Intermezzo by I. Brahms Op. 119 No. 3: Non-classical tendencies in the music of Late Romanticism

Abstract

The subject of the study. The article analyzes a number of aspects of Brahms' intermezzo Op. 119 No. 3 in order to detect non-classical tendencies manifested in the structure of the musical fabric and the principles of shaping in this work. Research methodology. In the course of the study, the method of holistic analysis was used, which includes consideration of the features of harmony, textural originality, thematic processes and form-forming patterns in the Brahms intermezzo Op. 119 No. 3. Elements of comparative analysis were also applied (comparison of the principles of form formation in the composition under study and classical works, as well as comparison of the interpretation of the reprise of the three-part form in the Brahms intermezzo op 119 No. 3 and Chopin's nocturne Op. 48 No. 1). The scientific novelty of the work consists in the fact that as a result of the research it was possible to identify a number of non-classical qualities of Brahms' music, namely: the homogeneity of the sound fabric, a weak degree of differentiation of relief and background in texture, the absence of common forms of sound and passive fragments in musical form. The conceptual kinship of Brahms' principles of working with musical material with the technique of interpenetration of object and space, which became widespread in painting at the beginning of the XX century, was also discovered. Conclusions, the results obtained allow us to conclude that Brahms' intermezzo Op. 119 No. 3 implements a number of non-classical principles of working with musical material that anticipate the discoveries of composers of the Novovensky school (in particular, Webern). The results of the research can be used in the process of further study of Brahms' creativity and various theoretical aspects of music at the turn of the XIX–XX centuries, as well as in performing and pedagogical practice.