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Hi, beyond the technicalities, what relationships do you find between Beethoven's Coriolan and Brahms' Tragic Overture?
... I would also like to hear the opinion of the self-proclaimed Beethovenians
Thanks in advance
Member
Hi Frank!
I think that if, undoubtedly, the two very strong passages with which Brahms's «Tragic Overture» opens are absolutely unusual and that, in this regard, certainly call to mind Beethoven and specifically his «Coriolan Overture», the criticism of those who, in the 19th century, said it was a «bad copy» of the Beethovenian overture is nonetheless absolutely wrong. But if I find this judgment wrong, I also find equally wrong that of those who consider it, compared to the Beethovenian one, the more tragically intense overture.
In reality, I think that Brahms's tragedy is different from Beethoven's: not titanic, but personal.
Both Overtures are based on sonata form. But if for Beethoven this is an opportunity to give yet another wonderful demonstration of the opposition between masculine and feminine elements, the greatness and beauty of Brahms's Overture must be sought, as Francesco Bussi wrote: «(...) in the original architecture (...) in the brilliant dynamic vitality, in the abundance and beauty of the main and subsidiary themes, these new ones or those deriving melodically or rhythmically from the former, the others combined and elaborated with contrapuntal skill within a wide exposition that is, together, free development.»
