Brahms wrote a number of major works for orchestra, including two serenades, four symphonies, two piano concertos, a Violin Concerto, a Double Concerto for violin and cello, and a pair of orchestral overtures, the Academic Festival Overture and the Tragic Overture.
His large choral work Ein deutsches Requiem ("A German Requiem") is not a traditional, liturgical requiem (Missa pro defunctis), but a setting of texts which Brahms selected from the Lutheran Bible. The work was composed in three major periods of his life. An earlier version of the second movement was first composed in 1854, not long after Robert Schumann's attempted suicide, and was later finished and used in his first piano concerto. The majority of the Requiem was composed after his mother's death in 1865. The fifth movement was later added after the official premiere in 1868. The complete work was then published in 1869.
Brahms's works in variation form include the Variations and Fugue on a Theme by Handel and the Paganini Variations, both for solo piano, and the Variations on a Theme by Joseph Haydn in versions for two pianos and for orchestra. The final movement of the Fourth Symphony (Op. 98) is also formally a set of variations.
His chamber works include three string quartets, two string quintets and two string sextets, as well as a clarinet quintet, a clarinet trio, a horn trio, a piano quintet, three piano quartets and three piano trios. He composed several instrumental sonatas with piano, including three for violin, two for cello and two for clarinet (which were subsequently arranged for viola by the composer). His solo piano works range from his early piano sonatas and ballades to his late sets of character pieces. Brahms also wrote about 200 songs and is considered among the greatest of Lieder composers (with Schubert and Schumann). His chorale preludes for organ, which he wrote shortly before his death, have become an important part of the organist's repertoire.
Brahms never wrote an opera, nor did he ever write in the characteristic late-19th-century form of the tone poem, strongly preferring to compose absolute music that does not refer to an explicit scene or narrative.
Despite his reputation as a serious composer of large, complex musical designs, some of Brahms's most widely known and commercially successful compositions during his life were aimed at the thriving contemporary market for domestic music-making, and are small-scale and popular in intention. These included his arrangements of popular dances, in Hungarian Dances, the Waltzes Op. 39 for piano duet, the Liebeslieder Waltzes for vocal quartet and piano, and some of his many songs, notably the Wiegenlied, Op. 49 No 4 (published in 1868). This last item was written (to a folk text) to celebrate the birth of a son to Brahms's friend Bertha Faber, and is universally known as Brahms' Lullaby.
Wiegenlied Op.49 No.4
Johannes Brahms Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Mit Rosen bedacht,
Mit Näglein besteckt,
Schlupf' unter die Deck′.
Morgen früh, wenn Gott will,
Wirst du wieder geweckt.
Von Englein bewacht!
Die zeigen im Traum
Dir Christkindleins Baum:
Schlaf' nun selig und süß,
Schau im Traum′s Paradies.
The lyrics to Johannes Brahms's song Wiegenlied Op.49 No.4 are a lullaby, bidding a peaceful goodnight to a child. The first two lines set the mood of the song, with the child being wished a good night with roses and small flowers. The child is then asked to slip under the covers, ready to rest until the morning, at which time they will be awakened again by God.
The second stanza of the song is more dreamlike, with the child being told they are being watched over by angels. The angels appear in the child's dream to show them the tree of the Christ child. The child is urged to sleep soundly and dream of paradise. These lyrics beautifully capture the essence of a loving and protective parent, wishing their child a safe and peaceful night's sleep.
Line by Line Meaning
Guten Abend, gut′ Nacht,
Good evening, good night,
Mit Rosen bedacht,
Adorned with roses,
Mit Näglein besteckt,
Strewn with carnations,
Schlupf' unter die Deck′.
Slip under the covers.
Morgen früh, wenn Gott will,
Tomorrow morning, God willing,
Wirst du wieder geweckt.
You will be awakened again.
Guten Abend, gut' Nacht,
Good evening, good night,
Von Englein bewacht!
Watched over by angels!
Die zeigen im Traum
Who will show in a dream
Dir Christkindleins Baum:
The tree of the Christ Child:
Schlaf' nun selig und süß,
Now sleep blissfully and sweetly,
Schau im Traum′s Paradies.
Gaze upon the paradise of dreams.
Writer(s): J. Brahms, P. Jaffe
Contributed by Nathaniel R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.