NSO Chamber Concerts - Endless whispers

The first half of this concert delves into one of music history's most poignant love stories — the forty-three-year, unspoken bond between Clara Schumann and Johannes Brahms.

In 1853, Clara composed her Three Romances, Op. 21, dedicating them to the much younger Brahms, fourteen years her junior. That year, her husband Robert Schumann was confined to a sanatorium, and Brahms regularly visited the family to convey messages, assume a fatherly role for the couple's six children, and support Clara through one of the most challenging periods of her life. After Robert's passing, Brahms moved away from Clara's household, yet their correspondence continued, blossoming into a deep and enduring friendship grounded in mutual respect and understanding.

Brahms' String Quintet No. 1 in F major, composed in 1882, stands as one of his most cherished chamber works. Expanding the traditional string quartet by adding a second viola, the three-movement work balances rigorous German-Austrian compositional technique with an unmistakably lively spirit. Brahms himself described it in a letter to Clara as one of his finest creations.

The second half presents the Piano Quintet by Robert Schumann, which stands as one of the defining masterpieces of Romantic chamber music — bold, spirited, and irresistibly lyrical. Uniting piano and strings with unprecedented dynamism, the work bursts with youthful energy, tender intimacy, and triumphant exuberance, capturing Schumann at the height of his creative imagination.