Musical Sunday

Started out with high expectations, but was dampened early on: This is how Johannes Brahms’ career could be described. And because the young man from Hamburg was prone to self-doubt anyway, many a success came only with considerable delay. An extreme example is Brahms’ 1st Symphony, whose beginnings date back to 1862. But it was not completed until 1876, a full 14 years later. Here Brahms tries to transport the Beethovenian idea “per aspera ad astra” (from darkness into light) into the present. How intensively he works with inner-musical references, with motives and themes, is breathtaking.

Two enthusiasts of music have their say here: Marcus Imbsweiler publishes novels, including stories about composers; Timo Jouko Herrmann is a composer, violinist and guest conductor of the Heidelberg Symphony Orchestra.