Brahms
Johannes Brahms (1833–1897) — German composer who upheld Classical forms within the Romantic era, creating music of profound depth and craftsmanship.
In Depth
Brahms waited 21 years to complete his First Symphony, so terrified was he of comparison to Beethoven. When it premiered, the conductor Hans von Bülow called it Beethoven's Tenth.
Related Terms
More in Composers
Browse allJohann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750) — German composer and the supreme master of counterpoint, whose works define the Baroque era.
Béla Bartók (1881–1945) was a Hungarian composer and ethnomusicologist who fused folk music research with modernist techniques to create a unique musical language.
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827) — German composer who bridged the Classical and Romantic eras, composing masterworks despite progressive deafness.
Hector Berlioz (1803–1869) was a French Romantic composer who revolutionized orchestration and pioneered the programme symphony with his Symphonie fantastique.
Leonard Bernstein (1918–1990) was an American composer, conductor, and educator whose works bridged classical music and Broadway, most famously in West Side Story.
Alexander Borodin (1833–1887) was a Russian composer and chemist whose small but brilliant output includes the opera Prince Igor and the Polovtsian Dances.
Frédéric Chopin (1810–1849) — Polish composer and pianist who wrote almost exclusively for solo piano, defining Romantic keyboard music.
Aaron Copland (1900–1990) was an American composer who created a distinctly American orchestral sound through works like Appalachian Spring, Fanfare for the Common Man, and Rodeo.