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Johannes Brahms Biography

Johannes Brahms Image

BRAHMS, JOHANNES (1833-97) One of the supreme masters of music. His great-grandfather had been a carpenter, and his grandfather an innkeeper. The latter's second son, Johann Jacob (1806-72) , early showed a decided talent for music, which he cultivated in spite of his parents' opposition. In 1826 he settled in Hamburg, where for many years he played the double bass in the orchestra of the Stadtheater. In 1830 he married Johanna Nissen. Of this union three children were born, of whom Johannes, born May 7, 1833, was the second.

The elder Brahms regarded it as a matter of course that his son should follow the profession of music, and accordingly Otto Cossel was chosen as a teacher. The boy's talent was so evident and his progress so rapid that at the age of 10 he was placed under the instruction of Eduard Marxsen, at that time the foremost musician of Hamburg. That his creative talent must have manifested itself with extraordinary power we may gather from Marxsen's words when he heard of the death of Mendelssohn: "A great master of music has passed away, but a greater one will arise in Brahms." This was in 1847. In the same year the boy made his first public appearance as a pianist, but he still continued his studies under Marxsen. Unfortunately nothing has been preserved of his earliest compositions. In all probability Brahms destroyed them, as he later on always burned compositions which he did not think worthy of publication.

When in 1853 Remenyi (q.v.) visited Hamburg, Brahms joined him for a concert tour, appearing as accompanist, soloist, and composer. Whatever plans the young men may have had, they were suddenly changed by the meeting with Josef Joachim (q.v.) in Göttingen. The great violinist was so deeply impressed both by the playing and the compositions of Brahms that he recommended him to Liszt (q.v.) in Weimar, where the young musician spent six weeks as Liszt's guest. But in spite of his host's amiability Brahms did not find the musical atmosphere of Weimar congenial, and he returned to Göttingen to Joachim. In the beginning of October, 1853, Brahms, bearing a letter of introduction from Joachim, called upon Schumann in Dusseldorf and played for him the works in manuscript now known as op. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. Before the month was out there appeared in the Neue Zeitschrift für Musik Schumann's famous essay, "Neue Bahnen." But that was not all. The article was immediately followed by an enthusiastic personal letter to Breitkopf and Hartel, the result of which was the publication by that famous firm of Brahms' Sonata in C, op. 1; Sonata in F# m., op. 2; Six Songs, op. 3; Scherzo in E b m., op. 4. Almost simultaneously B. Senff published the Sonata in F m., op. 5, and Six Songs, op. 6.

One might think that after such an introduction Brahms would have no difficulty in gaining recognition. Quite the contrary is true. All musical parties assumed an attitude of critical reserve. Only the immediate circle of Schumann's friends and admirers-and very small it was at that time-accepted the newly proclaimed genius.

During Schumann's lifetime Brahms remained in Düsseldorf, devoting himself with all the earnestness of his serious nature to the study of the works of the great masters, especially Bach. But he also composed diligently, although for some years nothing new of the much-heralded new prophet appeared in print. In 1857 Brahms accepted an offer from the Prince of Lippe-Detmold. As director of an excellent chorus he there gained that practical and intimate knowledge of choral singing which later on he utilized in the writing of his monumental masterpieces. He also completed his first concerto for piano and orchestra in D minor, op. 15. The first performance took place in Hanover, Jan. 22, 1850, with the composer at the piano and Joachim directing the orchestra. It was received with icy coldness. Five days later Brahms played it in the Gewandhaus in Leipzig. On that occasion the composer and his work were hissed. Undaunted by this failure, the master, together with Joachim and Stockhausen, appeared in the same year in his native city, where the same concerto and his first serenade for orchestra in D, op. 11, were received with enthusiasm. In the following year, 1860, he visited Hamburg again and produced two new works, the second serenade in A, op. 16, and those exquisite choruses for female voices with accompaniment of horns and harp, op. 17. The favorable reception accorded also to these works induced Brahms to resign his position in Detmold. For the next two years he again lived in Hamburg, although he spent much of that time making tours in Switzerland and along the Rhine.

In September, 1862, Brahms paid his first visit to Vienna. His success as pianist and composer was instantaneous, so that the conductorship of the famous Singakademie was offered to him, a post which he accepted. But before his three-year contract expired, he resigned and resumed his free, roaming life. The years from 1864 to 1868 he spent traveling about, indulging his favorite pastime of making extended foot tours, and stopping for longer or shorter periods at Baden-Baden, Winterthur, Karlsruhe, Zürich, and Bonn. In Zürich he met the celebrated surgeon Billroth (q.v.), a passionate lover of music, who became one of Brahms's most intimate friends and subsequently played an important part in his life. But while he thus indulged his passionate love for nature and travel, the master was not idle. It was during these years that he wrote, besides many other masterpieces, the work which first gained him general recognition, Ein Deutsches Requiem, op. 45, the score of which was completed in 1866. Three movements were performed in Vienna in 1867, but the first performance of the entire work took place under the direction of the composer in the cathedral at Bremen, April 10, 1868. The impression produced was so overwhelming that the work was not only repeated in Bremen 10 days later, but it made the rounds of the principal German cities. What Hanslick (q.v.) wrote at that time is still true today. "Since Bach's Mass in B minor and Beethoven's Missa Solemnis nothing has been written in this field that can be placed by the side of Brahms's German Requiem."

Long before this the Wagner partisans had assumed an attitude of open hostility. Now all the enemies of Wagner flocked to the standard of Brahms. Personally, the master not only never sympathized with, but emphatically discouraged all attempts to set him up as an "anti-pope." He was, however, a close student of Wagner's scores and an ardent admirer of his genius. Brahms was one of the most profound musical scholars of his time. He knew everything that had been written before him, and he knew from personal study the works of all his important contemporaries. Besides this, he was a profound student of literature and history. When this is taken into account, together with the severely critical attitude which he took toward his own compositions, it explains the comparatively small number of works produced during an active life extending over 64 years. At the same time it explains the uniform excellence of these works.

In the meantime Vienna had come to regard Brahms as her own. The influential critic, Dr. Hanslick (q.v.), had been indefatigable in making propaganda for the master, and a small but truly appreciative circle of admirers brought it about that in 1872 the conductorsbip of the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde (q.v.) was offered to Brahms. Rather reluctantly-for he knew he was not a great conductor-he accepted, and directed the concerts for three seasons. It was the last time that the master held an official position. After that Brahms devoted all his time to composition and his favorite studies. The revenues he derived from the sale and performance of his works were such that he could gratify all his simple tastes and lay aside a considerable fortune. In 1867 Billroth had settled in Vienna, and here his hospitable house soon became the centre of a select musical and artistic circle, whose special privilege it was to hear the first performance of all new works of Brahms before they appeared in print. The orchestral works were performed on two pianos, Brahms playing the first and Brüll (q.v.) the second. The summer months the master always spent in the country or traveling, the winter months in Vienna. For a quarter of a century this was the regular order of things. Henceforth the history of Brahms is the history of his works.

After the year 1877, when the master's first symphony appeared, all serious opposition was swept away. Only the extreme Wagner partisans continued their attacks. Bülow (q.v.), one of the most ardent, but sane, advocates of Wagner, now came forward as the equally zealous champion of Brahms. It was after the study of this symphony that Bülow originated his famous phrase of the "three great B's" (Bach, Beethoven, Brahms). On his triumphal tours with his celebrated Meiningen Orchestra he conducted all the great orchestral works of Brahms, and as a pianist played the two piano concertos in D minor and B flat. In this connection it is interesting to note that three other great conductors who worked indefatigably for the recognition of Brahms-Levi, Richter, Wüllner-were at the same time fighting the battle for Wagner. Every year Brahms gave the world at least one immortal masterpiece. Honor after honor was showered upon him. King Ludwig of Bavaria decorated him in 1874 with the Order of Maximilian, on the same occasion on which he conferred this distinction upon Wagner. The Berlin Academy of Arts elected him a member. The Universities of Cambridge and Breslau conferred upon him academic degrees, honoris causa, in 1877 and 1881 respectively. This honor on the part of the German institution Brahms acknowledged by the dedication of his Ademische Festouverture, op. 80. In 1889 the Senate of his native city elected him "honorary citizen," for which distinction the master sent the burgomaster the Fest und Gedenksprüche for eight-part chorus a cappella, op. 109. In the same year he was decorated with the Austrian Order of Leopold, and in 1896 with the medal for Arts and Sciences. On the occasion of his sixtieth birthday the Gesellsehaft der Musikfreunde struck a gold medal in his honor.

Brahms's health had alwavs been robust. During his whole life he had never known a day's sickness. During the summer of 1896 some friends who visited the master at his summer home in Ischl were shocked at his appearance. His figure seemed to have shrunk, his skin was yellow, his expressive eyes had lost their lustre. The doctors correctly diagnosed the case as degeneration of the liver, but kept the seriousness of the disease from their patient. A treatment at Karlsbad brought only temporary relief. When, in the fall of 1896, Brahms returned to Vienna, be was much weakened. Nevertheless he would not hear of being sick and forced himself to appear among his friends and at concerts. On March 7, 1897, he was seen for the last time at a concert. His own Fourth Symphony was the principal number, and the revered master was forced to respond to the insistent calls from the audience. On the 24th he went out for the last time to dine with friends. After that his weakness increased so much that he was obliged to keep his bed. His devoted landlady and a few intimate friends remained in constant attendance until at 9.30 in the morning, on April 3, 1897, the great master closed his eyes forever. In the Central Cemetery of Vienna, opposite the grave of Beethoven and close by the side of Schubert, the mortal remains of Brahms were consigned to their last resting place.

In 1906 the Deutsche Brahmsgesellschaft was founded in Berlin, the object of which is the publication of books relating to Brahms. So far it has published the master's correspondence and the comprehensive biography by Max Kalbeck.