Schubert: Fantasie And Sonatinas For Violin And Pi

Cárdenes, Andrés; Deveau, David

Born in Vienna in 1897, Franz Peter Schubert was expected to teach school for a living. His father, a teacher and founder of a modest boys’ school in Vienna, was insistent that the young Schubert train to join him on the faculty. And indeed, in his teens, he briefly taught younger students at the school. But his passion- and genius- was for music. He grew up in the city (and shadow) of Beethoven and studied music composition with Salieri, a nemesis of Mozart, learned to play violin, viola and piano from his family members, and was discovered to have a remarkable gift for singing. His short life yielded an abundant outpouring of compositions that is almost unfathomable. Over 600 art songs, ten symphonies, an immense catalog of chamber music, over 20 piano sonatas, operas, masses, and more. Tragically, many of his works from his final years weren’t published or performed until after his death. Today, the three “sonatinas” for violin and piano are misnamed. The composer called these pieces “sonatas,” and were most likely intended for advanced amateurs who could enjoy playing the duos at home. The C major Fantasy, in contrast, was clearly intended to challenge both virtuoso violinists and pianists to the utmost, and to be performed in a concert setting. This masterpiece is one of the Olympian summits of the violin and piano duo repertoire. Composed in a blaze of creativity in one month, it is in seven large, connected sections lasting almost half an hour.

Price: $15.99