Nationalism And Brahms

In 1833, in Germany, Johannes Brahms was born. A late Romantic composer, he took the forms from the past, such as from Beethoven’s time, and added to them complex harmonies and his own individual Romantic style. Another composer born around the same time was Antonin Dvorak, a Bohemian composer who lived from 1841 to 1904. Dvorak, born a peasant, infused his compositions with his country’s music. During the lifetimes of both of these composers Nationalism, a movement which stresses the importance of independent and unified nations and their own cultures, was very widespread. Since this movement was the atmosphere in which these two composers produced there music, it had an effect on them. Although not as influential in the works of Brahms, Nationalism
had a deep effect on Dvorak, as will be seen.
However, to understand the effect Nationalism had on these composers, the movement itself must first be understood. According to the World Book Encyclopedia, “Nationalism is a people’s sense of belonging together as a nation. It also includes such feelings as loyalty to the nation, pride in its culture and history, and – in many cases – a desire for national independence” (Nye 53). Although not existent for all of history, Nationalism began to emerge as nation-states, where a nation and a state’s borders correspond, began to develop. In the 1700s, Nationalism began to be an important force, and since then this idea has affected many countries including the United States, and European, Asian, and African countries. The main movement of Nationalism which would have affected the music of Brahms and Dvorak was in the 19th century. Quoting The Encyclopedia of Music, “The nationalist movement took root in central Europe, where in the 1830s a wave of nationalist sentiment swept through Germany, Poland, Belgium and northern Italy…” (Wade-Matthews and Thomas 374). The authors go on to describe how this climaxed in many attempts at revolution, which, although they failed, affected art and culture. Again according to The Encyclopedia of Music, “In music, this patriotic fervor encouraged composers to seek inspiration in their national roots, particularly folk culture (often viciously suppressed by the ruling authorities)” (Wade-Matthews and Thomas 375). Thus Nationalism is an idea which promotes independence, freedom, and national identity and uniqueness, and thus encourages the use of folk arts.
Now that Nationalism has been explored, the question arises as to how this movement, as a circumstance in Brahms’ life, affected him.
First of all, Brahms was born not only during this movement, in 1833, but he was born in Germany, one of the Central European nations where this idea was widespread at the time. Although Brahms is known as a later Romantic composer, some of his works reflect the influence of Nationalism. The first examples of this are his Hungarian Dances. According to The Gift of Music, “He was interested in Hungarian music and used many folk song tunes in his compositions” (Smith and Carlson 140). This shows that Nationalism and its emphasis on culture had affected Brahms. In addition, his German Requiem does not use the traditional Latin Catholic text, but instead is very Protestant, and uses Luther’s translation of the Bible. According to The Encyclopedia of Music, “…during the Franco-Prussian War he was hailed as a ‘patriot’, having used material from the Lutheran Bible rather than the traditional Latin text of the Catholic liturgy. He responded by composing the Triumphlied (Song of Triumph) in the summer of 1871 to celebrate Germany’s victory” (Wade-Matthews and Thomas 404). This second piece and the Requiem show that Nationalism affected his music. Thus, although not necessarily known as a Nationalistic composer, Brahms was affected by his circumstances which included a very Nationalistic
atmosphere.
Dvorak, another composer during this time period, is recognized as a Nationalistic composer. Born to a butcher in 1841 in Bohemia, an area of Czechoslovakia, Dvorak must have been exposed to folk music and art during his childhood. In addition, Dvorak was probably influenced by the political events in his country. Quoting The Gift of Music, “The artistic life of the Czech nation was given a great boost in 1860 when Italy’s victories over Austria brought about a larger degree of political freedom in Czechoslovakia” (Smith and Carlson 155). After this, another Czech, Smetana, returned and became conductor of the Czech National Theater Orchestra, which Dvorak was playing in. As The Gift of Music states, “Smetana intended to provide the theater with a repertory of native works. … He decided that the best platform for propagating the national idea in music was the opera…” (Smith and Carlson 155). This exposure to opera influenced Dvorak to listen to more operas, and to eventually write his own. Smetana’s Nationalistic ideas in writing his music may also have also affected Dvorak. Regardless, much of Dvorak’s music has flavors that come from his country and land, as can be seen in the New World Symphony as well as other pieces. In addition, Dvorak was influenced by the other cultures of other nations, as can be seen from when he traveled to the United States, for even though he stated about his New World Symphony, “Please omit the nonsense about my having made use of ‘Indian and ‘American’ themes – that is a lie” (Smith and Carlson 157), he went on to say, “I merely tried to write in the spirit of these national melodies” (Smith and Carlson 157). Thus, Nationalism affected him and his music in his own country and away from it, especially since he found in Iowa a place where his own people had congregated.
To conclude, as The Encyclopedia of Music states, “Only towards the middles of the 19th century did composers start to become aware of cultural differences between nations…” (Wade-Matthews and Thomas 374).
And this became the Nationalistic movement in music, affected by the Nationalism in politics and culture. Although this circumstance did affect the German composer, Brahms, it is very evident in the works of Dvorak, a Bohemian Czechoslovakian. His music is filled with the influence of the folk art of his county. It is evident that he took pride in his traditions and country. This idea of Nationalism should be translated to the Christian life, but in a different way. Philippians 3:20-21 says this, “But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, Who, by the power that enables Him to bring everything under His control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like His glorious body” (NIV Phil. 3:20-21). As Christians, we must remember that no matter where we live, our true citizenship is not there but is in Heaven. As we remember this, we can infuse our music and our lives with this truth, so that others will see where our loyalties
lie.