The Piano Series:
Paul
Lewis
Photo: Kaupo Kikkas
Schubert’s sonata marathon – part 1
Join Paul Lewis’ marathon, when this master pianist takes Schubert’s piano sonatas on tour! At the Oslo Opera House, he’ll be performing six of 12 complete sonatas – spread across two concerts.
Paul Lewis will be performing on the Main Stage twice this season as part of his international tour, which includes all of Schubert’s piano sonatas.
“Every now and again a recording comes along that makes you want to dance in the street, handing out copies to complete strangers. This is one of those instances,” wrote Gramophone’s reviewer about Lewis’ recordings of Schubert. In other words, it promises to be an event to remember!
Sickness and pain
The performance opens with a sonata in E-flat major, which Schubert began composing as a teenager, but which was not published until the year after his death in 1829.
Lewis will also be treating us to the expansive A minor sonata, one of the most beloved and complex of all Schubert sonatas. Schubert was diagnosed with syphilis in 1822 and suffered from the effects of the illness for the rest of his short life. This work reflects a far greater sense of seriousness and pain than the previous sonatas.
A moment of peace
The final sonata to be performed is one of the three sonatas that was actually published in Schubert’s lifetime. Sonata No. 17 in D Major is also known as the Gasteiner because it was written while Schubert was staying in the spa resort of Bad Gastein in 1825. This may very well have been the last time he was not in significant pain before the heavy darkness descended on the last year of his life. The D major sonata is grandiose and reflects Schubert’s surroundings in Gastein: green valleys, lakes and rural inspiration.
In the shadow of Beethoven
“Schubert may well be the most astonishing phenomenon in musical history. The richness of what he accomplished in a life of merely thirty-one years defies comparison,” said pianist Alfred Brendel.
All the same, Schubert felt that he was in the shadow of Beethoven his entire life. “Secretly, in my heart of hearts, I still hope to be able to make something of myself, but who can do anything after Beethoven?” Schubert is said to have confided to one of his childhood friends. He never dared to contact the great composer, but instead incorporated his tribute into the music, as a result of which nearly all of Schubert’s work is permeated with Beethoven.
Want to attend both concerts? Here is part two of the marathon.