Symphony No. 8 (Schubert)

The Symphony in B minor, D 759 (common in German-speaking numbered 7 or 8), called The Unfinished, is a symphony by Franz Schubert.

Description of the work

The symphony consists of two sets:

From a planned 3rd movement Scherzo ( Allegro) - Trio has orchestrated only the first 20 bars of Schubert; which is listed as a piano sketch condensed score at that rate, however, breaks off until the 16th cycle of the trio.

1st Set

The first movement opens with a unison motif in the cellos and double basses in pp. The fact that this line ends at the Dominantton Fis, the impression of a question. The answer is in a gloomy sounding sixteenth movement of the violins, to the sounds the main theme in the oboe and the clarinet.

After a symphony for a extremely short line, the key of B minor, modulates to G major. The now sounding theme is - next to the aura of mystery - responsible for the great popularity of the symphony. The melody is in the countryside, and even folk-song. In true by the cellos they heard below in the violins. This is followed by a general pause. After the theme in G major followed by a veritable hole ( the G major theme suddenly breaks off in the middle ). Then the strings break with dramatic ffz tremolos in over dissonances in the winds. Again, the page theme, but this time. Various minor modulations, then again in the major, this time in the winds Here ends the exposition, which is immediately repeated. Followed by the implementation. This topic will deal exclusively with the opening motif, the page set is only taken over the syncopated accompaniment. In the recapitulation are now once again handles all three subjects and increased for the final of the first set.

Second sentence

This - a little quieter - Set Schubert has strongly set in contrast to the first. He is in E major and has been therefore a happy, proud and research character, in stark contrast to the gloomy and dark in B minor of the first set. In the exposition sounds three themes that keep repeating. During the first theme involves slow and coated bass, the second sentence changes from an initially peaceful disposition ( downward " dripping " bass ) to a grandiose fortissimo.

Occupation

2 flutes, 2 oboes, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, 2 horns, 2 trumpets, 3 trombones, timpani, strings

Duration: about 22 minutes.

History

Schubert worked in 1822 at the Symphony in B minor. Why it stopped working on it, which should include four sets after the usual use for date of origin is not known. Allegedly offered Schubert score 1823 the Styrian Musikverein as " one of my symphonies in score " on, which would indicate that Schubert himself saw it as completed in the two-movement form, but the authenticity of serving as proof thanks letter was often questioned.

After that, the work initially was forgotten and the score was only discovered in 1865 by Johann von Herbeck in Schubert's friend Anselm Hüttenbrenner and then premiered Herbeck line on 17 December in the redoubts - halls of the Vienna Hofburg.

The reason why this symphony " unfinished " remained until today an unresolved subject of debate among musicologists. However, it has been theorized that Schubert did not see the need to have to write a third and fourth set, as he had put all his intentions in the first and second set. Thus Schubert would have ignored the basic formal structure of a symphony of his time in this one case. This thesis, however, is highly controversial. Another theory states that Schubert work stopped on the third sentence because he got into too much close to the third movement of Ludwig van Beethoven's Symphony No. 2.

Attempts to complete

1928, the 100th anniversary of the death of Schubert, organized by the Columbia Graphophone Company in England a competition to complete the symphony. The pianist Frank Merrick won the competition, and his Scherzo and Finale have been performed and recorded for a radio broadcast. The two sets are composed by Merrick but now forgotten. More recently, Gerald Abraham (1971 ), the British musicologist Brian Newbould have ( around 1980 ), the Würzburg conductor Hermann Dechant and the Tübingen University Music Director Tobias Hiller provided further completions of the Symphony (2003) by Schubert's own sketches of the scherzo (the had to be supplemented Trio ) and partly one of the incidental music from Schubert's incidental music to Rosamunde used.

The Entr'acte from Rosamunde is held for the finale of the symphony by some musicologists long time. It is also in B Minor, the instrumentation is identical, and the musical mood is the two completed movements of the symphony similar. If the incidental music was to be the finale of the symphony, it would have Schubert actually released from the symphony, and instead uses the spectacle.

The Russian composer Anton Safronov ( of the affiliation of the Rosamond music basically rejects as a possible explanation for the lack of the final movement ) has completed the third sentence after the existing sketches by Schubert and a new final sentence to composed, he himself as "a [ s ] attempt to get into the mindset of the composer, "describes. That he relied on to motivic material goes on some dating back to about the same time some unfinished piano works of Schubert back. The version of Safronov was with the Baden-Baden Philharmonic (conducted by Werner Stiefel ) premiered in December 2005 and has its British premiere at London's Royal Festival Hall on 6 November 2007 with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, conducted by Vladimir Jurowski experienced. The Russian and U.S. premiere under Jurowski with the Russian National Orchestra took place in the 2007-08 season.