Rhapsody in B minor Op. 79 No. 1

Johannes Brahms · Level 6 (Expert) · Romantic · Piano

A fiery, orchestral piece: agitated runs and powerful chords frame a lyrical middle section in B major. One of Brahms’s two Rhapsodies Op. 79 (1879), dedicated to his friend the pianist Elisabeth von Herzogenberg. B minor, 2/2, 236 bars (about 8 minutes), complete score.

▶ Play this piece with the interactive score

How to practise it

• Listen first: the site plays it while the score scrolls.
• Wait mode: the score waits for you at every note, at your own pace.
• Tempo challenge: play in time, with a score and a map of the bars you got right.
• Work section by section, slowly: fast runs in small groups, chords by shaping the hand before playing. The middle section should sing calmly. One hand sometimes plays two voices: hold the long notes for their full value and let the main line sing louder than the accompaniment. Triplets and other tuplets must be perfectly even: count them aloud with the metronome. The left hand makes wide leaps: look at the landing note in advance and move early, without rushing the rhythm.

More pieces by Johannes Brahms

• Waltz in G major Op. 39 No. 10
• Waltz in A-flat major Op. 39 No. 15
• Intermezzo in A major Op. 118 No. 2

Source : PDMX / MuseScore · CC0 1.0