Brahms: Piano Quintet in F minor, Movement 1

Brahms - Piano Quintet in F minor, Op. 34: movement III 3^rd movement
Background:
- Johannes Brahms, 1833-1897(German composer & pianist)
- Romantic period
- Great respect for earlier music
- Considered a traditionalist and innovator
- Virtuosic pianist
- Movement 3 of 4 movements
- Intended for highly skilled performers (fast, technical passages)
- Brahms revised his music many times
Instrumentation:
- 2 violins, viola & cello (string quartet)
- String quintet with piano
- Very demanding = for skilled performers
- Piano = a lot of the chords (and lots of notes)
- Strings are fast & complex
Melody:
- Ascending melody in Theme A
- Stepwise/conjunct movement in Theme B (& staccato notes)
- Violin 1 & viola = octave unison
- Theme C = grand & majestic
- Based on melodic/motivic…