Piano Sonata in C major, D. 840 (Schubert)
Encyclopedia
Franz Schubert
's Piano Sonata No. 15 in C major, D. 840, nicknamed Reliquie upon its first publication in 1861 in the mistaken belief that it had been Schubert's last work, was written in April 1825
, whilst the composer was also working on the A minor sonata, D. 845
in tandem. Schubert abandoned the sonata, and only the first two movements
of the sonata were fully completed, with the trio section of the third movement also written in full. The minuet
section of the third movement is incomplete and contains unusual harmonic changes, which suggests it was there Schubert had become disillusioned and abandoned the movement and later the sonata. The final fourth movement is also incomplete, ending abruptly after 270 bars.
The fragments of the sonata survived in Schubert's manuscripts, and later the work was collected and published in its incomplete form in 1861. Performances usually present only the two completed movements:
Even in this truncated form, the sonata lasts approximately 25 to 30 minutes in performance.
outlined the structure of each of the work's four movements in notes that he contributed to a recording by Ray Lev
in 1947. Krenek elaborates on how he composed a completion, included in the recording, for the unfinished movements. According to Krenek:
Franz Schubert
Franz Peter Schubert was an Austrian composer.Although he died at an early age, Schubert was tremendously prolific. He wrote some 600 Lieder, nine symphonies , liturgical music, operas, some incidental music, and a large body of chamber and solo piano music...
's Piano Sonata No. 15 in C major, D. 840, nicknamed Reliquie upon its first publication in 1861 in the mistaken belief that it had been Schubert's last work, was written in April 1825
1825 in music
- Events :* First performance of Ludwig van Beethoven's Ninth Symphony in England* François-Adrien Boïeldieu's opera La dame blanche premieres in Paris.*Maria Malibran makes her operatic debut as Rosina in The Barber of Seville....
, whilst the composer was also working on the A minor sonata, D. 845
Piano Sonata in A minor, D. 845 (Schubert)
The Piano Sonata No. 16 in A minor, D. 845 by Franz Schubert is a sonata for solo piano, composed in May 1825. The sonata is in four movements:*I. Moderato*II. Andante, poco mosso in C major...
in tandem. Schubert abandoned the sonata, and only the first two movements
Movement (music)
A movement is a self-contained part of a musical composition or musical form. While individual or selected movements from a composition are sometimes performed separately, a performance of the complete work requires all the movements to be performed in succession...
of the sonata were fully completed, with the trio section of the third movement also written in full. The minuet
Minuet
A minuet, also spelled menuet, is a social dance of French origin for two people, usually in 3/4 time. The word was adapted from Italian minuetto and French menuet, and may have been from French menu meaning slender, small, referring to the very small steps, or from the early 17th-century popular...
section of the third movement is incomplete and contains unusual harmonic changes, which suggests it was there Schubert had become disillusioned and abandoned the movement and later the sonata. The final fourth movement is also incomplete, ending abruptly after 270 bars.
The fragments of the sonata survived in Schubert's manuscripts, and later the work was collected and published in its incomplete form in 1861. Performances usually present only the two completed movements:
- Moderato in C major
- Andante in C minor
Even in this truncated form, the sonata lasts approximately 25 to 30 minutes in performance.
Structure
Ernst KrenekErnst Krenek
Ernst Krenek was an Austrian of Czech origin and, from 1945, American composer. He explored atonality and other modern styles and wrote a number of books, including Music Here and Now , a study of Johannes Ockeghem , and Horizons Circled: Reflections on my Music...
outlined the structure of each of the work's four movements in notes that he contributed to a recording by Ray Lev
Ray Lev
Ray Lev was an American classical pianist. One year after her birth in Rostov na Donau, Russia, her father, a synagogue cantor, and mother, a concert singer, brought her to the United States.-Life:...
in 1947. Krenek elaborates on how he composed a completion, included in the recording, for the unfinished movements. According to Krenek:
- The first movement introduces "the energetically pulsating rhythm which runs nearly through the entire piece." Unusually, the second theme is initially in B minor, not the expected dominant of G major, which appears only toward the end of the exposition. The development likewise stresses B minor until a false recapitulation in another unexpected key, B major; the actual recapitulation follows closely in F major, and C major finally makes its return with a forte restatement of the first theme. "The second theme now appears in A minor, and the coda turns to A flat, a key that was touched upon early in the beginning of the movement, so that the key scheme of the whole is rounded out with admirable logic."
- The second movement is in five-part rondo form, "curiously animated by relentless drive." Its first theme, in C minor, incorporates downward skips in sevenths; running sixteenth notes and dramatic accents characterize its second, in A-flat major. The running sixteenths continue as the first theme returns, succeeded by a repeat of the second theme in C major and a final, quiet statement of the first theme to complete the movement.
- The fragmentary third movement rapidly modulates from A-flat to A major shortly after its beginning, "a very unusual move," at which point Schubert ceased composition. Krenek speculates that Schubert may have intended to complete the movement "with a recapitulation symmetrically returning from A to A-flat major shortly before the end." In his completion, Krenek "wrote a brief development section, re-introduced the theme in A and returned to A-flat, adding a few measures of transition to A-flat minor, which is the key of the trio, an exceptionally charming lyrical item."
- Schubert completed the first and second themes of the exposition and introduced a third theme in A minor, derived from the first, to open the development before leaving off work on this movement in rondo-sonata form. Krenek indicates his completion elaborated the idea of the third theme and "followed it up with a swiftly modulating development of the first theme and a normal recapitulation" of slightly shorter length than the exposition. His coda takes the third theme as its basis and refers back to the first theme of the first movement, "an idea to which I felt entitled since Schubert had hinted at it at the end of the finale of the Sonata in A major."
Completions
Given its large scope and the extent of material that Schubert left for the incomplete movements, this sonata has inspired various composers and performers to undertake completions. Some of their efforts, particularly those penned by performers, have appeared on records. Among them are the following:- Paul Badura-SkodaPaul Badura-SkodaPaul Badura-Skoda is an Austrian pianist.He won first prize in the Austrian Music Competition in 1947. In 1949, he performed with distinguished conductors like Wilhelm Furtwängler and Herbert von Karajan...
wrote and recorded a completion. - Bart BermanBart BermanBart Berman is a Dutch-Israeli pianist and composer, best known as an interpreter of Franz Schubert and 20th century music....
wrote a completion in 1978; the Dutch Erasmus label released his recording of it in 1997. - Anthony Goldstone wrote and recorded a completion.
- Ernst KrenekErnst KrenekErnst Krenek was an Austrian of Czech origin and, from 1945, American composer. He explored atonality and other modern styles and wrote a number of books, including Music Here and Now , a study of Johannes Ockeghem , and Horizons Circled: Reflections on my Music...
wrote his completion, mentioned above, at the request of his friend, the pianist and composer Eduard ErdmannEduard ErdmannEduard Erdmann was a Baltic German pianist and composer.Erdmann was born in Wenden in Livonia. He was the great-nephew of the philosopher Johann Eduard Erdmann. His first musical studies were in Riga, where his teachers were Bror Möllersten and Jean du Chastain and Harald Creutzburg...
, who wished to add the sonata to his repertoire. Krenek himself dated that request to 1922; other sources date his completion to 1921. Regardless, the work has appeared at least twice in that form on record: once in the aforementioned performance by Ray LevRay LevRay Lev was an American classical pianist. One year after her birth in Rostov na Donau, Russia, her father, a synagogue cantor, and mother, a concert singer, brought her to the United States.-Life:...
on a set of 78 RPM disks issued by the American Concert Hall Society label and once performed by Friedrich WührerFriedrich WührerFriedrich Wührer was an Austrian-German pianist and piano pedagogue. He was a close associate and advocate of composer Franz Schmidt, whose music he edited and, in the case of the works for left hand alone, revised for performance with two hands; he was also a champion of the Second Viennese...
on a monauralMonauralMonaural or monophonic sound reproduction is single-channel. Typically there is only one microphone, one loudspeaker, or channels are fed from a common signal path...
LPLP albumThe LP, or long-playing microgroove record, is a format for phonograph records, an analog sound storage medium. Introduced by Columbia Records in 1948, it was soon adopted as a new standard by the entire record industry...
issued by American Vox RecordsVox RecordsVOX Records is a budget classical record label. The name is Latin for "voice."-History:Vox was founded in 1945, starting out with 78-rpm discs, specializing in licensed pressings of classical recordings made in Europe. It was one of the last major recording companies to adopt stereo recording,...
. Neither recording has achieved official reissue on compact discCompact DiscThe Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
, although Bearac Reissues has released the Wührer performance on a CD copied from an LP. - Ian MunroIan Munro (pianist)Ian Munro is an Australian pianist, composer, writer and music educator. His career has taken him to over 30 countries in Europe, Asia, North America and Australasia.-Biography:...
wrote a completion and recorded it for the AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n Tall PoppiesTall Poppies RecordsTall Poppies Records is an Australian record label founded in September 1991 to present Australian music and musicians by musician and recording producer Belinda Webster. It records art music, both classical or jazz, and focuses on Australian music...
label. - Brian NewbouldBrian NewbouldBrian Newbould is a composer, conductor and author who has finished Franz Schubert's Unfinished Symphony and more symphonic works and even extra symphonies. He was educated at Gravesend Grammar School.-References:...
wrote a completion recorded by Todd Crow, its dedicatee, for release on compact disc by the Toccata ClassicsToccata ClassicsToccata Classics is an independent British classic music label founded in 2005.The founder of Toccata Classics is Martin Anderson, a music journalist. The label was founded primarily to promote unrecorded works by lesser-known composers, including British composers...
label. - Willi Rehberg wrote a completion in 1927.
- Ludwig Stark wrote a completion.
- Martino TirimoMartino TirimoMartino Tirimo is a Cypriot pianist, born in Larnaca, Cyprus. He won the Liszt Scholarship to the Royal Academy of Music at sixteen, going on to graduate with the highest honours; in 1971 and 1972 winning the International Piano Competitions in Munich and Geneva launched his international...
wrote a completion and included it in his complete set of the sonatas on EMIEMIThe EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
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External links
- Recording by Alon GoldsteinAlon GoldsteinAlon Goldstein is an Israeli classical pianist.-Biography:Alon Goldstein is one of the most original and sensitive artists of his generation, admired for his musical intelligence and dynamic personality. Alon’s artistic vision and innovative programming have made him a favorite with audiences and...