Schubert - String Quartet No. 14 In D Minor 'Death and The Maiden'

Franz Schubert (1797 -1828) was an Austrian composer who died when he was 31 years of age. He was a musical prodigy and played the violin, viola, piano, guitar and had a fine singing voice. Despite his early death, Schubert composed a large amount of music, some 600 lieder, 9 symphonies, operas, much

chamber music and many pieces for piano.

Schubert's 14th Quartet got its name 'Death and The Maiden'  from the fact that he had composed a song to a poem of the same name in 1817 and he based the second movement variations on the piano accompaniment to the song.  The quartet was written in 1824 while Schubert was trying to recover from a serious illness that ended up being the later stages of syphilis, the disease that finally killed him.   It was first performed in a private home in 1826 , but wasn't published until after Schubert's death.

The gloom of death haunts all four movements of the quartet, from the driving pace and frantic dynamics of the first movement, to the haunting variations of the second movement based on the song 'Death and The Maiden', to the short and ominous Scherzo of the 3rd movement and finally to the dizzying tarantella, a dance of death, that closes the work.

The song 'Death And The Maiden' was set to words from a poem by the German poet Matthias Claudius.  A few lines of the poem translated to English: 

The Maiden:
Pass me by! Oh, pass me by!
Go, fierce man of bones!
I am still young! Go, rather,
And do not touch me.
And do not touch me.

Death:
Give me your hand, you beautiful and tender form!
I am a friend, and come not to punish.
Be of good cheer! I am not fierce,
Softly shall you sleep in my arms!

Schubert - Piano Sonata No. 21 In B-flat Major, D. 960

The last three piano sonatas of Franz Schubert were written during the last months of his life. Schubert had been suffering from the effects of syphilis for some time, but he coped with the symptoms and even put on a concert of his own works in March of 1828 that was a success with the public and critics. Music publishers were beginning to show more interest in his works, and for a very short time Schubert was free from financial worries.

Despite his illness, Schubert continued to compose one work after the other. Starting in the spring of 1828 he composed many works, among them a Mass, various piano pieces, many songs that were printed posthumously in a collection titled Schwanengesang, as well as the three final piano sonatas.  In September of 1828 his health took a turn for the worse and his doctor advised him move out of the city, so he moved into his brother Ferdinand's house which was in the suburbs of Vienna.  Up until the very last weeks of his life Schubert continued to compose until he no longer was able.  Schubert finished his last piano sonata on September 26, 1828. He died November 19, 1828. He was but 31 years old.

The last three piano sonatas were not published until ten years after Schubert's death. Schubert's piano sonatas were neglected during most of the 19th century. His other music came to be revered, but the common opinion about his piano sonatas were that they were inferior to his other works. Even Robert Schumann, to whom the publisher of the last sonatas dedicated the works, was of this opinion:

Whether they were written from his sickbed or not, I have been unable to determine. The music would suggest that they were. And yet it is possible that one imagines things when the portentous designation, ‘last works,’ crowds one’s fantasy with thoughts of impending death. Be that as may, these sonatas strike me as differing conspicuously from his others, particularly in a much greater simplicity of invention, in a voluntary renunciation of brilliant novelty—an area in which he otherwise made heavy demands upon himself—and in the spinning out of certain general musical ideas instead of adding new threads to them from phrase to phrase, as was otherwise his custom. It is as though there could be no ending, nor any embarrassment about what should come next. Even musically and melodically it ripples along from page to page, interrupted here and there by single more abrupt impulses—which quickly subside.

An exception to this 19th century opinion was Brahms, who was fond of the sonatas and studied them intensely. The sonatas continued to be neglected until early in the 20th century when a handful of pianists like Artur Schnabel championed the works and played them in recitals. The last piano sonata is in 4 movements:

I. Molto moderato -  No doubt one of the reasons for the negative attitudes about this piano sonata is the inordinate length of the first movement. This first movement averages about twenty minutes if the exposition repeat is taken, which is as long as many complete sonatas.  Because of the length of this movement some pianists do not take the exposition repeat, thus shortening the work. The exposition repeat became somewhat of an option with later composers, but with Schubert it is essential.  There are many things that differentiate the later sonatas from the earlier ones, one of which is the long, lyrical themes that take time to unfold, which contribute to the length of movements.  The first theme of this movement begins with a theme that is calm and lyrical. This theme is interrupted by a trill on G-flat, a most unusual interruption that sounds foreign harmonically, almost sinister. The theme resumes after this intrusion and is then slightly developed by means of a key change to G-flat. Schubert modulates back to the tonal center of B-flat for the rest of the theme. Schubert then introduces what amounts to a long transition to the second main theme of the movement. He begins this transition material in the key of F-sharp minor, moves the home key and then the second theme makes its appearance in the key of F major. More transition material appears before the music of the first ending of the exposition appears, music that is unique and not heard again in the movement. The exposition is repeated verbatim, except for new transition material that leads to the development section. The development section is extensive and modulates quite often to many different keys. The development section comes to an end with the repeat of the mysterious trill on G-flat. The recapitulation repeats the exposition material with the obligatory changes in key to the home key of B-flat major. A short coda brings back the first theme along with the trill on G-flat and the movement ends in B-flat major.

II. Andante sustenuto -  Schubert has more harmonic surprises in the second movement. It begins in C-sharp minor, a key that played a role in the development section of the previous movement. The theme is a sad one that is intensified by the accompaniment that covers the bottom, middle and top of the keyboard. A contrasting middle section begins in A major and does its share of harmonic roaming. The first theme returns with some slight alterations. The mood is still sad, but the alterations in the accompaniment have given it an added tension. The theme modulates and finally comes to rest in C-sharp major and the movement ends quietly.

III. Scherzo: Allegro vivace con delicatezza - The scherzo is in B-flat major and lightens up the mood of two preceding brooding movements. The trio section is in B-flat minor and Schubert creates rhythmic instability by tying notes over the bar line and accenting notes in the left hand, sometimes on the beat, sometimes off the beat. The scherzo is repeated and with a very short coda it comes to a close.

IV. Allegro ma non troppo – Presto -  A movement in sonata form with three main themes. The first is in B-flat major and begins with an octave on G. This is repeated each time the first subject is played. The second theme is more mobile and  in F major. The third theme begins with a sharp double forte outburst in F minor. After the third theme is played through, material from the first theme leads directly to the development as the exposition is not repeated. The development section deals with the first theme only. The three themes are repeated in the recapitulation, and the work ends with a coda that is marked presto.  

Schubert - Symphony No. 8 In B Minor 'Unfinished'

Franz Schubert's Symphony No. 8 may be the most famous unfinished work in the symphonic repertoire. The two completed movements of the symphony were completed in 1822, as well as a third movement scherzo in piano score with two pages in full score. There has been theories, rumors and downright guesswork as for the reasons the symphony remained unfinished, with none of them more than conjecture.  Because of the depth of feeling and drama of the work it has been called the first Romantic era symphony by some.

The history of the first performance of the work begins shortly after the two movements were completed in 1822. In 1823 Schubert was given an honorary diploma from the Granz Music Society, and in return the composer was going to dedicate a work to the society.  Schubert sent the first two movements of the symphony to Anselm Hüttenbrenner, a prominent member of the group.  There is no evidence that Schubert had any other contact with Hüttenbrenner or that he completed any of the other movements for the work. Indeed, Hüttenbrenner never let anyone else know he had the manuscript until 1865. Why Hüttenbrenner sat on the manuscript for so many years is not known. He finally showed the work to the conductor Johann von Herbeck, the conductor of the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde in Vienna. Herbeck premiered the two movements and tacked on a movement from an earlier Schubert symphony as a finale, in 1865 in Vienna.  The work was a complete success despite the addition of the finale, and has been an audience favorite ever since.

The six symphonies Schubert composed before the Unfinished don't resemble it in depth or drama, but Schubert could be a quite dramatic composer when he chose to be as can be heard in his lied Der Erlkönig as well as music in other forms. One theory is that the composition of the symphony coincides with Schubert's diagnosis of syphilis. Considering such a diagnosis in those times was a sentence of suffering, perhaps madness, and certain death, may have been a reason for the dark tone of the music. The symphony is scored for pairs of woodwinds, two horns, two trumpets, three trombones, strings and timpani.

Johann von Herbeck

I. Allegro moderato - It may appear strange that the tempo indication of this movement is allegro moderato, for the music that begins the movement doesn't seem to fit. But Schubert's point in the tempo designation is to make sure that there should be at least some speed to the movement, otherwise the music would sound too heavy to the point of plodding.  Of course just how moderately fast is subject to a conductor's interpretation.  The work opens with the dark cellos and basses playing pianissimo in their lowest ranges. The actual first theme of the movement is carried in the woodwinds while the violins play an agitated accompaniment along with the lower strings. a four-bar transition played by the horns shifts the music from B minor to G major for the second subject that is heard in the cellos over a syncopated accompaniment. A theme group is played after the second theme until a variant of the second theme is played. Transition material leads to the repeat of the exposition. The development section begins with a short transition before the cellos and basses play the opening bars of the symphony again but this time in E minor. The rest of the development concentrates on the first theme and its parts and is punctuated with sforzandi and string tremolos. The syncopated accompaniment of the second theme does show up a few times also. The recapitulation is mostly the usual repetition of themes, only the second theme modulates to D major instead of B major, the parallel major to the home key of B minor.  The music does modulate to B major until the first theme in B minor appears and is expanded into the ending of the emphatic final cadence.

II. Andante con moto - Two bars of introduction lead to the E major first theme of the movement, first played by the strings. This theme has a contrasting section of marching staccato strings until it resumes. A second theme is played in C-sharp minor by the clarinet over a gently syncopated accompaniment by the strings. This theme also has a contrasting section of music played fortissimo before the theme begins again.  All of this serves as the exposition. There is no development section, as the themes are repeated with modulations to other keys and variants. After this plays out, a new theme appears that is derived from the opening measures of the movement. The transition to the second theme that is played by the violins earlier is repeated and varied along with parts of the other themes, and the movement comes to a peaceful close in E major.

Schubert - String Quintet In C Major D. 956

Schubert's String Quintet In C Major adds a second cello to a standard string quartet setting instead of a second viola as Mozart and Beethoven did in their string quintets. No one knows why Schubert chose an extra cello for his quintet, but the result is music that uses the added depth and sonority of the second cello to good advantage.

Schubert composed the quintet in 1828, and wrote to a publisher offering it along with other works. In the letter Schubert says that rehearsals for the quintet were to begin in a few days, but it isn't certain if this ever happened. The music publisher refused the quintet, and it lay forgotten until it was rediscovered and had its first known public performance in 1850. It was published three years later in 1853, and came to be regarded by Schumann and a young Brahms to be one of the finest chamber music work ever written.

The quintet is like the other handful of masterpieces Schubert wrote in his last months of life that expanded the form and content of music.  It is in 4 movements:

I. Allegro ma non troppo -  This is an example of Schubert's expanded first movement settings as it takes roughly a third of the playing time of the entire work. With a wealth of thematic material and a rich harmonic language, this movement alone takes about 19 minutes to play. It starts with a dynamic swell that begins on the chord of C major but at the crest of the swell the chord changes to what can be defined as a C diminished seventh, a minor chord.

A short section leads to a different tonally ambiguous chord exchange, and now the music  reveals that this is not an introduction, but a thematic group that continues in kaleidoscopic harmonies until a second theme in E-flat is stated by the cellos:

This theme moves to the higher strings and is repeated.  A section in G major brings the music back to the second theme and the exposition is repeated. The development section alternates between the serene and the dramatic as the music spotlights sections of themes in a dizzying array of major and minor keys. Schubert manages to segue from one to the other effortlessly until the recapitulation brings the music back to the beginning chords. Key changes continue as Schubert blends themes and keys as a painter blends colors and shadows. The coda gives a sense of continuing the themes even farther as the opening chords are heard again along with a modulation, but it is actually a summing up as Schubert winds down the movement and the music ends firmly in C major.

II. Adagio - The second movement is in E major, and begins with a tender theme played by second violin and viola. The first violin plays an accompanying figure as the one cello adds harmonic depth to the theme while the second cello plays a pizzicato accompaniment:

The instruments blend together as the music gently and slowly flows on its way, getting even more quiet as it goes, until a crescendo of trills leads to an agitated middle section in F minor. A quiet section coaxes the tender theme back for a replaying, but this time with a varied accompaniment which adds a slight nervous edge to it. Near the end, the trilled crescendo that lead to the agitated middle section makes a brief appearance in the first violin, but as quickly as it came it retreats as the music comes to an end in E major.

III. Scherzo: Presto – Trio: Andante sostenuto -  Schubert returns to the home key of C major as he increases the loudness and sonority of the five instruments by playing 9-note chords at fortissimo in this boisterous scherzo:

The trio section generally is in contrast to the scherzo itself, but Schubert makes an extreme contrast, first of all with the key change from C major to D-flat major, a key that is quite remote from the home key. The tempo also slows as the mysterious music of the trio quietly hesitates its way to a repeat of the scherzo.

IV. Allegretto - Schubert's first theme of this movement is reminiscent of the dance music he was fond of. The movement is in the form of a rondo with elements of sonata form as well, a hybrid of the two forms. The key has returned to C major (although the theme begins in shadows of C minor), and the violin plays the theme as the other instruments give an accompaniment:

 The second theme is a graceful tune in G major played by the first violin and first cello:

Schubert's melodic gifts were second to none, so along with these two themes there are other tunes and parts of tunes that appear. After Schubert has ran his course with these themes, he builds up excitement by increasing the tempo in the coda. With a triple forte passage, Schubert leads to the final notes, a D-flat grace note before the final unison C, thus ends a work that constantly moves from profound beauty to despair and back again with an intensity that was the beginning of the Romantic era in music.

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Schubert - Piano Sonata No. 19 In C Minor, D.958

The last months of Franz Schubert's life were times of great physical illness matched with great musical creativity. But for most of his short life, Schubert was not anything if not prolific, as he wrote more than 1,500 works by the time of his death in 1828 at the age of 31.  The final three piano sonatas were but a part of the works composed in his final months, and it wasn't until Schubert was ten years dead that they were published. Even then, it took many years for these last sonatas and most of Schubert's piano music to escape the neglect of the 19th century. 

The Piano Sonata No. 19 In C Minor, D.958 is the first of this set of sonatas, and while all three of them have some similarities in structure, it is the C minor that is different in mood and character. 

I. Allegro - As other authors have mentioned, the comparison with this sonata to those of Beethoven has been made many times. It does share the key of C minor with the powerful works of Beethoven in the same key. But Schubert's piano sonatas may have suffered in reputation by comparison to Beethoven's. What composer's wouldn't? But in the latter half of the 20th century, Schubert's sonatas were taken on their own terms, which is a good tactic to use for any music lover. This first movement begins with the starkness of a C minor chord, that shortly makes its way to a downward A-flat major scale, an example of Schubert's ear for combining differing harmonies. The C minor theme is repeated in a variation with a moving bass line that soon shifts keys to E-flat, relative major of C minor. Indeed, E-flat major is the key of the second theme which at first hearing, is calmer in nature, but upon the repetition this theme is varied by playing in octaves while the accompaniment is in triplets. This adds underlying tension to the music. Then there is a section that adds to the tension with shifting harmonies such as E-flat minor and A-flat minor. A final section of the exposition brings back the second theme, again with shifting harmonies. The exposition is repeated.

The key of A-flat major returns with the chord that leads off the development section, music that could have played a role in the development of Brahms, as the beginning sounds similar to the music of Brahms, who was an editor of some of Schubert's music. Most of the development deals with more shifting harmonies and a restless base.

The recapitulation begins with the first theme, along with variations in the next sections until the second theme is reached, which in this repetition is in C major, parallel key of C minor. The coda winds down the music with the second theme being in C minor, and the movement ends pianissimo.

II. Adagio - It was rare for Schubert to use the designation adagio for a movement, and it begins in A-flat major. The second theme shifts the key to A minor, and is much more agitated. The first theme is played again, with changes in harmony that change its benign mood into something darker. Once again, the second theme begins and darkens the mood. The first theme returns one last time and with changing keys, sounds somewhat deflated from before. It tries one last time to return to what it was before, but it quietly ends. 

III. Menuetto: Allegro - Trio -  Tranquility is in this movement more so than the preceding, but as incongruous as it may be to say, a disquietude is displayed with the bars of rest that interrupt the theme. The theme is in E-flat, but drifts into C minor and other keys. The key of A-flat major makes an appearance in the trio, with appearances of E-flat minor and other keys. 

IV. Allegro - The final movement is in 6/8 time and is in the style of a tarantella. The music is in sonata form and begins in the home key of C minor for the first theme. The music drifts into other keys until a variant of this theme is played in C major. As this theme temporarily runs itself out, a transitional section in D-flat leads to the next theme in C-sharp minor. This theme is punctuated by a resounding rhythm in the left hand as the right hand crosses over it to play the theme. This theme continues to develop with modulations to A minor, E-flat major, E-flat minor, and leads to a third theme in E-flat major. 

After this theme, a rest of two measures for the music to catch its breath brings a section in B major which leads to a development section that maintains the chromaticism of the sonata as it dances its way until a fermata over an eighth rest that signals the recapitulation. 

The first theme is heard in the home key, the second theme changes key to B-flat minor, the third theme repeats in C major. A section in A-flat major leads to the coda with the first theme. Previous material is heard in different keys until the key of C minor takes off on two-note figures that outline the C minor triad (with a few accidentals that belong to G major) for 5 octaves while the bass plays a broken C minor chord (with a few accidentals that belong to G major). This 5-octave descent decreases the volume over its course until it reaches pianissimo. The music ends fortissimo the way it started; with a C minor chord. 

Schubert - Fantasia For Piano 4 Hands In F Minor, D. 940

Franz Schubert lived but 31 years, with most of those years being absorbed with composition. His total number of known works is over 1,500 and to write that much music he had to be composing most of the time.

The last year of his life he suffered from the illnesses that proved fatal. But that did not dampen his creative spirit as he wrote some of his most profound music. One his most admired works of that year is the Fantasia For Piano 4 Hands In F Minor.  Schubert wrote a sizable number of works for piano 4 hands, more than any other composer of his era, and published his first work in the genre in 1822. The popularity of the piano as an instrument was to be found more and more in the homes of the emerging middle class, and the sales of music suitable for amateurs to play was growing. Music for piano 4 hands became very popular, and along with music originally composed in the form were arrangements of orchestral works. Much of this music was not taxing for amateurs to play, with much of Schubert's 4 hand music intended for amateurs and students. But the Fantasia in F minor is an exception for it has a depth of emotion and artistry that makes it not only one of Schubert's most outstanding compositions in the form, but one of his masterpieces in any genre. 

The Fantasia is in one continuous movement, and consists of 4 distinct sections:

 I. Allegro molto moderato - The music begins with a gentle accompaniment before the entrance of the main theme of dotted rhythms and grace notes. The theme is repeated in  F major until the second theme more emphatic theme enters. These two themes are repeated and developed before the music shifts to F-sharp minor and the entrance of the theme of the next section.

II. Largo - This section's main theme in reminiscent of the French overture style of Bach's time with its double dotted rhythms and trills. The next theme is a reflection of the preceding one and leads to a development of the double dotted theme. This section is short, and leads directly to the next.

III. Allegro vivace - This section is a scherzo in F-sharp minor with a trio in D major. When the scherzo returns, it alternates between F-sharp minor and A major and leads up to the final section.

IV. Allegro molto moderato -  The music returns to the main theme of the first section in F minor, with the 4 sections together resembling one single sonata form movement as the first section can be thought of as the exposition, the second and third sections the development, and the fourth as the recapitulation. After the main theme is heard, the second theme is transformed into a fugue that leads to a dramatic  climax that ends in C major. The initial theme returns, and the fantasia ends in the home key.

Schubert - Four Impromptus D. 935 (Op. posth. 142)

The word impromptu by definition implies something that is spontaneous, improvised. That definition does not really imply in music, for the impromptus as written by Schubert and other composers are hardly improvisations. They are well-crafted short pieces for the piano that have a definite structure.

Schubert wrote eight impromptus, but he was not the first to use the term. The first known use of the word for published musical works was by the Czech composer and pianist Jan Václav Voříšek in his opus 7 set of six piano pieces in 1822.  Voříšek and Schubert knew each other in Vienna, and Schubert may have been inspired by Voříšek's opus 7 set.

All eight of Schubert's impromptus were written in 1827, a year before the composer died. Two of them were published shortly after they were written, and Schubert's publisher suggested calling them impromptus. The other six were published sporadically after his death. The complete set of eight was published in 1857, thirty years after they were written, and are now considered to be in two sets of four each; D.899 and D.935. The four pieces of D.935 are discussed below:

1) F Minor - This impromptu can be broken down into 3 major sections. The first section is a group of themes that begins with one in F minor:

The second section is in A-flat major and is of a decidedly more lyrical nature. The third and longer section enters in A-flat minor with alternating statements in the treble and bass with a continuing accompaniment. This section modulates to the major before sections 1 and 2 are repeated. The third section is also repeated, this time in the home key. The first section makes one more brief appearance to end the piece.

2) A-flat Major -  Written in the same form as a minuet with the opening in A-flat major:

The trio section begins in D-flat major in triplets. The key changes to D-flat minor before the opening material returns.

3) B-flat Major, Theme and Variations -  A theme with 5 variations:

Variation I has the theme repeated in a dotted rhythm at the top of the right hand with an accompaniment also played in the right hand and left hand.
Variation II has the theme ornamented.
Variation III is in B-flat minor. Somber chords in the left hand accompany the moody minor variation of the theme.
Variation IV is in G-flat major with the theme carried in the left hand at the start. The theme alternates between hands.
Variation V has the theme return to the home key of B-flat major as the theme is delicately outlined with runs in the right hand. A short coda ends the piece.

4) F minor, Tempo Scherzando - Written in F minor and in 3/8 time. As Schubert was wont to do in his later works the form (which is ternary) is expanded with many different sections and themes within the parts as well as going far afield from the home key within the piece. The first part has 4 different sections and begins with the scherzo theme:

The second part has two sections and functions as a trio. The first part is repeated after the trio. A long coda section picks up the tempo towards the end and the piece ends with a thundering F minor scale the length of the keyboard.

Schubert - Piano Trio No. 2 In E-flat Major D.929

The list of works that were published in Franz Schubert's lifetime ran to about 100 opus numbers, with most of them being lieder. it wasn't until many years after his death in 1828 that the full compass of his compositions became clear. When the Austrian musicologist Otto Erich Deutsch published his catalogue of Schubert's collected works, his numbering system went as high as 998.

Schubert was most well known in his lifetime for his songs and a few larger works. Most of his works were not played or heard by Schubert in his lifetime, but the Piano Trio No. 2 In E-flat Major was an exception as it was played at a private engagement party in January of 1828 for one of his friends shortly after its composition in November of 1827.  The work was also published before Schubert's death in November of 1828.

The 2nd Piano Trio is like other of the last works of Schubert in that it is expanded in length. This is true no matter the genre of a particular late work. The Symphony In C Major lasts an hour, the Piano Sonata No. 21 In B-flat Major 40 minutes, as well as the 1st Piano Trio (which was written at about the same time as the 2nd Piano Trio) which lasts about 40 minutes. This lengthening of playing time is due at least in part to Schubert's remarkable gift of melody. He drew from an inexhaustible store of themes and melodies and used them in his later works where they were used in a musical texture that resulted in a longer time needed to work through all of his compositional expertise with them.

The 2nd Piano Trio is in 4 movements:

I. Allegro - The first movement begins with all three instruments stating a theme that outlines the E-flat major triad:

This first theme is elaborated on until a short section leads to the second theme. Musicologists differ as to the number of themes in the exposition, with some saying as many as six. Whether these themes are truly independent themes or not, there does seem to be a relationship between them. The exposition is repeated, which adds to the length of the movement but with such a wealth of thematic material, a repeat is most welcome. The development section modulates into keys far and wide but Schubert keeps everything coherent with the return of themes. The recapitulation continues the weaving of themes and Schubert ties up all the loose ends as the movement ends with a final flourish followed by a more quiet final statement.

II. Andante con moto - The quiet ending of the first movement leads perfectly to the second movement where the piano begins in C minor and the cello joins with a melancholy tune:

According to one of Schubert's friends, this theme is based on  a Swedish folk song that Schubert heard, the title of which is 'Se solen sjunker' (The sun is down). The second theme is of a more gentle character for contrast, but this theme reaches two climaxes that makes the ear question its true gentleness. These two themes alternate until the funeral march-like opening theme ends the movement.

III. Scherzando. Allegro moderato - The theme of this movement begins in the piano and is imitated by the violin and cello. The trio is a more robust country dance that includes a reference to one of the themes of the first movement.

IV. Allegro moderato - A movement that has elements of both sonata form and rondo form as three themes are played. A development section is introduced by the return of the primary theme of the second movement in an altered guise that foreshadows the embracing of cyclic form by Berlioz and Liszt.  It is played again by the cello with accompaniment by piano and pizzicato violin. The other three themes of the movement continue to be varied as the music moves to the end of the movement. The second movement theme enters one last time but remains in its minor key form but briefly until it shifts into the major mode. The music ends in a final short statement of the opening theme of the movement.

Schubert - Gretchen am Spinnrade

Johann Goethe was a writer that inspired the entire 19th century world of art, specifically the Germanic-speaking world.  Franz Schubert fell under the spell of Goethe's works early on, and the first lied he set to Goethe's text was Gretchen am Spinnrade (Gretchen At The Spinning Wheel), the text of which was taken from a scene in Faust. The year was 1814 and Schubert was 17 years old. Goethe remained an inspiration to Schubert for the rest of his short life as he wrote over 80 lieder to texts of Goethe, including his famous setting of Der Erlkönig. 

The scene depicts Gretchen at her spinning wheel as her mind drifts to Faust, a man she has recently met and fallen deeply in love with.  Schubert uses the piano as an illustrative device as the music depicts the wheel spinning in the right hand notes, the clicking of the spool that gathers the yarn in the staccato eighth-note accompaniment in the left hand and the pedal that makes the wheel spin in the lower notes in the left hand:

The passion of Gretchen grows until it reaches near madness in the 7th stanza, when the piano depicts the halting of the spinning wheel as she is overcome with the thought of his kiss. The wheel makes a few false starts before it begins again. The passion grows once again, until the first stanza is repeated and the wheel stops.  The song begins and ends in D minor, but Schubert takes the harmony far afield, a characteristic of Schubert's music that was to continue.  This song of 1814 led to one of Schubert's most productive years when in 1815 he wrote over 100 lieder as well as many works for orchestra and chorus.

There were many composers that wrote works of musical imagery before Schubert. The cantatas of Bach as well as the oratorios of Handel are but two examples of works that contained illustrative music, but Gretchen am Spinnrade was a turning point in the history of the German lied.  Schubert's fertile imagination and his pairing of the voice and piano as equal partners in musical expression influenced countless song composers.

Gretchen At The Spinning Wheel
My peace is gone,
My heart is heavy,
I will find it never
and never again.

Where I do not have him,
That is the grave,
The whole world
Is bitter to me.

My poor head
Is crazy to me,
My poor mind
Is torn apart.

My peace is gone,
My heart is heavy,

I will find it never
and never again.

I look only for him
Out the window
Only for him do I go
Out of the house.

His tall walk,
His noble figure,
His mouth's smile,
His powerful eyes,


His mouth's
Magic flow,
His touch,
and ah! his kiss!

My peace is gone,
My heart is heavy,
I will find it never
and never again.

My bosom urges itself
toward him.
Ah, might I grasp
And hold him!

And kiss him,
As I want,
With his kisses
I should die!

Schubert - Three Songs, Opus 4

Schubert had an exceptional drive to compose at every possible opportunity, almost an obsession for writing music. Schubert said himself that:

I compose every morning, and when one piece is done, I begin another.  

Despite the few years of life he had, he developed his talent to a remarkable degree.  When Franz Schubert died in Vienna in 1828 even his close friends had no idea of how much music he had written. He wrote in almost every musical genre of his day,  and it wasn't until the last few years of his life that his works were beginning to be published. It wasn't until 1951 when research done by Otto Erich Deutsch resulted in the publication of a comprehensive catalog of Schubert works that the tremendous number of Schubert works were known.

During his lifetime Schubert was known for his songs; it is the genre that he wrote the most in with over 600 songs to his credit.  His songs were the first compositions to be published, beginning in 1821 with his setting of Goethe's poem Der Erlkönig. The three songs of opus 4 were published in 1822 and included Der Wanderer (1816) , Morgenlied (1820), and Wandrers Nachtlied I (1815). 

The Wanderer, D. 489 -  Schubert had a genius for being able to read a poem and setting it to music. Sometimes the poems he set were of the highest quality by poets such as Goethe, but he was adept at making the most of any poem that set his musical imagination to composition. The poem Der Wanderer was written by  Georg Philipp Schmidt von Lübeck who was something of a Renaissance man. He was born to an old merchant family, studied law, medicine, was an astute business man and politician.  He was also a man of letters who wrote on historical subjects as well as poetry. By the time Schubert wrote this song he had written over 300 songs as well as numerous cantatas for solo voices and choirs ans well as part songs with piano accompaniment. He used the experience of writing all of these vocal works and no doubt his experience of listening to opera and created a song with operatic overtones and a concentrated opera aria structure. It was one of Schubert's most popular songs in his lifetime and still resonates with audiences today.

Georg Philipp Schmidt von Lübeck

The Wanderer
I come down from the mountains,
The valley fills with mist, the sea roars.
I wander silently and  unhappily,
And my sighs always ask "Where?"

The sun seems so cold to me here,
The flowers dead, life old,
And what they say has an empty sound;
I am a stranger everywhere.

Where are you, my dear land?
Sought and brought to mind, yet never known,
That land, so hopefully green,
That land, where my roses bloom,

Where my friends wander.
Where the dead ones rise from the dead,
That land where they speak my language,
Oh land, where are you?

I wander silently and unhappily,
And my sighs always ask "Where?"
In a ghostly breath it calls back to me,
"Where you are not, there is happiness."

Morning Song D. 685 -  A man of many accomplishments, Zacharias Werner studied law, was appointed a government post for tow years until he resigned and traveled widely. He became acquainted with Goethe and other literary artists while traveling, and while in Rome converted to Roman Catholicism and was consecrated a priest.  He was also a playwright, and Schubert got the poem from Werner’s play The Sons of the Valley. This song was also popular in Schubert's time, but it doesn't age very well, at least the lyrics.

Morning Song
Before the sun rises early,
When from the sea mist
The morning breeze wafts up and down,
When dawn, armed with it shining spear, leads forward,
Little birds flutter here and there,

Zacharias Werner

Sing joyfully in all directions
A song, a jubilant song.

"What so delights all you birds,
So happy in the warming rays of the sun?"
"We are happy that we live and exist,
And that we are companions of the air,
According to time-honoured custom
we flutter joyfully through the bushes,
Wafted about by the lovely morning breeze,
Whose caress is also enjoyed by the sun."

"Why do you little birds sit so silent and crouched down
In your mossy nests on the roof?"
"We sit because the sun no longer takes notice of us,
Night has already been enveloped by the waves,
The moon alone, the lovely light,
The sun’s lovely reflection
Does not leave us in darkness,
Wherefore we rejoice quietly."

O youth, cool morningtide,
Where we, our hearts wide open,
With senses quick and waking
Delight in the freshness of life,
Now you have fled!
We old ones sit alone crouching in our nest,
But the lovely reflection of our youthful days,
Where we delighted in early dawn,

Johann Goethe

Never leaves us even in old age,
But fills us with the quiet, joy of the senses.

Wanderer's Nightsong I,  D. 224 -  Schubert chose a poem written in 1776 by the ultimate German poet Johann Goethe. Goethe wrote two poems named Wanderer's Night Song, this one is the first. Schubert also set the second poem to music.  Schubert achieves a calmness and beauty in this short song that is remarkable considering he was only eighteen when he wrote it.

Wanderer's Night Song I 
You who are from heaven,
who eases all pain and sorrow,
and the doubly wretched
you fill with doubly with fresh vigor.
Ah, I'm tired of restless life!
For what is all this pain and joy?
Sweet peace,
come, ah, come into my breast!

Schubert - Schwanengesang D.957

The art of German song began in the Medieval era with the songs of the traveling troubadours of the 12th century and included folk songs and religious hymns. The art song, what is known in German as Lied,  began in earnest when German writers of the 18th and 19th centuries began writing poetry that embraced Classicism and Romanticism. Composers such as Mozart and Beethoven in Germany and Austria set these new styled poems to music, with the acknowledged master of the art form being Schubert.

Franz Schubert composed over 600 Lieder in his short life from 1797-1828.  Schubert not only was one of the great melodists of all time; he created a symbiosis with the solo voice and the piano, the instrument most associated with German Lieder. The piano reflects, imitates, enhances and sometimes contrasts the voice instead of merely accompanying it. Schubert's creativity and imagination influenced most of the German song composers that came after him, as well as composers in other countries.  

In 1828, Schubert was afflicted with what turned out to be a fatal illness.  The illness that took his life isn't known for certain with theories ranging from tertiary stage syphilis to typhoid fever.  He continued to compose and between fever, nausea, crippling headaches and joint pain wrote some of his most well-known works in the last months of his life.  One of these final works was a set of Lieder that was published a few months after Schubert's death in a collection titled Schwanengesang by the Viennese publisher Tobias Haslinger.  The title was taken from the Greek legend that states that swans sing a beautiful song just before they die.  The collection has been called a song cycle,  but Schubert used 14 poems by 3 different poets whereas most song cycles are written to poems by one poet that have a common theme between them.

Many thanks to Celia Sgroi for allowing free use of her excellent translations of all 14 of the German poems. The first 7 songs are to poems by Ludwig Rellstab, German poet and critic. The poems were originally offered in 1825 to Beethoven, but were passed on to Schubert after Beethoven's death in 1827:

1. Liebesbotschaft (Message Of Love) - The singer invites a stream to carry a note to his lover. Schubert begins the song with the solo piano in music that imitates a rippling stream, an ear-visual that Schubert used many times in his songs:

The piano continues the stream illusion throughout.

Rushing brook,
So pretty and clear,
Will you hurry to my sweetheart
So cheerful and quick?
Ah, dear little brook,
Be my messenger;
Bring greetings
To her from afar.

All of her flowers,
Tended in the garden,
That she wears so sweetly
On her breast,
And her roses,
In crimson radiance,
Brook, refresh them
With your cooling stream.

When on the stream bank,
lost in dreams
 thinking of me,
she bows her head,
comfort my dearest
with your friendly glance,
for her beloved is
coming back soon.

When the sun is setting
With its red glow,
lull my beloved off to sleep.
Murmuring, rock her
To her sweet rest,
And whisper dreams
Of love to her.

2. Kriegers Ahnung (Soldier's Foreboding) - A soldier sings about how much he misses his beloved while he is afield with his fellow soldiers:

Around me in deep silence
Lie my soldier comrades;
My heart is so anxious and heavy,
So aflame with longing.

How often have I dreamed sweetly
On her warm breast!
How friendly was the stove’s warmth
When she lay in my arms!

Here, where the brooding glow of flames,
Alas, only shines on weapons,
Here my heart feels totally alone,
And tears of sadness flow.

Heart! Don’t let solace abandon you!
Many a battle is ahead.
Soon I’ll rest and sleep soundly,
My beloved—good night!

3. Frühlingssehnsucht (Longing In Spring) -  Springtime with all its beauty surrounds the singer but loneliness and longing for his beloved cause sadness among the flowers:

Murmuring breezes flutter so gently
Fill me sighing with the scent of flowers!
How you greet me with a blissful sigh!
What have you done to my pounding heart?
It wants to follow your airy trail!
Where to?

Brooks, so cheerfully bubbling as well,
Flow sparkling silver down to the glen.
The billowing wave hastens downhill!
The meadows and sky are reflected deep within.
Why do you draw me, urgent, yearning feeling,
Down there?

Sparkling gold of the greeting sun,
You bring me hopeful bliss so sweet!
How your joyfully greeting image refreshes me.
It smiles so gently in the dark blue sky
And has filled my eye with tears!
Why?

The forests and hills are wreathed in green,
A snowfall of blossoms sparkles and gleams.
Everything surges to the nuptial light;
The seeds are burgeoning, the buds are opening,
They’ve found what they need to blossom:
And you?

Restless longing, yearning heart,
Nothing but tears, complaints, and pain?
I too am aware of a growing urge!
Who’ll finally quiet my urgent desire?
Only you can release the spring in my soul,
Only you!

4. Ständchen (Serenade) -  The singer urges a lover for a tryst at the grove of trees in the valley. One of Schubert's most recognizable melodies, this song shifts between minor and major keys to convey the singer's longing:

Ludwig Rellstab

Softly my songs implore
You through the night;
Down into the quiet grove,
Beloved, come to me!

Slender treetops rustle, murmur
In the moon’s radiance;
Don’t fear the hidden listener’s
malice, my dearest.

Do you hear the nightingales singing?
Ah, they appeal to you,
With their sweet plaintive tones
They’re pleading for me.

They understand the heart’s yearning,
They know the pain of love,
Touch with their silvery tones
Every feeling heart.

Let them move you, too,
My darling, listen to me!
Trembling, I await you!
Come, dearest, enrapture me.

5. Aufenthalt (Resting Place) -  A song that conveys emotional pain and anguish that is as powerful and never ending as waves of the sea, wind in the treetops and the core of a mountain. The piano sets the tension in the beginning of the song as it plays constant triplet chords in the right hand against a melody in the left hand that contains eighth notes that create a compound rhythm of 2 versus 3:

Thundering torrent,
Roaring forest,
Stony crag,
My resting place.

Just as the waves roll
One after one,
My tears are flowing
Eternally new.

As high in the treetops
It billows and seethes,
Just as unceasingly
Beats my heart.

And like the mountain’s
Ancient core,
Ever the same
Remains my pain.

6. In der Ferne (In The Distance) -  A broken-hearted lover flees their friends, mother's house, and home town to wander the world to escape the one that broke their heart.  Heavy, mournful chords accompany the sorrow of the singer.

Woe to the fugitive,
Fleeing the world!
Roaming foreign places,
Forgetting his homeland,
Hating his mother’s house,
Leaving his friends
Alas, no blessing follows
Along their ways.

Heart that is yearning,
Eye that is weeping
Longing that never ends,
Turning toward home.
Breast that is stirring,
Lament that is fading,
Evening star twinkling,
Hopelessly sinking!

Breezes, you rippling,
Waves gently ruffling,
Sunbeam hastening
Nowhere remaining:
She who with agony
Broke my loyal heart—
Greetings from the fugitive,
Fleeing the world!

7. Abschied (Farewell) -  This song is also about leaving, but this one is in contrast to the previous one. The departing singer bids a fond farewell to a town that they have enjoyed. The reason why they must depart isn't known, only that it is time to go. The singer welcomes his companions, the sun during the day and the stars at night. The piano imitates the singer's trotting horse as he leaves without looking back:

Goodbye! You jolly, you cheerful town, goodbye!
My horse paws the ground now with light-hearted hoof,
Now receive my final, my parting salute
You’ve never seen me downcast before,
And it can’t happen now at my farewell.

Goodbye, you trees, you gardens so green, goodbye!
Now I’m riding along the silvery stream,
My farewell song echoes far and wide,
You never heard a sorrowful song from me,
And you won’t hear one now at my departure.

Goodbye, you friendly lasses there, goodbye!
Why do you look out of your flower-perfumed house
With such a flirtatious and alluring glance?
As always I greet you and look around
But I never turn my horse back.

Goodbye, dear sun, now go to your rest, goodbye!
Now the gold of the twinkling stars shimmers.
How much do I love you stars in the sky;
We travel the world both far and wide,
And everywhere you are my loyal guide.

Goodbye, you shimmering bright window, goodbye!
You sparkle so homelike in the twilight glow
And invite us so trustfully into your cottage.
Alas, I’ve ridden by here so many times,
And is today to be the final time?

Goodbye, you stars, hide yourself in grayness, goodbye!
The dark, fading light of the window
Can’t be replaced by you countless stars,
I can’t linger here, I have to go on,
What matter if you follow me so faithfully!

The next 6 songs are by Heinrich Heine, one of the giants of German literature. Heine got into trouble with the authorities in Germany for his radical politics and spent the last  25 years of his life in Paris. The six poems of Heine are shorter and more intense than the previous seven.

8. Der Atlas (Atlas) -  In heavy, agitated music, the singer agonizes about the crushing emotional pain he carries that is as heavy as the burden of the entire world that the Titan Atlas carries on his back.

I, wretched Atlas, a world
The whole world of pain I must carry,
I bear the unbearable, and my heart
Is breaking in my body.

You proud heart, you wanted it so!
You wanted to be happy, eternally happy,
Or eternally miserable, proud heart,
And now you are in misery.

9. Ihr Bild (Her Portrait) -  Another song about lost love, this time the singer looks at a mental image of his lost beloved. The piano plays the singer's melody in the beginning that reflects the imagined image of the beloved:

After the singer imagines his beloved, the reality that he has lost her is enforced by the starkness of the piano's ending cadence.


I stood in dark dreams
And stared at her image,
And the beloved visage
Quietly came to life.

Upon her lips appeared
A smile so wonderful,
And as if from tears of sadness
Her eyes sparkled.

And my tears flowed as well
Down from my cheeks—
And oh, I just can’t believe,
That I have lost you!

Heinrich Heine

10. Das Fischermädchen (The Fisher Girl) -  The singer tries to coax a girl to romance and in an attempt to get her to trust him compares his heart to the ocean that has many treasures inside. The piano has a gentle rocking rhythm throughout that imitates the sea lapping at the shore.

You lovely fisher girl,
Row your boat to shore;
Come to me and sit down,
We’ll cuddle hand in hand.

Lay your head on my breast
And don’t be so afraid;
You trust yourself without care
Daily to the untamed sea.

My heart is like the ocean,
Has storm and ebb and flood,
And many a lovely pearl
Rests in its depths.

11. Die Stadt (The Town) - A man rows a boat towards a town. When he sees the spires of the town emerge in the distant fog he laments the place where he lost his lover. Schubert instructs the pianist to use the damper pedal to blur the tremolos in the left hand in imitation of the fog. When the right hand enters it plays a nine-note figure that represents the spires of the town seen through the fog:

On the distant horizon
Appears like a cloud-image
The town with its spires
Shrouded in the gloom of evening.

A damp breeze ruffles
The green surface of the water;
In a mournful rhythm rows
The boatman in my craft.

The sun rises once again
Glowing above the earth
And shows me that spot
Where I lost my beloved.

12. Am Meer (At The Seashore) -  A song about a meeting in a hut at the seashore, and in typical Romantic era excess, tears were shed (and drank by the lover). But all is not well as the singer laments that the woman has poisoned him with her tears. There are two emotional sections in the song when the piano begins tremolos in both hands that reach a crescendo. Where in a previous song about the ocean the water laps the shore almost playfully, here the waves lugubriously thud against the shore, underlining the dilemma of the singer.

The sea sparkled far and wide
In the last glow of evening;
We sat at the lonely fisherman’s hut,
We sat silent and alone.

The fog rose, the water surged.
The gull flew back and forth;
From your lovely eyes
The tears dropped.

I saw them fall upon your hand
And fell on my knees;
And from your white hand
I drank away the tears.

Since that time my body pines
My soul is dying with yearning;
The wretched woman
Poisoned me with her tears.

13. Der Doppelgänger (The Ghostly Double) - The singer looks at a house where his lover used to live. He sees another man standing by the house in anguish, and then he realizes that the other man is actually his ghostly double that is going through the same sorrow he did long ago. One of Schubert's most eerie songs, the piano begins with a four bar section that is repeated, giving the impression of a passacaglia. But the bass changes with the ostinato returning but in a different key. The dynamic range for the piano goes from pianissimo to triple forte, which gives the soloist tremendous crescendos that tax the singer's capacity as the  Doppelgänger is recognized.  The major chord that ends the song does not ease the tension much.

The night is quiet, the streets are silent,
My beloved lived in this house;
She left the town a long time ago,
But the house still stands in the same place.

A man stands there, too, and stares upward
And wrings his hands with the force of his pain;
I’m horrified when I see his face—
The moon shows me my own likeness.

You ghostly double, you pallid fellow!
Why do you ape my lovesickness,
That tormented me here
So many nights long ago?

The final poem was written by Johann Gabriel Seidl, an Austrian scientist and poet. The poem was included by the first publisher because it was thought to be the last song Schubert wrote.

14. Die Taubenpost (The Courier Pigeon) -  Schubert didn't always write music to poems of the masters. Schubert's gift for melody and song construction was so great that he could set most anything to music if he set his mind to it. This song is about someone who compares his longing to a courier pigeon.

I have a courier pigeon in my employ,
It’s very devoted and true.

Johann Gabriel Seidl

It never stops short of my goal
And never flies too far.

I send it out many thousand times
With messages every day,
Away past many a pretty place,
Right to my dearest’s house.

It peeks through the window secretly there
And watches for her step and glance,
Gives her my greetings playfully
And brings hers back to me.

I don’t need to write notes anymore
I send my tears with it instead,
I’m sure they will never go astray,
It serves me so eagerly.

By night, by day, awake, in dreams,
It’s all the same to it,
If it can only rove and roam,
That is repayment enough.

It never tires, it never flags,
The way is ever new,
It needs no lure, it needs no pay,
The dove is so loyal to me!

And so I keep it close to my heart
Assured of the sweetest reward;
Its name is—longing! Do you know it?
Enduring love’s messenger.