Introduction
Britain’s position outside the European Continent, politically and physically, has in no way lessened her appetite for European culture. Indeed at the very height of Empire, so Sir Charles Stanford tells us, a little critical distance gave the British an appreciation (and a common courtesy, one might add) that the Continentals lacked.
BRAHMS’ music had long been more deeply appreciated and universally accepted in England than in Germany, owing probably in a measure to the fact that we had no serious battle-ground of Wagnerian and anti-Wagnerian parties; the performance of this symphony [the C Minor] set an imperishable keystone on his fame among Britons.*
I had myself the curious good fortune to compare the attitude of an English and German audience towards one of his orchestral works. In 1875 I heard within a few weeks two performances of his Serenade in A (without violins), first at the Philharmonic Society of London, and afterwards at the Gewandhaus in Leipzig. In London the enthusiasm was so great that two movements (the scherzo and the minuet) had to be repeated. In Leipzig the entire work went literally without one hand being raised to applaud.
That is, Symphony No. 1 in C minor (YouTube). Stanford was desperate to get Brahms over to Cambridge to receive an honorary doctorate in music, but press excitement put Brahms off. He did however allow the Cambridge Musical Society to perform his C Minor Symphony, the first time it had been performed since its premiere in Karlsruhe on November 4th, 1876.
Précis
Charles Villiers Stanford noted that Johannes Brahms’s music was more universally popular in Britain than in Germany, something he put down to Germany’s obsession with Wagner. He observed this for himself, when with only a few weeks of one another he saw the same piece by Brahms performed to delighted applause in London, and to utter silence in Leipzig. (59 / 60 words)
Charles Villiers Stanford noted that Johannes Brahms’s music was more universally popular in Britain than in Germany, something he put down to Germany’s obsession with Wagner. He observed this for himself, when with only a few weeks of one another he saw the same piece by Brahms performed to delighted applause in London, and to utter silence in Leipzig.
Variations: 1.increase the length of this precis to exactly 65 words. 2.reduce the length of this precis to exactly 55 words. 3.introduce one of the following words into the precis: because, despite, may, must, or, otherwise, ought, since.
Archive
Word Games
Sevens Based on this passage
Suggest answers to this question. See if you can limit one answer to exactly seven words.
Variations: 1.expand your answer to exactly fourteen words. 2.expand your answer further, to exactly twenty-one words. 3.include one of the following words in your answer: if, but, despite, because, (al)though, unless.
Jigsaws Based on this passage
Express the ideas below in a single sentence, using different words as much as possible. Do not be satisfied with the first answer you think of; think of several, and choose the best.
Spinners Find in Think and Speak
For each group of words, compose a sentence that uses all three. You can use any form of the word: for example, cat → cats, go → went, or quick → quickly, though neigh → neighbour is stretching it a bit.
This exercise uses words found in the accompanying passage.
1 Attitude. Literal. Work.
2 Battle. Grind. Philharmonic.
3 Go. Minor. Scherzo.
Variations: 1. include direct and indirect speech 2. include one or more of these words: although, because, despite, either/or, if, unless, until, when, whether, which, who 3. use negatives (not, isn’t, neither/nor, never, nobody etc.)
Add Vowels Find in Think and Speak
Make words by adding vowels to each group of consonants below. You may add as many vowels as you like before, between or after the consonants, but you may not add any consonants or change the order of those you have been given. See if you can beat our target of common words.
brth (5)
berth. birth. breath. breathe. broth.
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