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The Sound of Autumn: Brahms on the Viola

PROGRAM

All by Johannes Brahms (1833-1897):

Sonata for Piano and Viola in F minor, op. 120 no. 1

i. Allegro appassionato

ii. Andante un poco adagio

iii. Allegretto grazioso

iv. Vivace

Assorted songs for voice and piano, arr. for piano and viola by Becke/Marks:

Sonata for Piano and Viola in E flat major, op. 120 no. 2

i. Allegro amabile

ii. Allegro appassionato

iii. Andante con moto - allegro

It’s almost too easy to describe Brahms’s late music as ‘autumnal’, but until I find a better word for it, I’m going to keep on doing it. The stories of Brahms’s clarinet/viola sonatas (as a pianist, I get to play them no matter what - I’ll leave the debate about which instrument they really should be for to the clarinetists and violists!) is a well known one: in 1890, Brahms decided he was retiring, and that he’d written his last piece. In 1891, he heard the clarinetist Richard Mühlfeld perform Mozart’s Clarinet Quintet, and was so inspired by Mühlfeld’s playing and the sound of the clarinet that he came out of retirement, writing a series of masterworks involving the clarinet (sorry, violists, this might be a point in favour of the clarinet). These two sonatas were the last two pieces he wrote, completing them in July 1894. Both pieces have a sense of deep inner peace, even in their many moments of excitement. They are the perfect last two statements of a long life of musical experience and wisdom.

Between the sonatas, we’ll play a selection of Brahms’s gorgeous songs for voice and piano, with David’s viola singing its heart out in its rich alto voice.

Carson Becke Biography

David Marks Biography

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