Symphony No. 4 in E minor by Johannes Brahms

The Symphony No. 4 in E minor, Op. 98 by Johannes Brahms is the last of his symphonies. Brahms began working on the piece in Mürzzuschlag, then in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, in 1884, just a year after completing his Symphony No. 3. It was premiered on October 25, 1885 in Meiningen, Germany.

Instrumentation

The symphony is scored for two flutes (one doubling on piccolo on third movement only), two oboes, two clarinets, two bassoons, contrabassoon (third and fourth movements), four horns, two trumpets, three trombones (fourth movement only), timpani (two in first and second movements, three in third and fourth movements), triangle (third movement only), and strings.

Movements

The symphony is divided into four movements with the following tempo markings:

1. Allegro non troppo (E minor)
2. Andante moderato (E minor – E major)
3. Allegro giocoso (C major)
4. Allegro energico e passionato (E minor)

This is the only one of Brahms' four symphonies to end in a minor key. A typical performance lasts about 40 minutes.

Analysis

I. Allegro non troppo

This movement is in sonata form, although it features some unique approaches to development. For instance, there is no repeat of the exposition; according to the late Malcolm MacDonald, the music is so 'powerfully organic and continuously unfolding' that such a repeat would hinder forward progress.^[1]

The opening theme is initially serene in character, although its composition in a chain of descending thirds adds a fateful air. Its left-versus-right fragmented melodic form (duh-DUM, da-DEE, duh-DUM, da-DEE) also introduces a feeling of conflict which Brahms uses as a fundamental motivation throughout the movement.

Bar	Section	Key	Description
1	Primary theme	E minor	Starts with pick-up note. This relatively fragmented melody forms a descending sequence in the upper instruments in dialogue with the lower instruments. The notes (taken out of register) outline a row of descending thirds - B, G, E, C, A, F♯, D♯, B - a unifying motif for this work.
19	Transition modulation to second theme	Goes from E minor to the dominant B minor	Starts by fragmenting the primary theme
53	Transition motif		Transition motif: a rhythmic pattern in the woodwinds
57	Secondary theme period 1	B minor	Initially in the cellos, then passed up into the violins with intermittent play with transition motif.
95	Secondary theme period 2	B major - parallel major of B minor	In the woodwinds.
107	Transition motif	B major	Using transition motif pp to ff.
137	Transition modulation to development	Lead from B major into E minor	Using primary theme material
145	Development	Various	Starts with a statement of the primary theme before leading away into a development
246	Recapitulation	E minor	Slow version of primary theme in the upper instruments (initially in C major harmony) with intermittent use of transition motif followed by lengthy recapitulation of secondary theme block in the dominant key.
394	Coda	E minor	Final climactic statement of the primary theme in ff.