Le Beethoven died in Vienna in 1827 at the age of 57. Six years later, another ** master, Brahms, was born in Hamburg, Germany. In 1853, Robert Schumann, one of the most influential composers and critics in Europe at that time, and also Brahms's teacher, published an article in the "New ** Magazine", announcing that "Beethoven's heir was born, and he is Johannes." Brahms". Brahms was only 20 years old at this time, and he was terrified and stressed by Schumann's words. He knows very well that Beethoven is the greatest person in classical history, and people have put such great hopes on themselves, and it seems that they will live in the shadow of Beethoven, the giant, in the future.
In fact, Beethoven's looming shadow has always been a legend, and has intimidated many composers who admired and followed him, including Mendelssohn and Mahler in addition to Brahms. Brahms's fame is first and foremost thanks to his mentor Schumann. Schumann spoke highly of the talent of his pupil and considered Brahms to be the most qualified heir to Beethoven. As a result, Brahms spent most of his career in the shadow of Beethoven. This pressure is not only from the outside, Brahms himself is even more stressed. Brahms once said, "You don't know what it's like, when you create, you always hear this giant wandering behind you!" Perhaps that's why it took Brahms almost twenty years to finalize his First Symphony.
Beethoven, in addition to being an insurmountable mountain for those who came after him, had a similar influence on his contemporaries, including his teacher Haydn. Haydn recognized early on that his students had a special talent for composition, especially in the writing of symphonies. By the end of the 18th century, Beethoven's influence had become more and more influential, and Haydn had unconsciously changed his creative focus, and later almost stopped composing instrumental music, turning his attention to choral works. Of course, it is not certain that this is entirely due to Beethoven's pressure, but the impact of the students on him is there.
At the time of Brahms's composition, the classical ** had been severely attacked by the main Romantic schools and was almost replaced. Brahms is known as an "alternative" to Romanticism because he rejected the new styles and schools represented by Wagner and Liszt, and insisted on inheriting the legacy of classicism left by Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven. In his mind, the word "symphony" has a deep meaning and is almost a pillar of his spirit.
Brahms heard Beethoven's Ninth Symphony for the first time when he was 21 years old. He was very excited and at the same time very inspired, and began to sketch his symphonies in his mind. Schumann encouraged him to boldly compose works "alike" Beethoven's symphonies. With the encouragement of his teacher, the young Brahms excitedly threw himself into his creation. However, it didn't take long for him to stop and transplant the score he had already written into the piano sonata. He said to Schumann: "When I think about composing a complete symphony, I always feel like a giant is moving. He has already expressed something so complete, so immortal, so human in nine symphonies that I feel like I have nothing more to add. ”
It was not until the success of his German Requiem that Brahms again had the idea of composing a symphony, and in 1862 he completed the draft of the first movement. He shared the score with his friends, and they encouraged him to strike while the iron was hot and finish the piece. But Brahms did not continue to write, and stopped for 12 years. It was only after the success of his Variations on a Theme that he returned to the symphony.
Brahms finally completed his First Symphony at the age of 42. He was so nervous that he insisted that the premiere would not take place in Vienna, but in Karlsruhe. He did it! Eduard Hanslick, one of Europe's most influential critics at the time, wrote that Brahms's First Symphony was "one of the most individual and magnificent works of symphonic literature". Many have dubbed this work Beethoven's Symphony No. 10, a title that bothered or uncomfortable Brahms, but what we do know was that Brahms composed three more symphonies in the short time that followed. It seems that he has finally come out of Beethoven's shadow.