In the eyes of his contemporaries, Johannes Brahms's 1878 Violin Concerto in D major was so different from everything that had come before that, after the premiere, a critic stated that it wasn't a concerto, but a "symphony with violin obligato". Legendary American violinist Gil Shaham introduces viewers to its melodies and motifs and seeks to disprove the famous criticism. Wolfgang Sandberger, the director of the German Brahms Institute in Lübeck,...

Presents a biography of the nineteenth-century German composer who combined both classical and romantic musical styles to compose his lively songs and powerful symphonies.

This program from the Famous Composers series offers an overview of the life and work of composer and pianist Johannes Brahms beginning with an introduction to Brahms' family and hometown, the nineteenth century seaport city of Hamburg. The film follows Brahms' musical education with teachers Otto Cossel and Eduard Marxsen, his days of playing in bars and teaching to earn money, and his eventual move to the musical capital of Vienna. The film characterizes...

A biography of Johannes Brahms who hoped to leave only his music as his legacy. The author presents the contradictions of the composer's life, the "secondary characters," the triumphs and failures, and the two cities most important to Brahms: Hamburg and Vienna.

A biography of the nineteenth-century German composer with emphasis on his childhood and early musical training.