We are continuing our exploration of 2nd movements of romantic piano concertos with Brahms’ Piano Concerto No. 1. #PianoAdagios
I have a complex relationship with Johannes Brahms’ music that reminds me of the famous Pepsi Challenge from the 1980s. Pepsi launched a marketing war against Coke by giving people two unlabeled glasses—one with Coke, one with Pepsi. In blind taste tests, the vast majority chose Pepsi because it was sweeter.
Coke panicked and reformulated their product into “New Coke,” which backfired spectacularly. Public outcry forced them to bring back the original formula as “Coke Classic.” But here’s the interesting part: While Pepsi won those taste tests, it didn’t translate to long-term market dominance. Why? Because sweetness alone isn’t enough. Those first few sips might be appealing, but once you adapt to the sugar rush, you need complexity and depth to sustain interest. Without that, the experience becomes monotonous.
This is exactly how I experience Brahms. His music often opens with such power and beauty — those first “sips” are incredibly compelling. But then, somewhere in the middle of a piece, I find myself losing interest. The initial impact fades, and what should carry me through the rest of the work somehow doesn’t engage me the way I feel it should. It’s like musical sweetness without the lasting complexity I crave.
This is how I feel about Brahms’ symphonies and piano concertos. I have a deeper relationship with Franz Liszt’s music, the music Brahms called “boring.” I’ll let you decide.
Johannes Brahms’ Piano Concerto No. 1 first started as a sonata for two pianos, then he tried to turn it into a symphony, and finally it became a piano concerto. Brahms completed it in 1858 and performed the public debut himself as soloist in Hanover on January 22, 1859, marking his first orchestral composition to be performed. Though initially met with a mixed or cold reception, it later became recognized as a romantic masterpiece (so, what do I know).
Full concerto:
