Brahms - Symphony No. 2 - Variations On A Theme By Haydn / Sir Charles Mackerras, Scottish Chamber Orchestra / Telarc Audio CD 1997 / CD-80464
UPC 089408046421
Symphony No. 2 in D major, Op. 73, was composed by Johannes Brahms in the summer of 1877, during a visit to Pörtschach am Wörthersee, a town in the Austrian province of Carinthia. Its composition was brief in comparison with the 21 years it took Brahms 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.
The cheery and almost pastoral mood of the symphony often invites comparisons with Beethoven's Sixth Symphony, but, perhaps mischievously, Brahms wrote to his publisher on November 22, 1877, that the symphony "is so melancholy that you will not be able to bear it. I have never written anything so sad, and the score must come out in mourning."
The premiere was given in Vienna on 30 December 1877 by the Vienna Philharmonic under the direction of Hans Richter; Walter Frisch notes that it had originally been scheduled for 9 December, but "in one of those little ironies of music history, it had to be postponed [because] the players were so preoccupied with learning Das Rheingold by Richard Wagner." A typical performance lasts between 40 and 50 minutes.
| Label: |
Telarc – CD-80464 |
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| Format: |
CD
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| Country: |
Europe |
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Released:
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1997 |
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| Genre: |
Classical |
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| Style: |
Romantic |
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Tracklist:
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Symphony No. 2 In D Major, Op.73 |
|
| 1 |
|
Allegro Non Troppo |
19:38 |
| 3 |
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Allegretto Grazioso (Quasi Andantino) |
5:03 |
| 4 |
|
Allegro Con Spirito |
9:00 |
| |
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Variations On A Theme By Joseph Haydn, Op.56a
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| 5 |
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Chorale St. Antoni - Andante |
1:54 |
| 6 |
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Var. I - Poco Più Animato |
1:11 |
| 7 |
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Var. II - Più Vivace |
0:55 |
| 8 |
|
Var. III - Con Moto |
1:40 |
| 9 |
|
Var. IV - Andante Con Moto |
1:59 |
| 12 |
|
Var. VII - Grazioso |
2:49 |
| 13 |
|
Var. VIII - Presto Non Troppo |
0:56 |
- Art Direction – Anilda Carrasquillo
- Composed By – Johannes Brahms
- Conductor – Sir Charles Mackerras
- Design [Cover] – Susan Azzarello
- Edited By – Erica Brenner, Thomas Moore, Thomas Knab
- Engineer [Recording] – Jack Renner, Tony Faulkner
- Executive-Producer – Robert Woods (2)
- Liner Notes – Michael Murray (4), Robert Pascall
- Liner Notes [French Translation] – Patricia Dussaux
- Liner Notes [German Translation] – Silke Cathrin Zimmermann
- Orchestra – Scottish Chamber Orchestra
- Producer [Recording] – James Mallinson
- Supervised By [Production Supervisor] – Elaine Martone
- Technician [Technical Assistance] – Martin Atkinson
