op. 1 Piano Sonata in F-sharp Minor, op. 2 Piano Sonata in F Minor, op. 5 Piano Trio in B Major, op. 8 [1854 version] Piano Concerto No. 1 in D Minor, op. 15 Discovering Brahms (1862-72) by EDUARD HANSLICK 217 TRANSLATED, INTRODUCED, AND ANNOTATED BY KEVIN C. KARNES Johannes Brahms (1862-63) Serenade No. 1 in D Major, op. 11 (1862) German Requiem, op. 45 (1867) Sextet No. 2 in G Major, op. 36 (1867) Triumphlied, op. 55, and Schicksalslied, op. 54 (1872) The Brahms Symphonies (1887) 233 HERMANN KRETZSCHMAR TRANSLATED BY SUSAN GILLESPIE, INTRODUCED BY KEVIN C. KARNES Symphony No. 1 in C Minor, op. 68 Symphony No. 2 in D Major, op. 73 Symphony No. 3 in F Major, op. 90 Symphony No. 4 in E Minor, op. 98 Brahms's A Cappella Choral Pieces, op. 104 (1892) 253 HEINRICH SCHENKER TRANSLATED, INTRODUCED, AND ANNOTATED BY KEVIN C. KARNES Nachtwache I Nachtwache II Letztes Gluck Verlorene Jugend Im Herbst Brahms's Four Serious Songs, op. 121 (1914) 267 MAX KALBECK TRANSLATED BY WILLIAM MILLER INTRODUCED AND ANNOTATED BY KEVIN C. KARNES "A Modern of the Moderns": Brahms's First Symphony 287 in New York and Boston SELECTED AND ANNOTATED BY GEORGE S. BOZARTH PART III: MEMOIRS Johannes Brahms: The Last Days 307 Memories and Letters EDUARD HANSLICK TRANSLATED BY SUSAN GILLESPIE, ANDREW HOMAN, AND CAROLINE HOMAN INTRODUCED BY KEVIN C. KARNES ANNOTATED BY LEON BOTSTEIN AND KEVIN C. KARNES My Early Acquaintance with Brahms 339 RICHARD HEUBERGER TRANSLATED, INTRODUCED, AND ANNOTATED BY STYRA AVINS Remembering Johannes Brahms: 349 Brahms and His Krefeld Friends HEINZ VON BECKERATH TRANSLATED BY JOSEF EISINGER INTRODUCED AND ANNOTATED BY STYRA AVINS Johannes Brahms as Man, Teacher, and Artist 381 GUSTAV JENNER TRANSLATED BY SUSAN GILLESPIE AND ELISABETH KAESTNER INTRODUCED BY KEVIN C. KARNES ANNOTATED BY LEON BOTSTEIN AND KEVIN C. KARNES Brahms and the Newer Generation: Personal Reminiscences by 425 Alexander von Zemlinsky and Karl Weigl TRANSLATED AND INTRODUCED BY WALTER FRISCH PART IV "Dedicated to Johannes Brahms" 433 PREPARED BY WALTER FRISCH Index 443 Notes on the Contributors 459
About the Author :
Walter Frisch is the H. Harold Gumm/Harry and Albert von Tilzer Professor of Music at Columbia University. He is the author of "Brahms: The Four Symphonies" and "Brahms and the Principle of Developing Variation". Kevin C. Karnes is assistant professor of music history at Emory University. He is the author of "Music, Criticism, and the Challenge of History: Shaping Modern Musical Thought in Late Nineteenth-Century Vienna".
Review :
Almost exactly twice as long as the original publication, this revised edition of Brahms and His World presents new perspectives on Brahms that have come to light over the past two decades... A worthy replacement of its predecessor, this well-illustrated volume concludes with a catalog of books, compositions, and artworks dedicated to the composer through the end of the 19th century. Choice
