Who is greater: Bach or Brahms?

[Lethevich]

Neither a Passion nor a Requiem is an opera, though . . . .

There can be two categories:

Opera: Good opera

Requiems, masses, passions, cantatas, oratorios: Boring opera

[The Diner]

Gosh, I thought that's what you meant!

*deletes account*

[karlhenning]

There can be two categories:

Opera: Good opera

Requiems, masses, passions, cantatas, oratorios: Boring opera

Sara, you're making this composer of a Passion cry . . . .

[karlhenning]

*deletes account*

Do you mean, you don't want me to PM Andrei your address? . . .

[The Diner]

Do you mean, you don't want me to PM Andrei your address? . . .

[Florestan]

There can be two categories:

Opera: Good opera

Requiems, masses, passions, cantatas, oratorios: Boring Not opera

Fixed.

[DavidRoss]

Which invariably ends in pointless rationalizations, arguments and counter-arguments. 

I have friends who couldn't care less about either Brahms or Bach yet if they called me at 2:00 AM asking me to lend them money I would, without any second thought --- that's friendship to me. 

Please pm me your phone number.

[Jaakko Keskinen]

Brahms. Although Bach is great, I love more Brahms's combined style of romantic and classicism, Beethoven homages, chamber music with orchestra-like effects and romantic orchestra sound. 

[greg]

Who is greater: Bach or Brahms?

Greater at what?

[Chaszz]

Greater at what?

Greater at soldering copper pipes under the sink, what else?

[Scarpia]

Greater at soldering copper pipes under the sink, what else?

A moot point, since everything is PVC now.   

[Dancing Divertimentian]

A moot point, since everything is PVC now.   

Damn modernists!

[greg]

Well, if the question is "who is greater at writing music," then the next question is, "what type of music?"
The answer would be that Bach is greater at writing Bach music and Brahms is greater at writing Brahms music.

[laredo]

IMHO Brahms never wrote a masterpiece, many great works but never a masterpiece. I can't find in his catalogue a Well Tempered Klavier, a MAtthaus Passion, a Musical Offering or a Goldberg Variations. His chamber works pale in comparisons with Bach violin solo efforts. Brahms is on the same level of Schubert, Bach is on the Olympo and stands on his own.

[Florestan]

IMHO Brahms never wrote a masterpiece, many great works but never a masterpiece. I can't find in his catalogue a Well Tempered Klavier, a MAtthaus Passion, a Musical Offering or a Goldberg Variations. His chamber works pale in comparisons with Bach violin solo efforts. Brahms is on the same level of Schubert, Bach is on the Olympo and stands on his own.

[karlhenning]

Reminds me of the amusement Wuorinen once expressed to me at Bach's deification.

[Luke]

IMHO Brahms never wrote a masterpiece, many great works but never a masterpiece. I can't find in his catalogue a Well Tempered Klavier, a MAtthaus Passion, a Musical Offering or a Goldberg Variations. His chamber works pale in comparisons with Bach violin solo efforts. Brahms is on the same level of Schubert, Bach is on the Olympo and stands on his own.

1) this is clearly wrong. Brahms doesn't need defending, surely, but he is one of those rare composers of whom practically EVERY mature work is a masterpiece... Bach has no German Requiem, no Fourth Symphony, no B flat Piano Concerto, no op 119 piano pieces, no Clarinet Trio (and, indeed, no Winterreise, no String Quintet...), but I don't count it against him.

2) the deification of Bach sometimes becomes a little ridiculous. If he (do I mean, 'if He'?) stands on His own in Olympus then He must get very lonely - and how can us mere mortals be expected to begin to comprehend Him? If that were in fact true, then I'd take Brahms and Schubert any day. As it isn't, I don't...

[Brahmsian]

My sentiments exactly, Andrei.