Brahms and Bruch

“I shall never write a symphony,” Brahms said when young. He was fearful of the inevitable comparisons to Beethoven, and it took the otherwise prolific composer 14 years to produce his first symphony. When it was unveiled, audiences joyfully dubbed it “Beethoven’s Tenth,” in part because the great melody of the finale resembles the "Ode to Joy" ("any ass can see that," Brahms said). But Brahms has emerged from under Beethoven’s shadow, and his fi...