In the important form of the String Quartett Brahms has left only three works, viz.: two (in C minor and A minor), op. 51, and one (in B♭), op. 67. The number is few as compared with the other great masters, and especially of course with Haydn, but the quality of each work is remarkable. In England, at any rate, these quartetts have met with a cautious and critical reception. The reason for this is, no doubt, that for their true appreciation they require study and many hearings, conditions which unfortunately are not common amongst us. Amateurs, however, who play them, and know them intimately, will hardly share in these adverse opinions. Some of the movements have been spoken of as lacking in inspiration, an opinion which, if one accepts Brahms at all, seems strange, for in none of his works does his peculiar genius shine more clearly through the medium in which he works than in these. One may reject Brahms altogether, falling foul of his idioms and methods, as some do, but it is hard to understand how compositions so characteristic as these can be rejected by any who rank themselves as students or disciples of this master. The slow movements of all these string quartetts may be referred to as showing with what true melodic charm Brahms can invest his music, and this is all the more notable if one considers the unusual manner in which the beautiful tunes are often presented. For example, the romance of No. 1 in C minor:— [Music: BRAHMS, OP. 51, NO. 1.] Farther on, at the twenty-seventh bar:— [Music] And, later, the following:— [Music] Such music is not, however, “for the market-place.” It requires the most delicate handling, and only perfect technique, united to the highest taste, are equal to the expression of such lofty and beautiful thoughts. [Sidenote: =Thematic Resemblances=] The resemblance of certain of Brahms’s themes to those of other composers has often been noted, sometimes in a captious and ill-natured spirit, whereas the true interest of such a matter lies in the opportunity which is thereby afforded of showing how two master-minds can deal with like material. An instance of this is the finale of his Symphony op. 68, as compared with the leading melody of the vocal part of Beethoven’s Choral Symphony; another, the commencement of his A major Sonata for piano and violin, and the Preislied of Wagner’s _Meistersinger_; and again, the following from the String Quartett in C minor, op. 51:— [Music: BRAHMS, OP. 51, NO. 1.] [Music: WAGNER, “RHEINGOLD.”] [Sidenote: =String Quintetts=] It remains to speak of the two String Quintetts op. 88 and op. 111, and the Quintett op. 115, for clarinet and strings.