Brahms, Johannes
Waltzes op. 39

A year after their composition in 1866, Brahms’s popular 16 "Waltzes" op. 39 for piano duet were arranged by the composer for piano solo, thus fulfilling the request of his publisher for a simplified version. Brahms himself described the first version as suitable for "reasonable hands", that is for proficient players, and the easier version as "perhaps for prettier hands", that is, for domestic music-making. He initially described the latter version to his publisher as a "children’s edition". The catchy and musically easily accessible pieces are among the composer’s most popular works and are particularly suitable for piano students and lovers of the Romantic repertoire.