Chabrier, who only survived Franck a few years, ended his touching remarks at the grave with these words: 

“Farewell, master, and take our thanks, for you have done well.  In you we salute one of the greatest artists of the century, the incomparable teacher, whose wonderful work has produced a whole generation of forceful musicians and thinkers, armed at all points for hard-fought and prolonged conflicts.  We salute, also, the upright and just man, so humane, so distinguished, whose counsel was sure, as his words were kind.  Farewell!”

XVIII

JOHANNES BRAHMS

It has been truly said that great composers cannot be compared one with another.  Each is a solitary star, revolving in his own orbit.  For instance it is impossible to compare Wagner and Brahms; the former could not have written the German Requiem or the four Symphonies any more than Brahms could have composed “Tristan.”  In the combination of arts which Wagner fused into a stupendous whole, he stands without a rival.  But Brahms is also a mighty composer in his line of effort, for he created music that continually grows in beauty as it is better known.

Johannes Brahms was born in Hamburg, May 7, 1833.  The house at 60 Speckstrasse still stands, and doubtless looks much as it did seventy years ago.  A locality of dark, narrow streets with houses tall and gabled and holding as many families as possible.  Number 60 stands in a dismal court, entered by a close narrow passage.  A steep wooden staircase in the center, used to have gates, closed at night.  Jakob and Johanna lived in the first floor dwelling to the left.  It consisted of a sort of lobby or half kitchen, a small living room and a tiny sleeping closet—­nothing else.  In this and other small tenements like it, the boy’s early years were spent.  It certainly was an ideal case of low living and high thinking.

The Brahms family were musical but very poor in this world’s goods.  The father was a contra bass player in the theater; he often had to play in dance halls and beer gardens, indeed where he could.  Later he became a member of the band that gave nightly concerts at the Alster Pavillion.  The mother, much older than her husband, tried to help out the family finances by keeping a little shop where needles and thread were sold.

Little Johannes, or Hannes as he was called, was surrounded from his earliest years by a musical atmosphere, and must have shown a great desire to study music.  We learn that his father took him to Otto Cossel, to arrange for piano lessons.  Hannes was seven years old, pale and delicate looking, fair, with blue eyes and a mass of flaxen hair.  The father said: 

“Herr Cossel, I wish my son to become your pupil; he wants so much to learn the piano.  When he can play as well as you do it will be enough.”

Hannes was docile, eager and quick to learn.  He had a wonderful memory and made rapid progress.  In three years a concert was arranged for him, at which he played in chamber music with several other musicians of Hamburg.  The concert was both a financial and artistic success.  Not long after this, Cossel induced Edward Marxsen, a distinguished master and his own teacher, to take full charge of the lad’s further musical training.  Hannes was about twelve at the time.