General Pause
Joon-Young begins episode 15 of Do You Like Brahms by saying goodbye to his Professor . He turns his back on him and snubs the training given. As Yoo mentions the award points, Joon-Young simply tells him he’d rather earn the points playing the way he wants to. At the same time, Song-A is confronted by Hae-Na who tells her she needs to rejoin the chamber because she loves the violin. She declines of course, but on the way out runs into Director Na. They discuss Joon-Young and how he’s found his happiness. That, of course, referring to Song-A. Only, they’ve broken up so this whole heartbreaking conversation only exemplifies the issues they’re going through. With the 15th anniversary of the university coming up, Joon-Young speaks to Young-In. She pitches the idea of him playing solo, but given the time he spent with Professor Yoo, Joon-Young continues to dwell on the past and doubt himself. This eventually spills over into uncontrollable sobbing back home with his Mother. Time passes and both Joon-Young and Song-A do their best to go about their lives individually. Song-A attends her performance exam but Soo-Kyung happens to be one of the judges. Because of the chamber issue, she obviously scores Song-A down compared to the other candidates. On the back of this, Song-A heads home and tells her family she’s decided to quit the violin. That’s not all though, Joon-Young has also decided to quit the piano. When Seong-Jae finds out, he immediately speaks to Jung-Kyung and pleads with her to make Joon-Young change is mind. Only, it doesn’t work. Quitting the piano is what’s making Joon-Young happy. He also goes on to mention Hyun-Ho and how he made her smile so much. This inevitably makes Jung-Kyung realize the time she had with Hyun-Ho was precious. In the morning, the university is rocked by the death of Director Na. Jung-Kyung is beside herself with grief while Hyun-Ho returns from the US for the funeral. With Jung-Kyung and Hyun-Ho finally alone together, he holds her hands and offers his condolences. Joon-Young notices Song-A from afar and the two finally talk outside. Song-A’s graduate piece is coming up and she’s settled on playing Brahms. After mentioning quitting the violin, she comments on the irony of playing Brahms. He too had unrequited love and Song-A has decided enough is enough. As she walks away, Joon-Young follows and pleads with the girl to let him play for her. Their performance is amazing together, as the piano and violin both complement one another beautifully. It’s a big moment for Song-A too, as she stands on stage receiving the applause she’s wanted so desperately for so long. As they take each other’s hand, they bow to the crowd and head backstage. After discussing his Traumerei piece, Joon-Young can’t take it anymore and tells Song-A he loves her. He’s been in love with her all this time but will she take him back?
The Episode Review
I’ve said it before but Brahms – while lovely and heartbreaking – also feels like it’s outstayed its welcome a little. I think some of that comes down to Joon-Young and Song-A getting in a relationship so early in the lifecycle of the drama. Much like Song-A herself, it feels like the energy has been drained from this one, with Song-A constantly sad and upset. I’m glad she got her standing ovation at the end though but I still think she should have continued playing the violin and followed her dreams. Of course, the reserved nature of Joon-Young and being unable to express his true feelings has ultimately caused a world of problems for them both. I’d imagine we’ll see Hyun-Ho and Jung-Kyung back together again, especially after the latter has realized she actually did love Hyun-Ho after all. As for Song-A and Joon-Young…who knows? It’s difficult to predict what way this is going to swing but the lack of character growth and constant melodramatic conflicts are draining the life from this one quicker than the ice-cream melting on Joon-Young and Song-A’s date. Can Brahms finish strongly? We’ll have to wait and find out!
