In his articles on Brahms's lieder in the 1915 Musical Times, Ernest Newman maligned the composer's rhythm as “primitive,” and opined that many instances of supposed rhythmic subtlety are merely manneristic “metrical fidgetiness.” Although a century has passed since these aspersions were cast, only in recent decades have music theorists developed the types of analytical tools needed to refute criticisms such as Newman’s, and to fully grasp the complexity and expressive power of the rhythms in Brahms's lieder. Yonatan Malin has offered one of the most significant contributions to this endeavor. Drawing on the rhythmic theories developed by Harald Krebs and Richard Cohn, he parses lieder using the types of syncopations and hemiolas that Krebs labels as displacement and grouping dissonances, respectively. Notwithstanding the acuity and sensitivity of Malin's analysis, these are not the only rhythmic techniques that contribute to the expressiveness of Brahms's lieder. In this article I will explore the types of abrupt temporal disruptions and subsequent slowing of the prevailing pulse that Frank Samarotto has termed changes in temporal plane. The most startling of these types of shifts occur in shorter songs, which do not include other strongly contrasting passages, and the new pulse is maintained for a brief time before the initial pacing is restored. These contrasting planes are not accompanied by notated changes in tempo or labels such as recitative, but they are paired with dissonances that usually create a harmonic diversion. Despite their disruptive character, the rhythms and harmonies of the slower temporal plane are tightly integrated with the surrounding phrases. Moreover, their expressive or dramatic power is a significant element in Brahms's perceptive interpretations of his songs’ texts, and in many cases their relationships to the sections in the prevailing faster pace (including the conflicts they might create) are crucial to a song's dramatic trajectory.

I will focus on two songs, “O kühler Wald” (op. 72, no. 3) from 1877 and “Mein Herz ist schwer” (op. 94, no. 3) from 1883–84, in which the appearance of unexpected elongated pulses is coordinated with changes to other elements, including harmony, phrase structure, texture, or dynamics. In both songs, the arrival of the slower temporal plane is preceded by an abrupt discontinuation of the established pacing.