Intermezzo en La majeur Op. 118-2

About this work

The Intermezzo Op. 118 No. 2 begins like an intimate confession in A major, but Brahms never allows the melody to settle into uniform sweetness. The upper line sings over an accompaniment shared between the hands; inner voices discreetly extend or contradict its phrases. Composed in 1893, it is the second of the six pieces in Op. 118, dedicated to Clara Schumann.

The central section darkens the colour and thickens the counterpoint before the opening theme returns. Shape this journey through its harmonic points of support rather than a succession of slowdowns. The triple-metre sway must remain alive beneath the marking Andante teneramente. “Tenderly” does not mean “under glass”: the music needs a pulse if it is to breathe.

Practise the melody alone first, using fingerings that connect the line, then add the inner voices at half voice. The pedal can unite the resonances, but must not erase changes in the bass. In wide chords, prepare the position before the attack and release the pressure immediately afterwards. The sound gains depth without becoming massive.

What the document containsScoring: solo piano, 117 measures. The document presents the second piece of the set on its own in a 5-page PDF; a MIDI is also available for listening.This new engraving comes from ScoreBase and PDMX (CC0 1.0). LesPartitions.info matched it to the former score, checked the music files, and reviewed all five pages before release.