Notes for: July 12, 2005
One of Brahms’s idiosyncrasies as a composer was his tendency to produce works in pairs. As a young man he wrote in succession two serenades, two piano quartets and two sextets. In later years, he coupled two string quartets, two overtures, two chamber works involving the clarinet, two clarinet sonatas and his first and second symphonies. In each instance the pair constituted either Brahms’s only works in that particular form or medium or his initial ventures in it. Apparently the problems entailed in breaking new ground stimulated his imagination to the point that it produced enough material for two compositions.
Following this pattern, in 1880 Brahms began work on two piano trios – one in C major and one in C minor. While they were neither his first nor his only works in that form, more than a quarter century had passed since their predecessor, the Opus 8 Trio in B Major. Brahms completed the C major trio first in 1882, and published it as Opus 87, and the C minor trio second in 1886, and published it as Opus101.
Brahms was delighted with the C major trio, writing his publisher, “You have not yet had such a beautiful trio from me and very likely have not published one to equal it within the past ten years.” His assessment was shared by Clara Schumann, the widow of Robert Schumann, a famous concert pianist and perhaps Brahms’s closest friend. Brahms sent her the manuscript for comment, and she replied that it was “a great musical treat!” and added, “I wish I had the instruments here, as I could only guess at many of the effects, especially on a poor little piano.” But she had one complaint – she thought the trio of the scherzo “not quite important enough and seems rather manufactured.”
The trio had its first public performance in March, 1883. Before that event, however, Brahms participated in many private performances with friends and colleagues. One such informal performance took place in December, 1882, at Clara’s home in Frankfurt. In her diary, she tells the amusing story of how she was settling down that evening with friends to learn the work when the composer arrived at the house from Vienna without advance notice. Announcing his intention of staying for Christmas, he took over the piano part from his hostess.
What distinguishes the trio is its unusual approach to instrumental sonority. The violin and cello are generally treated as a single unit, doubling each other in octaves or thirds, and thus provide an effective counterbalance to the piano. Casting both trios in the key of C, moreover, was no coincidence – this tonality enabled the composer to build on the natural sonorities of the bottom string of the cello.
The first movement, in sonata form, is characterized by the terseness and austerity of its themes – gone are the flowing, richly harmonized melodies of Brahms’s younger years. The violin and cello state the broad first theme in unison octaves, and the two instruments work closely together in the theme’s continuation. This teamwork persists with the three subsequent themes, which are introduced either by the two stringed instruments again in unison or by the piano with the stringed instruments joining in accompaniment.
The second movement is a theme and variations – one of Brahms’s best efforts in a form in which he was particularly resourceful. In fact, when discussing fees for the trio with his publisher, he argued that this movement would make the work particularly valuable since the public expected excellent variations from him. The theme is a plaintive, folk-like melody, presented by the cello and violin in unison and reflecting Brahms’s affection for Hungarian gypsy strains. There are five variations, the last of which is a long fantasia with alternating lines for violin and cello.
Donald Francis Tovey, the British musicologist, referred to the trio’s third movement as “the dark pianissimo scherzo with its huge white cloud-bank trio.” The main section of the movement is indeed played pp almost throughout and suggests some kind of eerie night music. The middle section, in contrast, is almost child-like in its soaring simplicity.
The finale is again in sonata form, but is lighter in texture than the first movement. Once again, the violin and cello state the main theme in unison and join in a number of unison passages during the course of the movement. And, once again, Brahms augments the main theme in the coda. As might be expected, the trio ends in music of magnificent sonority.