Johannes Brahms's sunny Second Symphony is as warm and lyrical as his First had been stormy and dramatic. It quite possibly reflects the idyllic nature around Lake Wörth in Austria, where Brahms composed it in the summer of 1877. It has been a special favorite among music lovers since its premiere in Vienna on 30 December 1877. The celebrated 19th-century music critic Eduard Hanslick wrote that it was for "all who long for good music, whether they understand its complexity or not". Karl Böhm leads the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra in this recording made at the Vienna Musikvereinssaal.