Noctave
Born in Hamburg, Brahms learned the piano there and performed from childhood before settling in Vienna, where he spent the second half of his life. For the piano he wrote sonatas, variations, ballades and, late in life, the collections of short pieces Op. 116 to 119. He also composed many songs, among them the Wiegenlied, Op. 49 No. 4, published in 1868 for voice and piano.
The Lullaby in the catalogue is a simplified two-hand arrangement of that song. The melody stays entirely in the right hand, in a gentle triple-time sway that should stay supple, with no accent on every note. The left hand accompanies with few notes: keep it quiet and shape the tune in long breaths, as a singer would. It is a good first meeting with a Romantic melody before Schumann's pieces, starting with his Melody, Op. 68 No. 1.