Plagued himself with illness all his life, Bernhard may have had all sorts of theories regarding health and recuperation; indeed, he may have set himself up as an expert in this regard. That Schubert was addicted to pipe-smoking is evident from a number of pictures and many comments; he was also overweight, and drank alcohol regularly, sometimes heavily.
When he placed himself in the hands of medical gurus in the next two years, much of this was to change. Schubert went on various fasts, diets and purges which while not curing his infection had a fairly happy effect on his fitness, well-being and productivity. Even if Schubert had never caught a life-threatening disease, his lifestyle, weight, lack of exercise and addiction to nicotine would have made him a primary candidate for an early heart attack or stroke.
Huber was nevertheless a compassionate man, and Schubert was lucky to find shelter with him; it was out of the question to return to the schoolhouse in the Rossau as his stepmother was soon to give birth to her third child, Andreas Theodor.
It was probably in late September that he was admitted to the Allgemeines Krankenhaus, the general hospital in the Alserstrasse. The strophic song-form, already honed and refined during , was raised to a higher power than ever before, both in terms of the individual pieces and in the context of a compelling, integrated narrative.
This was without long-term prospects perhaps, but in compensation Schubert now seemed able to make music on a sustained and exalted level which was scarcely matched by anything in the past. He was not impressed by it, and neither was the Viennese public. Still Schubert longed for success in the theatre, and he seemed to be prepared to clutch at straws.
The incidental music to Rosamunde has survived unlike the play itself. The beautiful Romanze is a song that one hears on the concert platform from time to time in its piano-accompanied version, but the play, a farrago of complicated and sentimental nonsense, ran for two performances at the end of before disappearing forever. It was probably mainly in the autumn of the year that Schubert set a sequence of songs by yet another poet who was a relatively recent discovery.
Indeed he seemed to have sought them out. His first encounter with the Styrian poet Karl von Leitner had produced Drang in der Ferne in , and would result in more songs in In contrast, Die Wallfahrt is an unknown fragment from the same period and poet.
The old circle of friends was now breaking up: Schober was on his acting sabbatical, Kupelwieser was in Rome, Bruchmann had turned religious and was not nearly as much fun as before. A rougher, coarser type of young man had invaded the reading circle, and the composer was less and less inspired by the company he found there.
Why does Schubert doubt his ability to find such friendship again? The passage in this letter has usually been taken to imply that Schober is simply an irreplaceable friend; and this may well be so.
The year begins with the sound of breaking glass. In the company of Dr Bernhard, Schubert announced his presence at the home of Ludwig Mohn by throwing a stone at the window pane and shattering it. It was to be a year which still resounded from the shock-waves of the previous thirteen months.
Having fared so badly with the music for the theatre in , it seems that Schubert now decided to make himself well-known through instrumental music. In a letter to the painter Leopold Kupelwieser in Rome 31 March , Schubert had already written of this new ambition to find fame through a means other than vocal music. This extraordinary document looks back to the past trials of , and also to the future, however uncertain that might be. Schubert then goes on to bemoan the break-up of the reading circle and the sad lack of his friends who all seem to have abandoned Vienna, for various reasons, at the same time.
His new publisher Leidesdorf is praised. He tells Kupelwieser, not without a note of pride, of two quartets recently composed two of the greatest—the A minor and Death and the Maiden as well as the magical Octet. The A minor Quartet had been given a successful performance at the Musikverein. Schubert, it seems, is still musically ambitious, however depressed. He admits to Kupelwieser that he is using these chamber works as stepping-stones towards writing a grand symphony.
And, in stark contrast to the sentiments at the beginning of the letter, he tells his friend that he intends to give a concert of his works to rival the sort of thing that Beethoven is doing.
So it seems that Schubert associates song-writing and should we be surprised? For a period, song is reduced to reminiscence and rueful quotation.
This accounts for the fact that the composing of new lieder plays such a tiny part in If was the least fruitful song year of all, Schubert threw himself in the earlier months at least into chamber music. This was probably during one of the periods of strict medical supervision where he maintained a healthy diet and abstinence from alcohol.
But there is no doubt that there is a drop in quantity of output, even if the quality of the music remains on the highest level. In bidding farewell to the work of someone who had been his intellectual mentor more than any other, Schubert gifts us with a number of new masterpieces.
One poem enchanted him so much that he set it twice, first as a solo song Gondelfahrer and then as a work for four male voices. As he lay submerged in the mercury baths of the Allgemeines Krankenhaus the composer hoped for nothing less than rebirth and transfiguration.
If the song is partly to do with death, it has an ecstatic energy which suggests a new beginning, mortal flesh reinvigorated by an experience both horrific and divine. In a life not rich in travel there was one big trip in For almost five months in the middle of the year, from May to October, Schubert allowed himself to be lured, once again, to the Hungarian estates of Count Esterhazy at Zelisz where he was nominally music-master to the Esterhazy countesses, Marie and Karoline.
It is true that he enjoyed a more elevated position, in social terms, than he had been accorded in Apart from much beautiful dance music, the composer lavished his attentions on the form that he made his own in a similar way to the lied—the piano duet. Apart from the dance pieces which were obviously composed for gatherings and parties, and the duets which were almost certainly created for opportunities for the composer and Karoline to work closely together for eminently respectable musical reasons, there was one substantial vocal work.
Here we experience that side of Schubert which was able to submit for short periods to the conditions—writing music to order—which Haydn knew for most of his creative life. That these two never had an affair with each other is certain; in any case, for the reasons outlined above, Schubert, unless he was reckless and unconcerned about the safety of others, was in no position to have an affair with anyone.
That he was extremely fond of the countess, and had a major crush on her is, however, almost beyond doubt, despite the typically Viennese obfuscatory discretion of the documents.
The story of Schubert and Karoline has lately been down-played by the commentators, particularly those who would cast Schubert as gay. It merely underlines that in one sense nineteenth-century society was freer than our own: before the invention of psychological terms to describe, and pin down, sexual preference, it was perhaps easier to feel that emotional options remained open for longer than in the label-obsessed sexual ghettos of our own age.
Schubert himself wrote as much to Schwind. Far from relishing the fact that he was alone with the object of his affections, he complained of feeling starved of intellectual company. A letter that the composer wrote to Schober once again quotes from a Goethe poem which he had already set the nostalgic Erster Verlust which longs in vain for the return of former happy times. Schubert was anxious to return to Vienna, and managed to do so ahead of schedule, in mid-September. The remainder of the year was not, however, creatively busy.
The only work which was composed in the two-month period of November and December was the Sonata for arpeggione, and possibly the second of the Suleika songs Volume 19 for Anna Milder-Hauptmann. The composer had moved back to the schoolhouse in the Rossau on his return from Zelisz and, whatever the state of his health, the year seems to have ended with the usual celebrations. The reason why the song Lied eines Kriegers bp was written on 31 December is not known.
It certainly suggests an occasion when a certain number of hearty masculine voices would find themselves assembled together. All in all, we know remarkably little about the period between October , when Schubert returned from Hungary, and April As we have said, Schubert had gone back to live in the family home in Rossau, and he remained there until February when he took up lodgings near the Karlskirche in the suburb of Wieden, close to his young friend Moritz von Schwind.
The inference must be that during that winter Schubert was once again unwell; certainly, he pulled in his creative horns, and it is possible that he returned to the general hospital. Here it is Franz von Schlechta, a former schoolmate of the composer, who touches on the theme of survival in adversity that has already been elaborated by Schober in Pilgerweise.
Indeed, the putting of these texts to music was living proof of the very triumph of art over adversity which the poets had praised. The Schober and Bruchmann poems come from earlier in the crisis, but the Schlechta work seems to acknowledge, in a powerful and personal way, that music had healing powers, that it really was as elevated and powerful a force as Schober had once claimed in his poem An die Musik.
Sadly, Schober himself was in Breslau, attempting to be an actor, and Bruchmann had begun to embrace religion in a way that would make him renounce his former friendships in an almost violent manner. He was also the cause of a major rift in the circle when he prevailed on his sister Justina to break off her engagement to Schober.
In musicological realms I am also indebted to that great American lieder scholar and good friend, Susan Youens. Eugene Asti played a piano duet accompaniment with me on Volume 36, as well as being responsible for a remarkable completion of the choral version of Gesang der Geister with piano.
The work of the late Reinhard van Hoorickx, fervent Schubertian and indefatigable editor of fragments, features on very many of these discs. The production teams were crucial: the gifted Martin Compton and Antony Howell in the earlier days, the ever-patient and genial Mark Brown and Julian Millard in the later, and on a few occasions, Tony Faulkner — all great men in their field without whose work this series could never have been imagined.
The super-industrious Nick Flower at Hyperion Records is master of all things to do with editorial layout and printing; without him this handsome reissue, immeasurably beautified by the work of Martha Griebler b , would not have been possible. A book of her drawings entitled Franz Schubert — Zeichnungen is in preparation; the publishers may be contacted at www.
This is to do with the hovering spirit of Ted. He proofread everything personally, and edited all my notes himself. We both got better as we went along. But right from the beginning he was behind me every inch of the way: no pianist could have managed a project such as this without the support of powerful back-up — the singers appeared as if by magic, their fees negotiated, their travel arranged.
The discs appeared on time, bright, shiny, and perfectly packaged. All there was for me to do was to rehearse, play and write. And Ted allowed me to do just this without any fuss.
The series really belongs to him — after all he paid for it, and not only in terms of his money. To say Hyperion has done him proud would be rash; let us simply say it has done its best, as has each and every artist involved in the project.
Comment commencer? Il fut convenu que je fournirais les notes et les commentaires. Quels seraient mes prochains chanteurs? Surtout, ils avaient moins de raison de refuser. Un mois plus tard, Brigitte Fassbaender grava le volume 11 — «Songs of Death». Elle assuma certains lieder de vol. On ne peut aller bien loin dans un volume de lieder schubertiens sans se confronter aux pressentiments de la mort. Que faire? Anthony Rolfe Johnson revint pour les mises en musique du Schwanengesang de Heine sur le tout dernier disque vol.
Aber ich eile der Geschichte voraus. Ich lernte Mr. Dame Janet Baker, die inzwischen nicht mehr vertraglich gebunden war, willigte ein, unsere Serie einzuleiten. Die Aufnahmetermine fanden im Februar in Elstree statt — zwei Tage intensiver und konzentrierter Arbeit normalerweise wurden pro Termin realistischerweise drei Tage angesetzt.
Es wurde beschlossen, dass ich die Anmerkungen und Kommentare liefern sollte. Seinerzeit waren die Horizonte und Bestrebungen der Serie noch durchaus begrenzt. Nach der Janet-Baker-Einspielung war vorgesehen, dass die Serie mit meinen Zeitgenossen im engeren Sinne fortgesetzt werden sollte.
Ann Murrays Teil 3 wurde im November aufgenommen; sie beherrscht ihr Material stets meisterhaft. Die Platte ihres Mannes, des Tenors Philip Langridge, der ebenfalls ein faszinierender Interpret ist, war eigentlich schon im September fertig. Beispielsweise passte die Nachtmusik der CD Nr. Und was noch wichtiger war: Sie hatten noch weniger Grund, abzulehnen. Wir fuhren mit zwei bis drei Einspielungen pro Jahr fort. Im Monat darauf zeichnete Brigitte Fassbaender die Nr.
In jenem Jahr fanden zwei weitere Aufnahmetermine statt, direkt aufeinander folgend vom 5. Ein drittes und letztes Programm mit Schuberts Nachtmusik wurde von Dame Margaret Price eingespielt, die auf ihre keltische Art ebenfalls temperamentvoll, doch stets ganz und gar professionell war.
Ted hatte eindeutig beschlossen, dass wir einen Zahn zulegen mussten. Im April erfolgte meine erste und traurigerweise einzige Begegnung mit Lucia Popp. Man kann in eine Auswahl von Schubert-Liedern nicht weit eindringen, ohne mit Hinweisen auf menschliche Sterblichkeit konfrontiert zu werden. Auf Nr. Ich erinnere mich noch, dass ich bei den ersten Playback-Sessions dachte, seine Stimme sei besonders mikrophonfreundlich.
Als die gesprochenen Teile der Platte eingespielt waren, kam es zur Krise. Was war zu tun? Es gab einfach zu viele letzte Einzelheiten zu erledigen. Neal Davies sang einige der Basslieder gekonnt und mit viel Freude. Wir entwickelten uns beide mit der Zeit zum Besseren.
Alles, was ich tun musste, war proben, spielen und schreiben. Don't show me this message again. Label: Hyperion Recording details: Various dates Various recording venues Produced by Various producers Engineered by Various engineers Release date: October Total duration: minutes 28 seconds.
Don't miss it! It has taken Hyperion Records exactly the same amount of time — to record all the songs, to issue them on thirty-seven separate discs with over sixty solo singers , and now to re-issue the vocal music with piano in an edition remastered in the order of their composition. This catalogue is now in itself out of date. Schubert: Geistes-Gruss, D Sixth version. Martyn Hill tenor , Graham Johnson piano. Schubert: Der Liedler, D Kenner. Schubert: Trinklied D Castelli. Schubert: Auf einen Kirchhof, D Schubert: Minona oder die Kunde der Dogge, D Elly Ameling soprano , Graham Johnson piano.
Schubert: Als ich sie erroten sah D Ehrlich. Ian Bostridge tenor , Graham Johnson piano. Schubert: Das Bild D anonymous. Jamie MacDougall tenor , Graham Johnson piano. Schubert: Am Flusse D Goethe. Schubert: An Mignon, D First version. Schubert: Sangers Morgenlied, D Korner. Schubert: An Mignon, D Second version.
Schubert: Liebesrausch, D Schubert: Amphiaraos D Komer. Thomas Hampson baritone , Graham Johnson piano. Schubert: Trinklied vor der Schlacht D Korner. Schubert: Schwerlied D Korner. Simon Keenlyside baritone , Graham Johnson piano. Schubert: Der Morgenstern, D John Mark Ainsley tenor , Graham Johnson piano. Schubert: Das war ich, D Korner. Schubert: Die Sterne, D Fellinger. Dame Felicity Lott soprano , Graham Johnson piano. Schubert: Vergebliche Liebe D Bernard.
Schubert: Liebesrausch, D Korner. Schubert: Sehnsucht der Liebe, D Korner. Schubert: Die erste Liebe, D Schubert: Trinklied D Zettler. Schubert: Die Sterbende, D Matthisson. Schubert: Stimme der Liebe, D Matthisson. Schubert: Naturgenuss, D Matthisson. Schubert: An die Freude D Schubert: An den Mond, D Schubert: Die Mainacht, D Schubert: Rastlose Liebe, D Schubert: Amalia, D Schiller.
Schubert: An die Nachtigall, D Holty. Schubert: An die Apfelbaume D Holty. Schubert: Seufzer D Holty. Schubert: Liebestandelei, D Korner. Schubert: Der Liebende D Holty. Schubert: Adelwold und Emma D Bertrand.
Hoch und ehern schier von Dauer. Adelwolden bracht als Weise. Gold, Gestein, und Seide nimmer. Dein ist Emma! Schubert: Die Nonne, D Holty. Schubert: Der Traum D Holty. Schubert: Die Laube D Holty. Schubert: Meeres Stille, Da. Schubert: Meeres Stille, D, Op. Schubert: Kolmas Klage, D Schubert: Grablied D Kenner.
Schubert: Das Finden D Kosegarten. Peter Schreier tenor , Graham Johnson piano. Schubert: Lieb Minna, D Stadler. Schubert: Der Fischer, D Goethe.
Schubert: Erster Verlust, D Goethe. Schubert: Iden Nachtgesang, D Kosegarten. Schubert: Von Ida, D Kosegarten. Schubert: Die Tauschung D Kosegarten. Patricia Rozario soprano , Graham Johnson piano. Schubert: Das Sehnen, D Kosegarten. Schubert: Hymne an den Unendlichen, D Schubert: Geist der Liebe D Kosegarten. Schubert: Der Abend D Kosegarten.
Schubert: Tischlied, D
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