Brahms' Symphony No. 4, 2nd Movement
"Who says there is nothing new under the sun?"
The 1st movement of this symphony came from Brahms' deep reflections upon Beethoven's discoveries, and the 4th movement from his equally deep study of Bach. The 2nd movement presents unique discoveries by Brahms himself. The written text complements the audio (see link below), which is primary. Some things just have to be heard.
The connections in this movement are so rigorous, that they may seem to derive from logic. Nothing could be further from the truth. Logic is superseded by reason, which in turn, is ruled by love, but without abandoning logic. Brahms is free to range, in the entire well-tempered musical system, and the opportunity for creative discovery it offers. Such beautiful new discoveries could never arise from mere logical connections.
A new composition cannot mean anything to anybody, if it merely follows the course of logic, especially if one has something to say to the world—something positive that might lead to positive change. That requires creativity, and original discovery. One must present people with the possibility for change, as reflected in one’s self! Is that a matter of deep feelings only? Get ready to get nerdy, but from the depths of your soul!
In the previous section, we examined one of Brahms' great discoveries in this movement: how he took the ancient principle of inversion, and applied it not just to themes, but the entire musical system. Inverting the entire scale of E major gave us the Phrygian mode, and thus the movement's paradoxical opening was resolved- or was it? (please review last post for Brahms 3.1)
Further investigation led to how Brahms' inverted the symmetrical tetrachords of the major scale. This is not the same as twentieth century composers fooling around with different arbitrary scales. Everything was lawfully constructed, everything was a discovery of principle, expanding the capabilities of the well-tempered system of tonality, but never abandoning it in an arbitrary or capricious way.
Brahms came, not to overthrow that system, but to fulfill it. He took part in realizing its ever-expanding potential!
Brahms inverted the tetrachords harmonically. The major scale goes as follows (with WT representing whole tones,or major seconds, and HT representing half-tones, or minor seconds)
WT WT HT WT WT HT
E F# G# A B C# D# E
In between lies the tritone, or Lydian interval, in this case A# (or Bb).
The tetrachords are symmetrical and even suggest polyphony.
If we play the upper tetrachord downwards, within the same scale, we invert the intervals.
WT WT HT HT WT HT
E F# G# A E D# C# B
If we maintain the intervals, we invert the tones, into the upper tetrachord of e natural minor:
WT WT HT WT WT HT
E F# G# A E D C B
Brahms invented a new modality that is minor and major at the same time, though in a precise manner. The section beginning at measure 5 is in E major and e minor at the same time. Except for one tone, that modality is employed strictly through the inverted tetrachords. The major tones derive from the first tetrachord E F# G# A , and the minor ones from the inverted second tetrachord E D C B.
Scales and keys are no longer self-evident—a priori existences, as unchallengeable as The Ten Commandments. They are created anew, and new modalities can be lawfully created. I put extra emphasis on "lawfully", because, as the 20th century has shown us, the arbitrary creation of new modalities does not work. The principles of tonality can be expanded, but never abandoned. It is the method by which one discovers new modalities that counts. Don't just memorize the keys, chords and scales of the well-tempered system, look at how that system came into existence! (Why do we think Brahms studied so much early music?)
Brahms elaborates on his discovery throughout the movement. At measure 30, a beautiful new theme emerges.
E E F# G# E D# E C# E B E F# G# E
It seems miles away from the quizzical opening. Invert the intervals though, and you have the opening horn solo, with a few rhythmic differences.
E E F G E D E C E B.
Brahms continues to insist on inverting the tetrachord in a simple up and down motion. A good example is this begins at measure 36 at a quick tempo.
F# G# A# B A G F# D E F#
He could have done this with a major tetrachord up and down, and nobody might have noticed. Instead, he inverts the tetrachord, thus maintaining his idea of change as the substantial (Again, this is made much more clear in the audio).
Soon after this, another beautiful new theme emerges at measure 41, in the cellos, stated in B Major.
B C# D# E D# C# B G# A# F#
Again, is this new? The opening statement, which reached up to a third, and down to a third, now expands to reaching up by a 4th, and down by the same. This identifies the qualities of the tetrachords, which were both the discovery and the source of the opening paradox. The theme reaches up by a tetrachord B C# D# E then down the same tones E D# C# B. It then descends B A# G# F#. Like the opening, it centers on a certain tone (in this case B and rises up, and reaches down in the same space, but with inverted intervals (in this case WT WT HT rising from B, and HT WT WT descending from.
This might seem to be an unambiguous B Major, but the inversion of WT WT HT continues, and Brahms may well have created B Major anew.
The climax of the piece begins at measure 88, and reaches its height at measure 98.
Despite the syncopation, and octave transpositions at that high point, the theme is basically the same as what we heard earlier at measure 88, and even earlier in the cellos at measure 41, but now it is in a newly created E major
E F# G# A G# F# E C# D# B.
The Coda is amazing! In Part 3, we discussed how the opening horn theme could exist in several modalities, including the Phrygian mode, but also A minor and especially, C major. Brahms ends the movement by having the horn repeat its opening, first against a bass pedal point of E and then C, so we hear how it might have sounded in C, except that he brings in astounding dissonances, all based on the opening. It ends, not with a perfect cadence of B to E, but F natural to E, thus exploiting the characteristic dissonance of the entire work.
For Brahms, the point is not " finally arriving" at E major, but the process of discovery, and generation of new modalities itself. This writer remembers a composition teacher glowering at him and saying, "Just remember, everything that can be said in this language (tonality) has been said." That was the argument for atonality, and serialism. The harmonic language of tonality had been exhausted. If you see music theory as reductionist chord progressions, you might have a case. Brahms was proving that the system of Bach was not only still viable, its potential was infinite, and he did create something new under the sun.
Reading this installment alone might be difficult to understand. We urge you to please listen to the audio in conjunction with the written text!
https://drive.google.com/.../1hjlg90cBUpeRdOBWmZw.../view...