Franz Schubert (painting detail by Wilhelm August Rieder) with a page of his manuscript written in 1817 (Photo illustration by Risa Ryan)
The symphonies of the Viennese composer Franz Schubert (1797–1828) form a central repertory of orchestral masterpieces that have fascinated concert audiences for nearly two centuries. Although Schubert never heard a single one of them played by a full symphony orchestra in his lifetime, they began to excite great attention throughout Europe in the 1830s, and three of them (Nos. 5, 8, and 9), are still among the most frequently performed in the world.
Listeners treasure Schubert’s symphonic works for their uniquely appealing melodic style and orchestral effects that evoke the sentiment and mysticism of the nascent Romantic style in music. For many, they are the ultimate “easy listening” in classical music. Musicologist and pianist Daniel E. Freeman offers insights into the reasons for the unique appeal of Schubert’s best symphonies and the musical environment from which they originated, along with tips on how to listen to them with a greater appreciation of the techniques that the composer used to create them. Recordings of the symphonies highlight the program.
9:30–10:45 a.m. Schubert’s Life and Musical Style
One of the greatest of musical prodigies, Schubert was already composing enduring masterpieces in his teens. Tragically, his life was cut short by the effects of substance abuse and venereal disease, and he never achieved the recognition he deserved as a genius during his lifetime. His musical style was firmly rooted in traditions of classicism brilliantly cultivated in his native city since the late 18th century, but with influences from Vienna’s popular music and intimations of the new “romantic” musical style with its emphasis on sentiment, emotion, and supernatural effects.
11 a.m.–12:15 p.m. Symphonies No. 1 through No. 5
Schubert’s first five symphonies were composed in his late teenage years. All conform to the four-movement format exemplified by the vast majority of symphonies written by Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven: a weighty first movement in fast tempo followed by a slow movement, a scherzo (or minuet), and a rousing finale in quick tempo. In the greatest of these early works, No. 5 in B-flat major, Schubert succeeded in putting a very personal stamp on the Mozartean techniques he used for inspiration.
12:15–1:30 p.m. Lunch (participants provide their own).
1:30–2:45 p.m. Symphonies No. 6 and No. 9
The two completed Schubert symphonies written after the composer reached the age of 20, Symphony No. 6 of 1817–18 and Symphony No. 9, completed at a disputed time in the years just before his death, are much more individualistic than his earlier works. The Symphony No. 6 evokes a lightness and charm very much in tune with less weighty Viennese musical traditions. In contrast, the Symphony No. 9 (the “Great C Major Symphony”) evokes the grandeur of the most expansive Beethoven symphonies in a more personal way.
3–4:15 p.m. Symphony No. 8 (“Unfinished”)
Ironically, Schubert’s best-loved symphony is an unfinished work. The Symphony No. 8 in B minor remains the only one known to have been left unfinished by any composer that has found acceptance as a masterpiece by orchestral audiences. Worked on during 1822, all that Schubert succeeded in finishing was an opening fast movement and the slow movement intended to follow it, which contains poignant evocations of Romantic style that listeners find particularly affecting.
Freeman teaches music at the University of Minnesota.
