BRAHMS'S PIANOFORTE SONATAS
Played by FRANZ OSBORN
Sonata in F sharp minor, Op. 2 (concluded)
2. Andante con espressione; 3. Scherzo : Allegro ; 4. Finale : Sostenuto, Allegro non troppo e rubato
THROUGHOUT his life Brahms composed music for the pianoforte, particularly in the very early period and again towards the end of his career. Between the music written at these two periods there is a wide difference. It was said at one time that the one fault of Brahms's pianoforte works was that they were not piano music. In those days he thought in terms of the orchestra even when he was composing for the piano, but his later works, particularly the series from Opus 1 16 to Opus 119, are amongst the finest pianoforte music in the repertory. It would almost seem that until he had exhausted his obsession for orchestral treatment the true technique and quality of the pianoforte escaped him. Like most composers, Brahms's first works were for the piano, and of his first five published compositions four are for this instrument. In this week's Foundations the Sonatas Op. i, Op. 2, and Op. 5, are down for performance, so that comparison between the early and the late is not offered. In all three he was still treating the piano as an orchestra, and the difficulties presented to the soloist are those of realising an orchestral effect.