Albert Dietrich is today known more for his friendship with Johannes Brahms than his work as a composer, however Dietrich had a sizable output of works. While much of that output was in short lieder, today we’ll take a look at his Symphony in D Major, Op. 20, first performed in 1871 and one of a select few orchestra works Dietrich wrote.

The initial response to the Symphony was mixed to say the least. A reviewer of the first performance stated “The symphony affords abundant proof that its composer thoroughly understands all the mechanical details of his art, but is deficient in imagination and feeling.” While one could take from this that Dietrich lacked musicality as a composer, he was likely overshadowed by his towering friends (the famous FAE Sonata, written for Joseph Joachim, was composed by Dietrich, Brahms, and Schumann).  Dietrich himself was a champion of Brahms’ music, regularly programming it during his time as Music Director at the Court of Oldenburg.

The Symphony opens with a very Brahmsian opening with a unison figure in the strings, punctuated by the trumpets and timpani. The winds quickly join this initial theme, adding the first harmony to the melodic line. Dietrich works with this idea, before introducing a new theme played simply in thirds by the violins, with the violas providing a countermelody that references the dotted rhythm of the initial theme.

After a rousing first movement, the slow movement opens with a solo horn over murmuring strings. The principle horn is joined by the second horn, bassoons, and cellos to again fill out the melody.  As Dietrich moves back and forth between two major melodic ideas, the horn player maintains a prominent role throughout.

The Scherzo opens with a lively theme in the strings, punctuated by brass and timpani. The ideas presented are shared back and forth with the winds, before a more lyrical section begins with the winds, joined by the strings, who return to the more dramatic opening. Dietrich presents two trios, with a brief return to the opening ideas in between, before finishing out with a return to the Scherzo.

Dietrich opens the Finale with a short, quiet introduction, which quickly leads to a joyous opening led by the violins. This is contrasted with a short melodic idea passed between the flutes and violins, before each are reinforced with other members of their instrument families. The clarinets, bassoons, violas, and celli take over with a legato theme that is truly reminiscent of some of the fine string writing in Brahms’ symphonies. A fugal section begins a slow build that leads us back to some of the opening material before building again to a grand finish.

While few would say that Dietrich's Symphony was a masterwork that should be played frequently, he clearly had a strong mastery of his craft and much talent. The Symphony shows great ideas and deserves to be heard more frequently.

Unfortunately, we've only been able to find one commercial recording of the work, which is used in the videos we've used above, by the Oldenburg State Orchestra. The orchestra released a recording of three of the former hometown Music Director's works in 2008.