Franz Peter Schubert (1797–1828) was an Austrian
composer. In his short lifespan of less than 32 years,
he was a prolific composer, writing some 600 Lieder,
nine symphonies (including the famous "Unfinished
Symphony"), liturgical music, operas, some incidental
music and a large body of chamber and solo piano music.
Appreciation of Schubert's music during his lifetime
was limited, but interest in his work increased
significantly in the decades following his death. Franz
Liszt, Robert Schumann, ...(+)
Franz Peter Schubert (1797–1828) was an Austrian
composer. In his short lifespan of less than 32 years,
he was a prolific composer, writing some 600 Lieder,
nine symphonies (including the famous "Unfinished
Symphony"), liturgical music, operas, some incidental
music and a large body of chamber and solo piano music.
Appreciation of Schubert's music during his lifetime
was limited, but interest in his work increased
significantly in the decades following his death. Franz
Liszt, Robert Schumann, Johannes Brahms and Felix
Mendelssohn, among others, discovered and championed
his works in the 19th century. Today, Schubert is seen
as one of the leading exponents of the early Romantic
era in music and he remains one of the most frequently
performed composers.
Schubert's last three piano sonatas, numbered 958, 959
and 960 in Deutsch's catalogue of Schubert's complete
works, are the composer's last major compositions for
the piano. They were written during the last months of
Schubert's life, between the spring and autumn of 1828,
but were not published until about ten years after his
death, in 1838–39. Like the rest of Schubert’s
piano sonatas, they were mostly neglected in the 19th
century. By the late 20th century, however, public and
critical opinion had changed, and Schubert's last
sonatas are now considered amongst the most important
of the composer's mature masterpieces. They are part of
the core piano repertoire, appearing regularly on
concert programs and recordings.
One of the reasons for the long period of neglect of
Schubert's piano sonatas seems to be their dismissal as
structurally and dramatically inferior to the sonatas
of Beethoven. In fact, the last sonatas contain
distinct allusions and similarities to works by
Beethoven, a composer Schubert venerated. However,
musicological analysis has shown that they maintain a
mature, individual style. Schubert's last sonatas are
now praised for their mature style, manifested in
unique features such as a cyclical formal and tonal
design, chamber music textures, and a rare depth of
emotional expression.
The three sonatas are cyclically interconnected by
diverse structural, harmonic and melodic elements tying
together all movements in each sonata, as well as all
three sonatas together; consequently, they are often
regarded as a trilogy. They also contain specific
allusions and similarities to other Schubert
compositions, such as his Winterreise song cycle; these
connections point to turbulent emotions expressed in
the sonatas, often understood as highly personal and
autobiographical. Indeed, some researchers have
suggested specific psychological narratives for the
sonatas, based on historical evidence concerning the
composer's life.
Rondo. Allegretto – Presto. This lyrical rondo
movement consists of almost relentless triplet movement
and endless songful melody. Its form is a sonata-rondo
(A–B–A–development–A–B–A–coda). The
second thematic group is written in the traditional
dominant key; however, it is very long, modulating
through many different subdominant tonalities. The
development section, in contrast, culminates in a long
passage in C-sharp minor. This leads to a false
recapitulation in F-sharp major, which then modulates
to begin again in the home key. In the coda, the main
theme returns fragmented, with full bar pauses, which
lead each time to unexpected changes of key. This is
followed by a concluding, agitated presto section,
based on the final bars of the main theme.
Although originally written for Piano, I transcribed
this piece for Concert (Pedal) Harp.
PARTITION