Schubert - Symphony 8 'Unfinished' [Davis-Boston Symphony Orchestra]

Here's a disc that is fairly new in my collection, this is only its second outing, it's definitely Schubert, but at the same time sounds so different to his next Symphony, darker and sombre, and generally a feel of unease, but i love the work, the Ninth / The Great has been my favourite Symphony of Schubert, but now the Unfinished is now vying for that honour, they're more equals than ever before, i really enjoyed playing this today.

Colin Davis is English, he died a couple of years ago at age 85, this disc came out in 1984, the front cover shows Davis conducting, the picture is not very sharp, but it has a wonderful sense of lighting from above, and the black background make things stand out, the lettering is in white and light blue and light green, it's all well proportioned.

I love both of these movements, but it's the second that just edges it, it's an Andante in the key of E Major, and it certainly throws off the dark clouds of the first movement, and yet there's still this underlying sense of sadness there, the strings quietly sing out their sad refrain, it really is beautiful and innocent, however Schubert heightens the drama by playing a sort of funeral tread of the beat louder [1:13+], with the darker strings emphatically making their presence known, a trio section comes up next [2:29+], and solo woodwind instruments rule here, first the clarinet [2:29-3:07], and then what sounds like the cor anglais [3:10+], mixed in with other instruments, this section is a gorgeous idea by Schubert, but the loud funeral tread comes back in with a menace [3:36+], louder than ever, think Bydlo here from Mussorgsky's Pictures At An Exhibition, there's a lumbering gait to the whole thing, but it's constantly interspersed with quiet moments of beauty, the opening returns [5:18+], and it's so good that everything's repeated, plus the trio section comes back with the oboe it sounds [7:47-8:26], and the clarinet afterwards, the menacing loud music returns in force [8:54+], but it's the nostalgic stuff that finally wins the day, there's a sort of one minute coda at the end, and even though that's not how Schubert planned to end the work, for me it is a fitting end, the opening bars of the planned third movement you can hear on YouTube, but they're so out of the spirit of the work, maybe that's why Schubert gave up on it!, in its truncated form it sounds 'complete'.

Here's Muti conducting the second movement on YouTube.

Schubert - Piano Sonata 14 [Lewis]

What a lovely disc this is, Schubert's last Piano Sonatas have overshadowed his earlier efforts, and rightly so i guess, but i have a soft spot for 14 & 16, and here we have a little gem from Schubert, something you'll miss if you think his earlier works are sub standard, Schubert had a short life, so even though this was composed five years before his death, it's still considered his one of his 'middle' works, written in the key of A Minor, it's first movement is bleak yet compelling, it stands up well to his later works, and this still remains a revelation for me, i gushed about this work a couple of years ago [20th March 2013].

Paul Lewis is English, he's now 43, i consider him 'young', a sort of rising generation of Pianists, but of course he's not so young anymore, but he has a long life ahead of him, and he's getting better!, i hear he's going to start recording some Brahms solo piano music, i would love to hear his take on the Handel Variations!, he recorded this disc in 2001, the front cover photograph [by Jack Liebeck], is a basic black & white, not bad at all, some of the face is really washed out though, these Harmonia Mundi discs all have a colour theme, and this one's light blue, i like the finished product.

Well it was the tremendous first movement which stunned me again this time, there's an underlining agitation / worry to this music, of course it's in a minor key, and this makes the thing sound so tragic, it's starts off with a sad tune, but then this same tune explodes into a forte version [0:52+], and it's those chords which reply in the bass which are so dramatic [0:56 & 1:03], growls and rumblings in the bass all over, and then shock!, a beautiful calm tune appears out of nowhere [2:04+], and even though it seems a complete juxtaposition, it fits perfectly!, however even in this tune you can't help to hear an anger below the surface, but this tune is a wonder to behold, the opening returns [3:33+], and it's so good to hear the same music that i heard a few moments ago, and especially the beautiful new calm music [5:35+], the movement has a central section [7:03+], using those same bass chords in anger, and a whimsical version of the calm music [8:15+], up in the treble, but also a bit manic too, you can hear themes come and go, the very opening returns again [9:06+], and the music varies in slightly new tangents, this time Schubert presents the calming music in a more complex echo [10:54+], which is really lovely, a nice little highlight, what a tremendous creation from Schubert, and Lewis plays it with real passion. 

Here's Brendel playing the Sonata on YouTube.

Schubert - Piano Quintet 'Trout' [Levine/Hetzel/Christ/ Faust/Posch]

This work gets played modestly in my player, i think i used to play it more, i guess it's somewhat slipped off the radar a bit, i still love this though, but there always seems more and more stuff to play these days, that's the downside of having a huge successful variety of music to play, something ends up getting played less, the main / favourite version is Schiff / Hagen on DG, but this is a nice little alternative version.

James Levine is an American Conductor, but also appears on a few recordings as a Pianist, this work was recorded in 1990, the front cover painting is by James Marsh, i don't usually like paintings / artwork as front covers, but this is a good one.

It was both the first and fourth movements that i really enjoyed, the fourth is an ingenious set of variations, and where the work gets its name, but i guess i'd like to talk about the first movement, here's my feelings on it, the whole thing is cast in the unusual form of five movements, the first is roughly twice as long as any of the others, it may start off slow and tentative in the introduction, but before the first minute's out, it comes to life, a lively skippy tune, the work is in the sunny key of A Major, the piano plays cascades of notes [3:17+], and the string players reply with more frantic playing, there are moments where the opening returns, and the whole thing unfolds again, it's certainly fun and enjoyable, and those frantic cascades of notes return [7:30+], after this there's some sort of reflective middle section, maybe in a minor key, but this fairly quickly livens up, and in volume too [9:30+], but of course the original flourishes aren't far away, it shows how much of an accomplished Pianist Levine is.

Here's the Trout Quintet being played on YouTube.

Schubert - 8 Impromptus [Uchida]

I went out for an early morning walk today, through the park, and i took this disc with me, and played it on random, i like doing this, it's good to mix up the pieces, how boring is it to get them in the same order every time?, Uchida sounds a lot like Brendel on this listening, they're accomplished accounts, these are my second favourite accounts after Brendel's digital version, and it was riveting listening to these pieces, especially with breathing in the cool morning air, Schubert is a genius in creating these masterpieces, here's a previous experience in my Blog [18th April 2011].

Mitsuko Uchida is Japanese, she is now 65, she recorded a survey of Schubert discs in the nineties, and this was recorded in 1996, the front cover [by Walter Schels] is a side view of her head, on a white background, i like the concept.

The three Impromptus that went above and beyond the others were 1 & 4-5, especially the first one of the second set D935/1, it's actually my favourite, and i enjoyed it so much here, it was enlightening watching Brendel play this piece on the YouTube link below, and to see where the hands go, the sound for Uchida is fantastic, nice crisp clear ring to the piano, yet warmth too, Philips always seem to be good here, Uchida is certainly impassioned in her playing, i rate Pianist's into two camps, Legato-ists and Staccato-ists, she's very much almost bang in the middle, i certainly lean towards loving the legato players, so the opening notes are very well done [0:00-0:31], nice volume, nice bit of anger there, it introduces the piece perfectly, plus i think she gets the left and right hand volume nicely balanced, the bass lines are not merely accompaniment, and should be just as involved as the melody lines, i like the way she builds up the following music to a frenzied intensity [1:06-1:24], the music then falls into a lovely serenade almost [1:41+], easy and gentle at first, but then increasingly there's these high plinking treble notes [2:10 & 2:25], and then comes along the middle section [2:43-5:50], where the right hand plays middle of the keyboard accompaniment, and the left hand plays a sort of duet with itself, where the bass repeats / echoes the treble notes, the left hand crossing over the right each time to play the treble, i notice it so clearly on the video below, it seems to go on for ages, but it's so mesmerising, the opening comes back for the whole thing to start again [6:00+], and it's so good to hear the 'serenade' music again [7:40-8:39], the 'dialogue' music comes back [8:40-10:18], but this time it's only half as long, i love the whole structure / architecture of the piece, it's made up of individual jigsaw pieces, but they're so effortlessly weaved together by Schubert, it sounds like one organism!. 

Here's Brendel playing this Impromptu on YouTube.

Schubert - 8 Impromptus [Perahia]

It was so good to listen to this disc today, it increases my appreciation of these works, i learnt some new things about the works, plus i learnt some things about Perahia too, this is one of about eleven sets i have, certainly Perahia is good, but not as revelatory as Brendel, it's also good to have the extra Schubert / Liszt items, this got in my Blog three and a half years ago [12th september 2011].

Murray Perahia is American, he's now 68, he recorded these Impromptus in 1980 & 1982, this is a re-issue of an earlier disc, the picture shows a park bench woodland scene, shot in infr-red, making it look like a snowy scene, a solid red bar at the right with the lettering on, the back insert is really well laid out, i like it a lot.

On this listening, Impromptus 1, 3-4 & 8 were the best, and it was this last Impromptu i really enjoyed the most from Perahia, and here's a synopsis of my thoughts,
Impromptu 8 [6:32] - in F Minor, straight away i notice how staccato Perahia is in this piece, plus how stabbing he is of keys, there's meant to be a certain jerky twitch to the whole thing, an unsure stammer surely, i also notice the sound / recording isn't great either, there isn't that warmth there should be, a bit of a dry boxy recording, and Perahia's playing actually goes against the recorded sound, and also Perahia seems to play it a little fast as well, and yet there's a thrillingness there, there's sense to the way he plays it, it really should be rather schizophrenic, the manic treble trills are are thrilling [0:40-0:48 & 1:13-1:19], at the other end of the scale, it's wonderful to hear running down in the bass end of the keyboard [2:40-2:55], the opening returns [4:14+], and after a sort of staggering winding down, there's a real loud bass thud to end the work with [6:28].

Schubert [3 Klavierstucke]

In playing this disc today, i thought it would be the Piano Sonata which would be the highlight, but no, it's these three wonderful late pieces, i actually listened to them at the park, while writing my Journal, each of them was a treasure, this is actually my third most popular disc, and i've had it for over twenty years! [1992], this is the second time it gets in my Blog [25th July 2012].

Alfred Brendel is Austrian, now 84, he recorded all of the major Schubert works digitally in the late eighties, this one in 1987, it's now nearly thirty years old, the front cover photograph [by Gabriela Brandenstein], is a black & white shot of Brendel looking at the life mask of Schubert.

All three of these pieces were special, i love the way Schubert has something quite surprising and different to say in the middle of these pieces, and it was the last Klavierstucke that i found the most joyous, it's the shortest of the bunch, but it's packed full of good things, here's a synopsis of this piece,
3 Klavierstucke 3 - D946/3 [5:30] - A lively piece, lots of notes, very staccato, lots going on, it's quite a virtuoso warhorse, and yet when something does start up, it's quickly over, the headlong rush of the first minute is breathtaking in Brendel's hands [0:00-0:59], and then it comes to a sudden halt, and turns all reflective and inward, and there's aching notes in there, especially when the right hand extends up into treble territory, the opening comes back again [4:00+], it's a three minute middle section sandwiched between two one minute sections, a wonderful piece when you really get to know it.

Here's Brendel playing the third Klaviersucke on YouTube.

Schubert - Piano Trio 1 [The London Mozart Trio]

This is a recent acquisition, and i played it for the first time today, also i'm completely unfamiliar with The London Mozart Trio, but i really enjoyed delving into this disc today, the coupling is a curious one, and it makes me realise how much i don't know the Dvorak work as well as i should, it's Schubert's Trio 2 that i prefer out of his two, but here i marvelled at the first one, it's such a musically strong work, and played really well too.

The London Mozart Trio are a bit of a mystery, the booklet doesn't have any information on the Trio, or any of its members, they recorded this disc in 1991, the IMP classics label was a really nice one, this one has a black & white shot of the Trio, the shadows and light are terrific, there's a certain glow to the highlights, the IMP logo on the right makes a wonderful dash of colour, and the lettering in the bottom left balances out the picture nicely, visually a great product.

Well it was the big first movement i enjoyed the most, and like lots of Schubert, it's music that keeps going round and round like a carousel, one of the things i notice is the Pianist can be quite loud at times, he likes to thump them keys at times, the recording is lovely, but sometimes it has difficulty capturing the sheer dynamic range of everything, after a general introduction, all three instruments take turns playing one of the main themes [1:58-2:24], cello / violin / piano, and four minutes later it comes back again [5:46-6:13], i almost expect there to be some sort of trio section in the middle to break up the almost 15 minutes of the same themes revolving round and round, but instead Schubert uses the same themes, but slightly in a different key, or maybe it's in a different octave, some stormy passages in there, The London Mozart Trio really sustain it well.

Here's the Beaux Arts Trio playing the Schubert Piano Trio on YouTube.

Schubert - Piano Sonata 21 [Kovacevich]

This is an extremely fine account of Schubert's last Piano Sonata, in my collection only behind Brendel and Uchida, and i have a good dozen recordings of this work, this was a joy to listen to this disc today, appeared in my Blog twice before [5th February 2010 & 24th June 2012].

Stephen Kovacevich is American, he's now 74, he recorded this disc in 1994, the front booklet cover is a great one [photo by David Thompson], love the pose, a black & white shot, showing Kovacevich leaning on the lid of his piano, lovely reflection underneath.

Well as usual, it's that sublime first movement that always gets me, it's a mammoth thing, made even longer here by Kovacevich engaging the exposition repeat, under his hands it's just over twenty minutes long, it's the first minute that's so heart rending [0:03-0:54], and here Kovacevich is maybe a fraction too fast, the sound for this disc is quite reverberant, but there's a lovely ring to the piano, it suites the opening, but maybe in climaxes later it can be a little too much, the opening theme returns again and again, love the way Schubert presents it in forte near the beginning [1:34-2:01], Schubert produces 'unique' music for the exposition repeat transition [4:45-5:07], and after five minutes Kovacevich repeats the opening [5:10-6:01], it's great to hear the opening music all over again, and Kovacevich takes exactly the same amount of time!, in the developmental section [9:59+] there's some great music, sublime ideas by Schubert, he really plumbs the depths at times, never straying far from the opening idea, Schubert descends into his inward looking private worlds [12:00-13:13], sometimes i seriously question if the whole movement is some kind of a set of disjointed variations?, it's a superb creation by Schubert, and well executed by Kovacevich.

Here's Kovacevich playing the Sonata on YouTube.

Schubert - 8 Impromptus [Brendel]

Here it is, this is my most favourite disc of all time, as well as writing a daily Music Blog, i write a diary / journal every day too [since 1982], and i write down my most memorable, music disc in my Journal too, and today Schubert / Brendel turns fifty!, he's appeared that many times, it's a great milestone, so i've really played this disc to death, and loved every minute of it, i went out to do a bit of shopping / eating today, and i took this disc with me, and what a sublime experience this was, each Impromptu gets you in the mood for the next, the music itself is as near to pure genius you will ever get from a Composer, but Brendel has a way with Schubert that takes it onto a higher plane, he has the most superb legato, one theme / idea blends in with the next seamlessly, plus there's this dance-ability that Brendel gets from his Schubert, he makes him such a joy to listen to, my favourite Pianist of all time too, a miraculous combination, appearing in my Blog twice before [10th March 2010 & 8th July 2012].

Alfred Brendel is Austrian, he's now 84, retired, but he lives on in his recordings, he recorded a Schubert cycle for Philips in the eighties, of the major solo piano works, this is volume 5, recorded in 1988, the front booklet shows Brendel in the Brahms Archive Library [by Gabriela Brandenstein], a black & white shot for this series, stark and crisp images in meaningful settings, love the gold and black lettering at the top.

Of these eight pieces, it was surprisingly 2-4 & 7 i loved the best [my personal favourite is 5], but i found myself languishing in some of the other Impromptus this time, but ultimately i found myself coming back to the pure delight of number 3 [D899/3], originally my first favourite, this was a spiritual experience today, hard to exactly put my finger on and pinpoint, here's my thoughts,
Impromptu 3 [6:05] - It's a beautiful and aching tune, surprisingly all the work is done in the right hand, usually the right hand plays the tune in the treble, and the left hand plays the accompaniment in the bass, but here the right hand does both!, the thumb and index finger play a superb rippling accompaniment, and it's virtually the little finger that plays that melody to die for, also it's worth noting that it's in G Flat Major, which has six flat notes, this makes the right hand play almost exclusively on black keys, Chopin's Black Key Etude [Op10/5], is also in G Flat Major, in essence this piece could be considered Schubert's 'Black Key' Impromptu, there's a wonderful legato sustained throughout, the recording is wonderful in that it catches the right hand little finger tune in a gorgeous piano acoustic, the piece rises and falls in volume and passion, and i found myself caught on tide of this heavenly piece of music.

Here's Brendel playing Schubert's Impromptu 3 on YouTube.

Various Composers - 'Andante Cantabile' Cello Encores [Harrell/ Canino]

Not sure why this is called 'Andante Cantabile', i think it's a Tchaikovsky piece from his String Quartet 1, transcribed for cello and orchestra, but it's nowhere to be seen here, well i enjoyed these 22 short encore pieces today, it's a great little programme, with some out of the way pieces on it, this is my third time listening to this disc, though it's the first time it's appeared in my Blog.

Lynn Harrell is American, he's now 71, this disc was recorded back in 1988, the cover photo is by Christian Steiner, very well done, a beautiful portrait with cello, and the lettering is equally nice.

So of all these pieces, it was 1, 3-5, 7-8, 11-13, 15 & 17 that i loved the best, that's a lot of music to mention, loved the transcriptions of the French pieces, but ultimately i would like to pick one i would like to talk about, and that's 'An Die Musik' by Schubert, of course the piano plays the piano line, and the cello plays the vocal line, it's a beautiful tune, and if you know the words they're touching, it's in two stanzas, and the second is played more delicate than the first by the cello [1:16+], and at the end Harrell ekes out an extra ounce of pathos [2:00], the piano solo at the end of each verse is a real highlight [1:02-1:15 & 2:12-2:31], where Schubert has the piano making the most incredible pleas, a little masterpiece, each of the other short pieces is a little marvel also.

Here's Varoujan Bartikian playing 'An Die Musik' on YouTube.

Schubert - Piano Sonata 20 [Uchida]

I will always love Brendel's Schubert over any other, it's almost as if he's Mr Schubert himself, i don't know anyone else that so personifies a Composer like that [maybe Gould and Bach?], but Uchida's Schubert is a resounding success also, she doesn't quite match the sheer fun and danceability-ness that Brendel does, but i love her Schubert too, and it's good to hear her in these two late masterpieces, this same Sonata has been in my Blog twice before played by Uchida [8th February 2011 & 8th September 2012].

Mitsuko Uchida is Japanese of course, she's now 66, i love the booklet photos [by Walter Schels], showing a side profile of Uchida, with the lettering in white over the back / dark side of her head, very effective indeed, why can't other companies really think about their visuals when releasing a disc of music?.

I loved the two inner movements the best, one achingly slow and thoughtful, the other the opposite, skittish and thrilling, this second movement Andantino just clinches it for me, a slow tread of a movement, it's power is in it's constant build, small aching variations in tone and volume at just the right points, the opening tune is expanded later by going up an octave in to the treble later [1:27+], that just sounds so pleading, of course Schubert wouldn't be Schubert if he didn't have one of his central episodes [3:05+], one of his very best of all, full of drama, lots of treble trapeze heroics, it's hard to mention everything that goes on here as there's so much of it!, trills in the treble, monotonous repeated notes, and these treble stabbings [3:54 & 4:12], and these four treble smashes [4:46 / 4:52 / 5:04 / 5:09], trying to silence everything else downwind the keyboard, when the opening returns again [6:05+], at first it can seem like an anti-climax, but it's a beautifully poised tune, there's a bit of Satie / Gymnopedie in there, it really gets hold of you with its spell, if you let it!.

Here's Uchida on YouTube, playing this movement.

Schubert - Symphony 9 'The Great' [Abbado-The Chamber Orchestra Of Europe]

Abbado uses reduced forces here, a Chamber Orchestra, but what it might lose on overall weight, it gains in a lightness and litheness, i'm sure orchestras back in Schubert's day didn't have the same depth they have today, i guess it's harder to get together a large enough group of professional musicians, and so maybe this sounds more like the real thing than a full blown Berlin Philharmonic, Abbado keeps things moving, there's a real lilt to proceedings, a real favourite of mine, it's already appeared in my Blog twice before [9th October 2011 & 18th September 2012]. 

Claudio Abbado passed away just over a year ago, he was 80, he recorded this work in 1987.

Surprisingly it was the last two movements that i enjoyed the most, with the third movement Scherzo really impressing this time, which is probably the least liked of the four usually, it's scored as Allegro Vivace, fast and lively, and i certainly agree with the lively bit, the woodwinds whistle and chatter away, the music alternates between a sweet little waltz, and heavier fortissimo strings, it's like a war between the strings and the woodwind / brass, there's this gorgeous trio section in the middle [6:26-10:40], again the woodwinds are fantastic here, i guess it's my favourite section of the movement, Schubert really knows how to spin a tune, it's melody sweeps you away, just when you think it's coming to an end, it glides away again, Schubert really knows how to jig those dance rhythms! 

Here's Claudio Abbado on YouTube, with the third movement Allegro Vivace.

Schubert - String Quartet 14 'Death And The Maiden' [Tokyo String Quartet]

Ah this disc is getting played a lot in my Blog, this is its fourth outing [5th January 2010 / 4th July 2011 / 10th July 2012], not entirely sure which is my favourite interpretation, probably the Lindsay String Quartet comes close, and the Tokyo Quartet seem sweeter than others, i'm really impressed with their Beethoven Op18 set, it's also good to have an early String Quartet on this disc as a companion.

The Tokyo String Quartet of course originate from Japan, they decided to retire the Quartet, and are now officially inactive, it's been 44 years as a unit, and we have so many documents of recordings from them, they will live on in our disc players.

Every time i play this disc, it always seems to come back to the 'nerve center' of this work, the second movement theme and variations which i always love, one of Schubert's greatest inventions ever, five variations that couldn't be more diametrically opposite, here's a 
Theme [0:00-2:14] - A slow and solemn / sad dirge of a theme, at first very sparse and quiet, but you can hear the underlining theme of death lurking beneath, a straightforward transcription of the Schubert song of the same name.
Variation One [2:16-4:14] - A more complex an interesting variation, different strings give different voices, seemingly sweet, and yet there's a sourness there, the first violin dominates this variation, the others are either a gently chugging rhythm, or a gentle pizzicato.
Variation Two [4:16-6:31] - Now the Cello becomes the soloist, while the others swirl this background vortex, each variation seems to get more darker and despondent, and yet the whole thing is still beautiful.
Variation Three [6:32-8:22] - Now we hit the real anger of the piece, a whooping and wailing from the strings, this is my favourite variation, the second repeat of the variation finds a real greater intensity.
Variation Four [8:23-11:05] - And now for a real innocent sweetness, almost a parody considering the subject matter is death!.
Variation Five [11:05-12:52] - The underlying feeling of anxiety comes back, and turns into a louder outburst and complaint, but then returns to its quiet acceptance.
Coda / Finale [12:52-14:06] - The coda / finale slows things down to a simple pleading, and the peaceful dying in deaths arms.

Here's the Takacs String Quartet playing the second movement on YouTube.

Schubert - Piano Sonata 14 [Lewis] 

Another disc that gets it's first spin, i really like Lewis, maybe because he's a Brendel disciple!, i'm usually not the greatest fan of his middle period Sonatas [though i do have a soft spot for Sonata 16], but this sounded so fantastic today, it could easily pass for late Schubert, especially the first movement, i'm still discovering Schubert, and he's still got some tricks up his sleeve that i haven't noticed yet, and Paul Lewis is a great advocate, what a great little 24 minute masterpiece this is.

Paul Lewis is English, he's now 40, he made this recording in 2001, the front cover photo [by Jack Liebeck], is a black & white shot, a good pose, it goes well with the light blue theme, and it's visually well laid out, a lovely disc to own.

The Sonata is cast in three movements, and it was the first movement that blew me away, and it's this first movement that takes over half the works length, it's in the key of A Minor, and there's an underlying sense of tension and conflict there, but there's also some of the most heartwrenching episodes of pure 'unleashment', i like the darkness of it all, Lewis captures the outbursts of anger with some nice fortes, right from the start Schubert creates a murky world, restrained playing by Lewis, the piece seems to get bogged down in the lower depths of the keyboard, but when the opening theme is restated [0:52+], it suddenly explodes into a very exciting forte, there's still that darkness, but now there's real animation too, and then as almost an antidote, Schubert gives us a tender variation [2:04+], and this is where my heart begins to be gripped, the opposites sway the heart, and Schubert can add single 'out of the way' notes which just have me in raptures [3:04], how can just a single note change the whole mood?, Schubert is a master of repetition, and themes and ideas are reused again for the most exquisite effect, of course Schubert has to have what appears to be one of his central episodes [7:03+], but instead it turns into a cascading carillon of bass notes [7:22-7:46], while the treble hammers out chords, now that really gets the hairs on your neck standing up, and Schubert treats us to a jumpy variation of the second theme [8:15-8:54] lots of high treble here, now that's a really satisfying variety to what's gone on before, and Schubert continues to stun me with ideas, there's this very tender variation of a previous theme [10:54-12:04], almost a gentle sort of fanfare, even though there's some fortes towards the end, the very ending is not of the highest calibre Schubert, almost as if he was unsure how to close off the movement satisfyingly, it leaves a finality to it quite open, but the verdict is, that this is one of the greatest movements that Schubert wrote.

Here's Alfred Brendel playing the first movement on YouTube.

Schubert - Violin Fantasie D934 [Koh/ Uchida] 

A nice disc, with some interesting things on it, the gist of this disc is Fantaisie / Phantasy / Fantasy, starting off in early 1800, and finishing 200 years later, quite a varied journey, plus each piece gets shorter and shorter, i'm pretty well versed in Schubert's late String Quartets / Piano Trios / Piano Quintet / String Quintet, but the Violin & Piano works i'm certainly less familiar with, so it was good to listen to this disc, and familiarise myself with one of his other chamber works.

Jennifer Koh is American, she's now 36, she made this recording in 2003, the front booklet cover is fantastic, showing Koh sitting in a doorway, a nicely ornate door as a background, and the doorposts nicely frame the picture, Koh is in a great pose, violin in hand, and the low level shot creates a great perspective as the doorframe seems to rise above Koh, the lettering is great too, a nice list of the works on the door, and i just love the free lettering of the title, and the light green colour is inspired too.

Schubert's Fantasie D934 lasts nearly 25 minutes, cast in one big movement, and yet it's built up of different sections, the opening is the most gorgeous [0:00-2:58], starting with the most inspired rippling piano, it sets the scene for the whole piece, while the violin plays more longer and singing lines, just listen to the way the piano warbles its way up the keyboard [0:55+], and strays into some great areas / ideas in the treble, delicious trills follow later [1:38+], and this opening three minutes is so superb, it's a shame that the rest of the piece can't sustain this level of invention, but it's still superb, there's a six minute freewheeling dance episode next, and then Schubert uses one of his Lieder tunes as a theme [8:40+], with a bunch of variations on this theme afterwards, each one taking some aspect of the original theme, as this is only my first ever listen, these variations haven't had time to really penetrate into my heart, the third variation is one of quite strong virtuosity [14:56-17:19], both violin and piano challenging each other, it's hard to know where these variations end, and Schubert delves into some sort grandiose conclusion, there's certainly a major statement of intent after what seems to be a restatement of the theme [20:01-22:55], i guess a finale of sorts, it's very good, and then Schubert throws a spanner in the works by giving a fifth variation before a short final ending, yes i admit it seems somewhat to be all over the place, but i think this is the whole point, there's some great stuff in there, certainly not Schubert at his very best, but if you're patient and observant, then you can squeeze the goodness out of this piece.

Here's Andrej Bielow playing the Fantasie on YouTube.

Schubert - Arpeggione Sonata [Stoltzman/Ax] 

Another disc that is new-ish to my collection, this is only the second time i've played it, consisting of two less heard clarinet works [ok the Schubert is a 'transcription'], but it's good to widen my clarinet repertoire discs, i love the clarinet, and i'm surprised it isn't given greater prominence in the Classical world [or even the Jazz world], it has a fantastic range, and a fantastic sound, how come there aren't more Clarinet Concertos around?, both of these pieces are in the three movement sonata form, and lasting 20-25 minutes in length, another work could have been accommodated on the disc, but it's just great to hear the clarinet as a 'solo' instrument.

Richard Stoltzman is American, he's now unbelievably 70 years old, of course the disc comes from back in 1983 when he was 41, the photographs are excellent, the front cover shows Stoltzman / Ax seated at the piano, a very dark picture, all of the lettering is at an angle, the quality of the photograph isn't immensely high, the skin tones come out very orange, and the whole thing isn't quite in focus, but it's still a great front cover.

Schubert - Piano Sonata 21 [Rubinstein] 

In the early days of buying compact discs, i demanded that all discs should be digital [DDD], well later i somewhat relaxed that as 'well recorded' discs that were analogue were acceptable as long as they 'sounded as if' they were digital!, and that's been relaxed further, as long as it's well recorded and it's not mono, it's taken me a long time to delve into some of the 'older guys' in the Classical world, certainly Szeryng / Kempff / Magaloff / Arrau / Curzon / Richter, but also i need to delve into Oistrakh / Heifetz / Grumiaux and others [yes big omissions!], so here's my first foray into Rubinstein, and it's good to get to know him, i hear his Chopin Nocturnes are the definitive set, so maybe i ought to go there next, but it's wonderful not just my musical love is branching out into all sorts of areas, but now i'm delving into a wider range of interpreters as well.

Arthur Rubinstein [1887-1982] was Polish, but later became an American citizen, gifted with a photographic memory of scores, he preferred not to practice on the piano heavily, rather relying on the moment of performance to take wing, he recorded this work in 1965 at the age of 78, the sound is very good considering the age of the recording, the front cover picture is by Eva Rubinstein [his Daughter], showing Rubinstein seated at the piano at home, a nice intimate picture, i like the way it has a light blue green border, the composer and works lettering at the top and bottom of the photograph, but the Pianist lettering could have been better done, but all told a great issue.

As this is a first listen, i always get a general vibe of what i think, i certainly find Rubinstein in the 'staccato' pool of Pianists, in fact very much so, he loves to bring out the percussive elements of piano playing, and yet... he has such a way with line and forward thinking, that there's still the bigger picture of legato throughout even his staccato episodes, of course the great work that this is, it's so hard to beat the first movement, and i always talk about it, it's the 'perfect' Piano Sonata movement, and it's so sublime, it's almost an Impromptu in nature, Rubinstein plays the movement without the exposition repeat, which cuts the movement down by 5 minutes to 14 minutes, also he plays it quite flowing, keeps it moving, i hear others who almost come to some sort of standstill, Rubinstein plays the opening gambit very straight [0:00-0:50], not hanging on notes, or letting 'silence' do some of the talking, i would have preferred taking a little more time to let the beauty of the melody sink in, i've always felt that timewise this opening melody works best if it takes 1 minute, but then Rubinstein uses this straightforward approach to his benefit later, as he doesn't treat the piece as some soppy happy song, rather there's a serious and sombre virtuosity there, Rubinstein gets the fortes right [1:26+], and i like the way he keeps busy in the bass hand, some Pianists use the left hand as accompaniment, but here Rubinstein makes things more like an equal voice, after where the exposition repeat would be, we delve into a more Minor key melody [4:48-5:21], now that sounds so wonderful, and a little later here's where Rubinstein comes into his own with using a great degree of staccato [6:00-7:15], where others smooth out the notes with more of a legato, this is so different than ive heard others play, it's like he's extra emphasising what's not really there, but i actually like the effect, i like those morse code jagged lines, the more i hear Rubinstein, the more i like, also i had a look at the score online, and it's enlightening following along.  

Here's Arthur Rubinstein playing the first movement of Piano Sonata 21 on YouTube.