It was perhaps an irresolvable contradiction in Schubert’s art, even for the composer himself that he devoted his life to achieving success on the opera stage, but he did not succeed in it, either in his lifetime or in the judgement of posterity, mainly because of the weakness of the libretti. All the more so brilliant is his song writing and virtually all his works that are in some way connected with a song or a musical way of thinking about song writing. One of the most brilliant examples of this is the Trout Quintet, the fourth movement of which is a variation on the vocal solo from his piece entitled The Trout. The use of the bass and piano alongside the usual stringed instruments creates a work that is monumental not only in size but also in sound, yet with an intimacy that radiates from it in its every instant.

Presented and conducted by: Gábor Hollerung

Schubert: Trout Quintet