A brilliant, echoing F major chord coursing across the whole of the brass section starts off this brilliant and colorful symphony. Then, thee is a waltz-like tempo that takes over the texture. Ever the glorious strings and there you have it—a rich, luxurious intro that employs the best of the best. From a harmonic standpoint, it’s all over the place. First, we see Brahms employing the F major and then it goes onto C-sharp minor which is pretty unconventional. Then he leaps a tritone or so away to G major for a bit before backtracking a half-step to G-flat major and on into a B-flat centered tonality. This is quite dizzying to follow, but slowly the texture works its way back to F major. Happy times have arrived again.
The woodwinds trot around the texture like that of dancing jakkels. The doublings are spot on in between the woodwinds and the strings. The oboes and violins double each other in the same octave which is common in most orchestra music. You've got the flutes doubling the strings in a few places as well.
There is nothing hidden. Talk about a fabulous dance. That it is. I love the twirling and chromatic spiraling of the strings. These really capture the essence of Romatic Era suspense that keeps the heart at a feverish pace all throughout at least the first movement.
The second movement has what is called a modified sonata form that takes the first theme and stretches it to a longer length, thus shortening the development section which is perhaps the longest of sonata-form sections.
This section is in contrast in harmony by a fifth or so it seems. The key of C is the first tonality we hear in the second movement. We hear I, V, I in the first few chord sequences. Then, the tonality tries to go back to F but stalls at C.There are many open string beds and revolving passages that are just lovely when they are held out. The movement as a whole is more straight forward and square and not so much of the frenetic waltz activity is seen as in the first movement. A more subdued and staunch passage is the tone of this movement.
The quietness and the subtlety are what gives the second movement its charm with some light chromaticism to go along with the charm. This movement is perhaps the most string heavy movement of the symphony.
One of the other elements that is seen in this movement that modifies it from the typical sonata form is the fact that the first theme A comes back with some altered harmonies to make it A prime or A'. Thus, the form of this movement is called A, B, A’. This gradually continues into the third movement as Brahms continues to explore between C major and A minor harmonies. Even a brief passage of ravishing C minor chimes in before going back to the home key in the final movement.
The final movement of this symphony begins with the haunting chromatic strings lingering on a C tonality. This gives way to F minor. What a trick! What was supposed to be a return to the home key is stalled out yet again for dramatic purposes. But wait! The F major returns after much harmonic and showy battling. At last, we have piece. This symphony premiered in 1892 is perhaps the finest in all of Brahms’ cannon of symphonies. It has definitely much to behold.
