The Sonata in A minor for Arpeggione and Piano, D. 821, often referred to as the "Arpeggione Sonata," is a chamber music work for arpeggione and piano by Franz Schubert (1797–1828), composed in 1824.

Origin and Reception

Franz Schubert's Arpeggione Sonata was composed in November 1824 in Vienna, shortly after his second stay in Zseliz, for an instrument that Johann Georg Stauffer had developed in the early 1820s and which was known by names such as "bowed guitar" or "guitar-cello." Schubert's sonata is the only composition in which it is referred to as an "arpeggione." The sonata was presumably intended for the instrumentalist Vincenz Schuster, who championed the new instrument and, according to the preface of the first edition published posthumously by J. P. Gotthard in 1871, also premiered the work in November 1824. This first edition included parts for either violin or violoncello, as the arpeggione had already been forgotten by that time. Even Schubert's autograph, which is kept at the Bibliothèque Nationale in Paris, included a violin part written by Anton Diabelli. Because the range of the arpeggione is well-suited for it, the viola is also used. Furthermore, there are transcriptions of the melody part for double bass. Since the original contains only a few double stops for the melody part, wind instruments such as the transverse flute, alto recorder, and clarinet are also used in place of the arpeggione. There are also versions featuring violoncello and guitar instead of the piano.

Characterization

The performance time of the work is approximately 20 minutes. It is divided into three movements:

1. Allegro moderato

2. Adagio

3. Allegretto

The background of its creation—presumably a commissioned work for a solo instrument that quickly fell into disuse—contributed to the sonata’s reputation as a mere minor or occasional work by Franz Schubert, which does not do it justice. Konrad Hünteler ranks it among the "[...] immortal pearls in the chamber music repertoire [...]". The first and arguably most significant movement is in A minor and follows the sonata form. Its main theme is reminiscent of the beginning of the "Unfinished" [Symphony]. The short slow movement (E major) is immediately followed by a virtuosic, rather pleasing rondo in A major.

Source: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arpeggione-Sonate / License: CC BY-SA 4.0