Main content

Brahms - Behind the Beard

Tom Service considers whether Brahms had the most famous beard in classical music, asking what his abundant facial hair had to do with his music.

The most famous beard in classical music? Perhaps. And if so, what does Johannes Brahms's abundant facial hair have to do with his music? Tom Service looks at four contrasting compositions for clues: the First Piano Concerto, the Second Sextet, the choral piece 'Gesang der Parzen' (Song of the Fates) and the A-major Intermezzo.

Available now

29 minutes

Last on

Fri 26 Aug 2022 16:30
成人快手 Radio 3

More episodes

Previous

Who Wrote the First Folk Song?

Next

Breaking Free: Martin Luther's Revolution

See all episodes from The Listening Service

Music Played

  • Johannes Brahms

    Symphony no. 1 (Op.68) in C minor - 1st movt

    Performer: Berliner Philharmoniker. Performer: Claudio Abbado.
    • DG.

  • Johannes Brahms

    Piano Concerto no 1 in D minor op 15 - 1st movt

    Performer: Gewandhausorchester Leipzig.
    • Decca.

  • Johannes Brahms

    String Sextet no 2 in G major op 36

    Performer: Nash Ensemble.
    • Onyx.

  • Johannes Brahms

    Gesang der Parzen op 89

    Performer: Monteverdi Choir. Performer: Orchestre R茅volutionnaire et Romantique. Performer: Sir John Eliot Gardiner.
    • SDG.

  • Johann Sebastian Bach

    Matthauspassion (BWV.244), no.1; Kommt, ihr Tochter [chorus]

    Performer: Monteverdi Choir. Performer: London Oratory Junior Choir. Performer: English Baroque Soloists. Performer: Sir John Eliot Gardiner.
    • Archiv.

  • Johannes Brahms

    6 piano pieces op 118 - No 2 Intermezzo in A major

    Performer: Stephen Kovacevich.
    • Philips.

Broadcasts

  • Sun 23 Apr 2017 17:00
    成人快手 Radio 3
  • Sun 21 Aug 2022 17:00
    成人快手 Radio 3
  • Fri 26 Aug 2022 16:30
    成人快手 Radio 3

Why do we call it 'classical' music?

Tom Service poses a very simple question (with a not-so-simple answer).

Six of the world's most extreme voices

From babies to Mongolian throat singers: whose voice is the most extreme of all?

How did the number 12 revolutionise music?

How did the number 12 revolutionise music?

How Schoenberg opened a new cosmos for composers and listeners to explore.

Why are we all addicted to bass?

Why are we all addicted to bass?

Bass is everywhere, but why do we enjoy it? Join Tom Service on a journey of discovery.

Watch the animations

Join Tom Service on a musical journey through beginnings, repetition and bass lines.

When does noise become music?

We like to think we can separate 鈥渘oise鈥� from 鈥渕usic鈥�, but is it that simple?

Podcast