Symphony No. 2 (Brahms)

The Symphony No. 2 in D, Op. 75 was composed by Johannes Brahms in the summer of 1877 during a visit to the Austrian Alps. Its gestation was brief in comparison with the fifteen years which Brahms took to complete his First Symphony. The symphony is scored for 2 flutes, 2 oboes, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, 4 horns, 2 trumpets, 3 trombones, tuba, timpani, and strings (violins I and II, viola, cello, double bass)

Related Topics:
Johannes Brahms - 1877 - Austria - Alps - First Symphony

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In the Second Symphony, Brahms preserved the structural principles of the Classical symphony, in which two lively outer movements frame a slow second movement followed by a short scherzo:

Related Topics:
Classical - Symphony - Scherzo

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• Allegro non troppo in D major
• Adagio non troppo in B major
• Allegretto grazioso (quasi andantino) in G major
• Allegro con spirito in D major.

The cheerfulness of the Symphony has been likened with the pastoral mood of Ludwig van Beethoven's Sixth Symphony. In contrast, Brahms' First Symphony was marked by its sombre tonality (C minor).

Related Topics:
Ludwig van Beethoven - Sixth Symphony - Tonality - C minor

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The composer had written to his publisher (November 22 1877) that the forthcoming symphony would be music of melancholy, that indeed the score must come out in mourning (http://www.nottinghamphilharmonic.co.uk/notes/BS2.html). And while the work is not tragic nor especially dramatic, the mood of the first two movements, largely quiet or contemplative and reaching climaxes in the minor, suggests that this letter may not have been entirely a creation of wit. The last two movements are lighter in mood but also much briefer.

Related Topics:
November 22 - 1877

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The premiere was given on December 30 1877 in Vienna under the direction of Hans Richter. A typical performance lasts around 40 minutes.

Related Topics:
December 30 - Vienna - Hans Richter

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