Trio (after the Sextet in G major op. 36)

Description

After Johannes Brahms’ String Sextet in G major op. 36 was published in 1866, the publisher Simrock issued arrangements of the work for other instrumentations, as was customary at the time. In 1883, a version for piano trio was published, arranged by Theodor Kirchner (1823–1903), who himself was a composer and friend of Brahms. Unlike other versions commissioned by the publisher – such as the one for piano by Robert Keller – Kirchner’s met with Brahms’ approval, as can be seen from a letter to Simrock: “The trios [after op. 18 and 36] give me extraordinary pleasure! If the idea was yours, then I congratulate you, but Kirchner has also realized it magnificently.”

For this first Urtext edition of Kirchner’s arrangement of Brahms’ op. 36, the engraver’s copy of the autograph of the slow movement was critically evaluated alongside the main source – the score and the parts of the first edition.