Q - Johannes Brahms
Posted on 21st January 2021
Johannes Brahms 1833 - 1897 was a German composer, conductor and pianist of the Romantic period.
He became known as one of the ‘Three great Bs’ (Bach, Beethoven and Brahms).
‘If there is anyone here whom I have not insulted, I beg his pardon’
‘A symphony is no joke’
‘It is a real pleasure to see music so bright and spontaneous expressed with corresponding ease and grace’
‘The only true immortality lies in one’s children’
‘I sometimes ponder on variation form and it seems to me it ought to be more restrained, purer’
‘Without craftsmanship, inspiration is a mere reed shaken in the wind’
‘How lucky is the man who, like Mozart and others, goes to the tavern of an evening and writes some fresh music. For he lives while he is creating’
‘Those are miracles that no merely human brain can work. The artist is merely the sound conduct of a Force that dictates to him what he should do’
‘We cling nervously to the melody, but we don’t handle it freely, we don’t really make anything new out of it, we merely overload it’
‘The idea comes to me from outside of me - and is like a gift. I then take the idea and make it my own – that is where the skill lies’
‘What would become of all historical biography if it was written only with consideration of other peoples’ feelings?’
‘One should never forget that by actually perfecting one piece one gains and learns more than by starting or half-finishing a dozen’
‘Straight-away the ideas flow in upon me, directly from God, and not only do I see distinct themes in my mind’s eye, but they are clothed in the right forms, harmonies, and orchestration’
‘My things really are written with an appalling lack of practicality’
‘It is not hard to compose, but what is fabulously hard is to leave the superfluous notes under the table’
‘For the shallow delights of matrimony and opera I have no courage’
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