Following the publication of the 16 Waltzes for piano four hands, Brahms’ publisher succeeded in persuading the composer to do a version for piano solo. After initially hesitating, Brahms suggested two versions, one for “clever hands and one – perhaps for the more beautiful ones”. Both versions were published in 1867. The simplified one, which Brahms also called the “version for children”, not only thins out some of the full chords but also transposes complicated keys. Thus no. 6 is no longer in C sharp major but in the easier key of C major instead. G. Henle Publishers is now issuing this simplified version of the popular op. 39 based on the revised musical text of the new Brahms Complete Edition.
G. Henle Publishers stands for Urtext sheet music of the highest quality. The Urtext editions not only provide the undistorted and authoritative musical text but are also aesthetically pleasing, optimised for practical use and extremely durable. And then there is the strong, distinctive blue profile: (almost) all of the Urtext editions are bound in the characteristic blue cardboard.
Musicians trust Henle's blue Urtext editions because they:
- provide an undistorted, reliable and authoritative musical text
- offer superb, aesthetically appealing music engraving
- are optimised for practical use (page turns, fingerings)
- are of high quality and durable (cover, paper, binding)
- contain a short preface that introduces the work (particularly useful for AMEB exams) in German, English and French, as well as explanatory footnotes for particularly interesting passages in the score
- contain a description of the sources, an evaluation of the sources, readings and a documentation of the corrections made (= "Critical Report") in German and English, and often also in French
