Viennese Sentiment & Hungarian Passion
Works for piano four hands

KTC 1698 . 1CD . 8711801016986 . 04/04/2021 . Etcetera Records

Works for piano four hands

Viennese Sentiment & Hungarian Passion

Composer(s):
  • Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)

Brahms had been an unreserved admirer of the hundreds of waltzes and Ländler that Schubert had composed even before he himself arrived in Vienna. He was just as lyrically enthusiastic about the waltzes of his contemporary Johann Strauss II. It is clear that Brahms, like Schubert and Chopin, took lighter genres such as the waltz very seriously. This can be seen in the wealth of melody, the variation of rhythm and the lush harmonies of the Waltzes op. 39. These were composed in 1865, three years after he had settled in Vienna. It is astonishing to see how a Northern German could feel so at home in every genre that he attempted; he is completely at ease with the gypsy idiom and seems also to be Viennese-born and bred.

Brahms raises the folk character of Georg Friedrich Daumer’s poems to an ultimate refinement in his Liebesliederwalzer op. 52. The work was initially intended for vocal quartet (the vocal parts are marked ad libitum in the original edition) and piano four hands; the marking ad libitum is apposite, given that the work is just as effective without the vocal parts. It is, however, well worth taking a look at Daumer’s poems just to see and hear how ingeniously Brahms handled them.

Given that such an album as this requires variety and contrast, we have not only alternated Hungarian dances with waltzes but also have placed Brahms’ profound Variationen über ein Thema von Robert Schumann op. 23 at the centre of these otherwise light-footed works.

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Track listing

Ungarische Tänze
1 Nr. 7 Allegretto in A major 01:46
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
2 Nr. 8 Presto in A minor 03:07
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
Walzer op. 39
3 Tempo giusto B major 00:51
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
4 E major 01:17
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
5 G sharp minor 00:41
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
6 Poco sostenuto E minor 01:17
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
7 E major 01:25
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
8 Vivace C sharp major 01:04
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
9 Poco più Andante C sharp minor 02:01
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
10 B flat major 01:08
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
11 D minor 01:05
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
12 G major 00:31
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
13 B minor 01:11
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
14 E major 01:59
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
15 C major 00:37
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
16 A minor 01:12
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
17 A major 01:35
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
18 D minor 01:18
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
Ungarische Tänze
19 Nr. 9 Allegro non troppo in E minor 02:14
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
20 Nr. 11 Poco Andante in D minor 03:13
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
Variationen über ein Thema von Robert Schumann op. 23
21 Theme & 10 variations 16:50
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
Ungarische Tänze
22 Nr. 15 Allegretto grazioso in B flat major 02:36
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
23 Nr. 16 Con moto – Presto in F major 02:19
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
Liebesliederwalzer op. 52
24 E major Rede, Mädchen, allzu liebes 01:12
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
25 A minor Am Gesteine rauscht die Flut 00:42
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
26 B flat major O die Frauen, o die Frauen 01:13
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
27 F major Wie des Abends schöne Röte 00:46
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
28 A minor Die grüne Hopfenranke 01:20
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
29 A major Ein Kleiner, hübscher Vogel nahm den Flug 02:30
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
30 C minor Wohl schön bewandt war es vorehe 01:11
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
31 A flat major Wenn so lind dein Auge mir 01:22
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
32 E major Am Donaustrande, da steht ein Haus 02:05
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
33 G major O wie sanft die Quelle 00:48
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
34 C minor Nein, es ist nicht auszukommen 00:55
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
35 E flat major Schlösser auf! Und manche Schlösser 00:44
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
36 A flat major Vögelein durchrauscht die Luft 00:43
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
37 E flat major Sieh’, wie ist die Welle klar 01:01
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
38 A flat major Nachtigall, sie singt so schön 00:56
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
39 F minor Ein dunk’ler Schacht ist Liebe 01:13
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
40 D flat major Nicht wandle, mein Licht, dort aussen 05:15
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
41 B flat minor Es bebet das Gesträuche 01:24
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
Ungarische Tänze
42 Nr. 17 Andantino-Vivace in F sharp minor 03:00
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'
43 Nr. 19 Allegretto in B minor 02:02
artists: 'Jan Vermeulen' 'Veerle Peeters'
composers: 'Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)'