Moments musicaux (Schubert)
The Moments musicaux , D. 780 (op. 94), by Franz Schubert are six piano pieces written between 1823 and 1828 and published in the spring of 1828. The originally prescribed title "momens musicals" came from the publisher Leidesdorf . In addition to the Impromptus and the Wanderer Fantasy , they are among the most famous piano pieces by Schubert.
- C major. Moderato.
- A flat major. Andantino.
- F minor. Allegro moderato.
- c sharp minor. Moderato.
- F minor. Allegro vivace.
- A flat major. Allegretto.
The motifs of the first moment musical (Moderato) already have echoes of the later great piano sonata in A minor D 845, but remains within the framework of a typical character piece of early romanticism.
The second (Andantino) develops the strong emotional outbursts typical of Schubert. What is striking is the use of F sharp minor as the death key of Romanticism, which occurs in the dark and monotonous B-part and increases into great drama at the end of the section. The aimless pendulum motif of the A section points to the motif of the lost wanderer, which characterizes a large part of Schubert's works.
The third piece (Allegro Moderato), also known as Air Russe , recalls the many, mostly short dances that Schubert wrote primarily for the piano. In contrast to the gloomy mood of other pieces in the cycle, there is more of a lightness here.
In the fourth piece (Moderato) there are clear echoes of Bach, whose work Schubert was particularly concerned with while it was being composed. A latent two-part voice in the A section, very similar to that in the C minor prelude from the first volume of the Well-Tempered Clavier , is clearly discernible.
The fifth piece (Allegro vivace) again shows a march-like character full of drama.
The sixth and last piece of the cycle (Allegretto) exudes monotony and being lost. Again it is reminiscent of the wanderer metaphor. Pendulum motifs, the repeatedly collapsing A flat major , often directly in favor of the parallel in F minor, radiates a deep hopelessness and aimlessness.
The pianistic requirements are rather low from a technical point of view. However, a delicate touch and empathy for the pieces are required. Like practically all of Schubert's better-known piano works, Moments musicaux do not impress with virtuosity, but rather with a large variety of echoing emotional worlds.
Web links
- br-klassik.de
- Moments musicaux : sheet music and audio files in the International Music Score Library Project