Brahms was highly self-critical, allegedly composing over twenty string quartets before publishing his two String Quartets, Op. 51, in 1873.
Composition History
The Piano Quintet, Op. 34, was premiered on June 22, 1866, and pleased Brahms so much that he destroyed the manuscripts of its earlier versions.
Instruments
The Gringolts Quartet members play on rare Italian instruments, including a Stradivarius violin from 1718 and a Maggini cello from 1600.
Compositional Technique
The finale of Brahms's String Quartet, Op. 51 No. 2, with its czárdás echoes, may allude to the West-Hungarian origins of violinist Joseph Joachim, a collaborator on the work.
Compositional Technique
Brahms dedicated his String Quartets, Op. 51, not to the 'violinist of the century' Joseph Joachim, but to the surgeon Theodor Billroth, with whom he was friends.
Instruments
The Maggini cello from 1600, played by Claudius Herrmann, was once owned by Prince Galitsin, a close friend of Beethoven, who first performed Beethoven's last string quartets on it.
Composition History
Brahms's Piano Quintet in F minor, Op. 34, was originally a string quartet, then a sonata for two pianos, before Clara Schumann persuaded him to transform it into the piano quintet.
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Brahms: The Three String Quartets, Op. 51 & Op. 67; Piano Quintet in F minor, Op. 34 [Great Performances]
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Rossini: Sei Sonate a Quattro per 2 violini, violoncello e contrabbasso (1804)
