6 Hungarian Dances

Johannes Brahms (1833-1897) composed a total of 21 Hungarian Dances for piano for 4 hands, in which he used Hungarian and gypsy melodies, but also some of his own themes "in a Hungarian style". The dances were published in two volumes, the first one in 1869 (from which the 6 dances presented here are taken), the second one in 1880.

The dances soon met with widespread popularity. A major factor contributing to this development was their instrumentation, as 4-hand piano playing was highly popular in the bourgeois households of the 19th Century. Later the dances were orchestrated by various composers and conductors, some even by Brahms himself.

The present arrangement for three different Instruments already takes a little step towards an orchestration, but keeps the essentials of the original piano part. The violin as a melody instrument is certainly an ideal choice to express Hungarian flair. Performers are invited do make their Instrument sing and sob, in particular, in the cantilenas of the 1st, 2nd and 4th dances (of course, this applies to the cello as well). Flutists have a more difficult task to perform, but to make things easier their parts have been arranged so that the flute sound can unfold its füll brilliance. For this reason, many passages are played one octave higher in the flute part than they are in the violin part. The score includes no specific notice but only shows the flute part. The fact that this is also a violin part can only be seen from the few passages, where the violin has to play double stops. To be able to make full use of the tonal range of both flute and the two string Instruments, the 4th, 5th and 6th dances had to be transposed to other keys.

This edition will allow flutists to play Brahms on their instrument; as is generally known, this is a rare occasion - except for members of symphony orchestras. Even though Brahms used the flute as an orchestral color in significant passages, e.g. in the last movement of his 1st symphony, he was written not a Single piece of flute Chamber music. The present edition tries to close this gap; after all, it provides the flute world with a piece of great music.