Brahms - Piano Quartet No.1 in G minor, Op. 25

Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
Piano Quartet No.1 in G minor, Op. 25 (1861)
Analysis below ↓
MVT I
EXPOSITION
00:00 - Theme group 1, part 1. Introduced by the piano with bare octaves and then stated by the cello in the “wrong” key of d minor
00:25 - Theme group 1, part 2. B-flat major.
00:57 - Transition. T1, 1 in the strings and a new 16th note motif played by the piano
01:41 - Theme 2, D minor. If isolate the top note of each descending arpeggio in the piano you get the 16th note motif from earlier in augmentation
02:41 - T2 in D major played against the 16th note motif
03:24 - Theme 3, D major
04:24 - Closing section. The head of T1, 1 played in the piano answered by the head of T1, 2 in the strings. Brahms then deconstructs T1, 1 until it becomes just the interval of a semitone
DEVELOPMENT
05:38 - Brahms begins the development section as a sort of fake out - it starts in the same way as the exposition making the listener think that this is a repeat, but the music soon changes
06:03 - T1, 2. C minor
06:22 - 16th note motif played sequentially
06:50 - Arrival in A minor. T1, 1 is heard, but it is broken up between the strings
07:28 - The head of T1, 1 is played in imitation between the strings and the piano and is then deconstructed until it becomes just the leap of an octave
07:54 - D major is finally reached
RECAPITULATION
08:06 - Brahms begins the recapitulation not with the expected T1, 1, but T1, 2 in G major, probably due to the fact that T1, 1 was used extensively in the development section
09:06 - Transition.
09:36 - T2, E-flat major. In the recapitulation, Brahms omits the original statement of T2 and skips straight to the major key version with the 16th note motif played in the piano
10:20 - T3, G minor
11:25 - Closing section
CODA
11:53 - Coda
12:38 - Brahms creates these extremely harsh dissonances between the strings and the piano by overlapping the harmonies so that the next chord begins in in piano before it has finished in the strings
MVT II
INTERMEZZO
Part 1
13:18 - Intermezzo theme 1, C minor
13:36 - The piano enters playing chords with the same rhythm as the first theme, now in C major
13:41 - Return of T1 in C minor. This time it is the piano playing the theme with added counterpoint in the violin and cello
13:58 - The major key variant of T1 that was heard in the piano earlier is now played by the violin and viola
Part 2
14:05 - Intermezzo theme 2, F minor
14:33 - T1 in F minor
15:06 - T2 in C minor
15:35 - Arrival in C major. Codetta
TRIO
16:10 - Trio theme 1, A-flat major. The five bar phrase lengths give it a sort of clumsy feel
16:43 - Trio theme 2, E major. Derived from T1
16:55 - T2 in A-flat major
17:07 - Return of T1, but in D-flat major
17:31 - Retransitioin
INTERMEZZO REPRISE
17:39 - Intermezzo theme 1, C minor. The events which happen in the reprise of the intermezzo are identical to the original
18:26 - Intermezzo theme 2, F minor
19:54 - Codetta, C major
20:30 - CODA. Based on theme 1 from the trio
MVT III
20:54 - A
24:34 - B
28:15 - A
30:10 - Coda
MVT IV
Rondo theme A (G minor)
31:44 - Part 1 of rondo theme A
31:52 - Contrasting phrase
32:05 - Part two of A. It is built upon a rising semitone followed by an ascending scale
32:27 - Return of part 1, but starting with the contrasting phrase
32:31 - Return of the opening phrase
First contrasting section B (B-flat major)
32:40 - Part 1 of B
32:57 - Part 2 of B
33:06 - Return of part 1 of B
Rondo theme A’ (G minor)
33:32 - Part 1 A’. Part 2 is omitted
Second contrasting section C (G major)
34:01 - Part 1 of the second contrasting section
34:18 - Part 2 of the second contrasting section
34:26 - Return of part 1 of the second contrasting section
Third contrasting section D (E minor)
34:53 - Part 1 of the third contrasting section
35:28 - Part 2 of the third contrasting section
35:46 - Return of part 1 of the third contrasting section
Fourth contrasting section B’ (G major)
36:46 - Part 1 of the fourth contrasting section
36:55 - Part 2 of the fourth contrasting section
Fifth contrasting section C’ (G major)
37:10 - Part 1 of the fifth contrasting section
37:18 - Part 2 of the fifth contrasting section
37:26 - Return of part 1 of the fifth contrasting section
Rondo theme A’’ (G minor)
37:35 - Instead of beginning the return of rondo theme A with part 1, Brahms begins with part 2
38:04 - Unexpected cadenza-like passage in the piano
38:14 - Developmental section using material from each of the three different contrasting sections
39:25 - Final statement of rondo theme A
Gidon Kremer, violin
Yuri Bashmet, viola
Mischa Maisky, cello
Martha Argerich, piano

[@calebhu6383]

The last movement is probably the most fun thing Brahms ever wrote, and demonstrates that Brahms could have been as crowdpleasing a composer as any had he chose to do so.

[@matthewnell]

Absolutely. He’s way more versatile than people give him credit for.

[@matthewnell]

The chord that closes the first movement is special. It takes advantage of the open G/D strings in the cello and the open D strings in the violin and viola; to me, the sound is stoic. The only stopped notes are the Bb in the violin (great for tuning) and the low D in the viola. The voicing in the piano doubles everything, plus an extra low G. Brahms finds a way to make every moment special.

[@ulysse__]

pfp buddies :) thanks for the analysis!!

[@antoineroche2073]

"01:41 - Theme 2, D minor. If isolate the top note of each descending arpeggio in the piano you get the 16th note motif from earlier in augmentation"
Wow, thank you, I didn't realize that. That kind of hidden motives makes Brahms incomparable.