{"id":6858,"date":"2015-06-25T10:41:15","date_gmt":"2015-06-25T09:41:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/kennethwoods.net\/blog1\/?p=6858"},"modified":"2015-06-25T10:41:15","modified_gmt":"2015-06-25T09:41:15","slug":"malcolm-macdonald-on-brahms-opus-26","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kennethwoods.net\/blog1\/2015\/06\/25\/malcolm-macdonald-on-brahms-opus-26\/","title":{"rendered":"Malcolm MacDonald on Brahms opus 26"},"content":{"rendered":"

Rehearsals have been going well for this weekend’s performance of my arrangement of the Brahms A major Piano Quartet for orchestra in Guildford. For some reason, the A major has always been the least played of the Brahms Piano Quartets. I’m sure it’s absolutely epic scale puts some groups off, but I know many of my chamber music colleagues seem to feel it’s a weaker piece than either the G minor or C minor, or, for that matter, the much more famous Piano Quintet.<\/p>\n

I’ve always loved the piece, and spending so much one-on-one time with it lately has really made me admire it all the more. Fortunately, I’m not alone in my affection for the piece, and, predictably, I was able to find a few wise words about it in the much-missed Malcolm MacDonald’s invaluable book on Brahms. He really was one of the most perceptive writers on music I’ve ever come across.*<\/p>\n

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* Even though he really loved the Schoenberg orchestration of opus 25, which I did finally re-listen to over the weekend with much alarm. Hearing Brahms’s infinitely honest music dressed up in Hollywood regalia feels a little like I would imagine it would feel seeing one’s mother dressed up as a lady of the night. It sounds like opus 25 has been given a roofie. I hope I’ve allowed opus 26 to keep its dignity.<\/p>\n