Symphony 2

Allegretto grazioso: Allegro con spirito

It seems extraordinary from the perspective of time that the most bitter of musical rows should have bedevilled Brahms. On the one hand were the supporters of Wagner and Liszt; on the other Brahms' own zealous protagonists. The composer Schumann set the ball rolling with his declaration that Brahms was the destined custodian of the symphonic tradition, a position that Brahms bore with unease. Knowing that the opposition awaited his first attempt at a symphony with poised and sharpened pens, he approached the symphonic form with great care, revising and reconsidering with utmost assiduity. Indeed, the uncompleted manuscript was withheld from publication for fourteen years. In spite of the vitriolic criticism of his efforts and gaining strength and confidence from the success of the First Symphony, Brahms released his Second just one year later in December 1877 with Hans Richter conducting the Vienna Philharmonic. The composer's own interpretation followed a few days later at the Leipzig Gewandhaus.

It is perhaps unfair to look back at contemporary reviews of any composer's music but it is great fun. After all the reviewer perhaps had only one chance to hear the music and it might well have received a non too complimentary performance. Th following is from a Boston Journal in 1879: "It (the Second Symphony) still refuses to reveal its meaning and leaves us with the sense of having listened to something ugly and ungenial which we would fain avoid hereafter. It is fragmentary and disjointed; the rhythm and the tempo and thoughts are continually changing without warning and apparently without reason; there is nothing like development or continuity. There is a certain feebleness, a sugar and water character". As the Second Symphony of Brahms displays a fecundity of melodic grace and invention, a serenity, a depth of meaning and a wholly satisfying emotion, it is a little hard to understand what these early performances were like or why the listeners were quite so biased. Knowing that poor Brahms was saddled with the unfounded reputation of being a "heavy, Germanic" composer, were the performers led astray in their perception and interpretation of the music? Much more realistic is a later fancy that Brahms' four symphonies portrayed the seasons of the year and the Second was the epitome of Spring. For the modern musician there is a most rewarding satisfaction in the preparation and performance of this wonderful music. Even the drudge of a hard-working rehearsal is lightened by the joy of the music.

There are so many aspects inherent in music that make up the final, polished performance; no one more important than another; yet it is the sound of the music which brings forth the most immediate response from the listener. Using only the standard instruments of the orchestra, Brahms creates a sonority and warmth that has instant appeal. Each of the four contrasted movements of his symphonies shows a different character; yet the listener is constantly beguiled by the exquisitely crafted tonal palette. The first movement of the Second Symphony for example starts with Brahms' beloved horns romantically conjuring up one of the main musical ideas. When the upper strings finally enter, it is with a strangely angular melodic line which resolves down into rich trombone and tuba chords preparing for the entry of another gem from Brahms' rich store of melodic invention. The musical structure underlying this feast of sound is another element which makes Brahms' music so complete. The composer having stated his musical case, it is relatively straightforward for the listener, either consciously or unconsciously, to follow the scheme of things to a logical and emotionally satisfying conclusion. A similar rich vein of texture and form is sculpted in the second movement where the long cello opening tune is lovingly taken up by other sections of the orchestra. The third movement draws on contrasts of texture and interplay between the string and wind sections; a gentle opening wind serenade gives way to a fleet-footed scherzo which magically slips back into the opening idea like a comfortable glove. The last movement starts quietly enough, yet develops a broadness of scale that is typical of Brahms at his best. Showing yet again his superb command of musical architecture, Brahms works the music up to a truly uplifting ending.