Franz SCHUBERT (1797-1828)
Rarities and Short Piano Works
Wojciech Waleczek (piano)
rec. 27-29 July 2020, European Krzysztof Penderecki Center, Luslawicz, Poland
NAXOS 8.574135 [69:11]
I previously heard the pianist Wojciech Waleczek in his superb recording of the 1847 version of Liszt’s Harmonies poétiques et religieuses
(S172a), also on Naxos (reviews) but here he turns his attention to Schubert and some of his numerous smaller and incomplete works. Some of these are fragments and bits of discarded longer works, whereas others are fully-formed compositions.
The first two tracks are the fairly well known Scherzi, D593 – one of which was among my ABRSM pieces for Grade 6 years ago, so I am very familiar with its changes of rhythm and pianistic awkwardness. None of this bothers Mr. Waleczek and I really like the phrasing he introduces in the first of the two pieces. The jokey elements in the music are especially clear here. The second and less familiar work is equally fluent with some amusing turns of phrase throughout. The off-key quieter interludes and the way the keys change throughout this funny little work are very well handled.
The next piece is an oddity: a short early Fantasie, much indebted to Mozart (catalogued as D2e) which starts very darkly and melodramatically before becoming more cheerful from about a minute onwards. There are lots of interesting ideas here, all flowing organically from one to another and the playing is magnificent throughout. The interesting minor variation from 3’30’’ is especially odd; it sounds very like something early Beethoven would write but with a distinctive Schubertian twist. The minor key parts of the piece are very dark, making a good contrast to the more cheerful sections. Despite the moments of jollity, the work ends defiantly darkly. The next work is also interesting, as it is the first movement of what would have been Schubert’s first piano Sonata. This is full of happy, bouncing rhythms interlaced with more dramatic music and leaves me wishing that the work had been completed, as it just stops dead in the middle of a phrase. With a bit of ingenuity, it might be possible to extend this fragment a little more; however, it is a fascinating glimpse into Schubert’s early sonata writing efforts. The following work (track 5) is another fragment, this time of a Fantasy in C major. This starts with some lovely, quiet, diminished seventh passages before developing into something far more complex and really gets going about 1’20’’ with a genial theme that grows in power and complexity, with some odd harmonies to keep it interesting. This seems to inhabit the same realm as the later works with the off-key asides and abrupt changes of mood. My favourite part of the work is the bouncy virtuosic section from 3’39’’, which is balmy and fun. It doesn’t stay like that for long, though, as it meanders cleverly into a minor key and returns us to the strange diminished sevenths that started the work. These crop up from time to time and seem to act as bridges between the varying sections of the piece. However, we will never know how it was going to end as it stops in the middle of a bar.
The following “March” is fortunately complete and is just over four minutes of unbridled jollity, here dispatched with considerable wit and charm. As I said in a previous review of this piece recorded by Carlo Grante, there are some disconcertingly similar passages to Schumann’s Toccata, Op.7 in the trio section of this work. The next track is also a “March”, this time in B minor although not much of it sounds to be in that minor key. It is again another cheerful little piece and the trio is especially amusing. It is a shame it is so short, as there is a lot of interesting music here packed into just shy of three minutes. Both the following tracks are given the unassuming title of “Piano Piece” and are sketches in C major and C minor respectively. The first of these is brimming with good cheer and according to the notes is possibly the opening for an unknown sonata. I particularly like the way Mr. Waleczek plays the bouncing accompaniment in the left hand that crops up in various parts of this incomplete piece. The next C minor piece is very different in character, very angry at the start and full of opportunity for the pianist to stretch his muscles. This angry music dissipates and gives way to a straightforwardly happy Schubertian tune that travels along in a merry way until it becomes tragic, then reverts to the angrier music of the opening. Again, this does not persist and the last half a minute of the piece is full of bonhomie and good cheer. A fair amount of virtuosity is required here and it is dispatched without any bother by Mr. Waleczek. Again, it is a shame this is incomplete.
Rather as Schumann did much later in the 19th century, Schubert worked diligently on his Bach preludes and fugues and, as a result, wrote some of his own. These works take up most of the remainder of the CD; they are in various keys and date mostly from 1812 or 1813 (when Schubert was 15 or 16). The D minor one (track 10) is angular in structure and is quite angst-ridden for much of its running time before lightening in the last few bars. The following C major one is much brighter in nature and contains some really lovely harmonies and considerable difficulties for the pianist. The ending is particularly touching. This is a wonderful little piece, here receiving its first recording and is superbly played. Next, we move into a Fugue in G major which is again happy in mood and contains some very smooth playing. We are back with D minor again for track 13, a much longer, more complex work than the preceding tracks – the opening is again full of Schubert’s “holes” in the melody where you feel something could have been written but isn’t – but if you did, it would spoil it and wouldn’t be in keeping with the work. Anyway, this is a slow Fugue, with some typically Schubertian off-key harmonies added for good measure. This is one of those pieces which seems to cause time to stand still while you follow the interleaving lines of music. It is a super little work with plenty of interest, despite the somewhat dry title of “Fugue”.
The next tracks, 14 – 20 are all tiny in nature - all bar one are less than a minute long and are incomplete fragments. The first is in C major and has some clever bell like effects in places, the second F major has some nice, spikey accompaniment but sadly both works finish too soon. The next three are all titled “Fugal Sketches” and are in B flat major. I confess to being a little puzzled by the non-inclusion of the second of these (tracks 16 – 18 but billed as numbers 1, 3 and 4) but presumably there is a good reason for this. All three works start off with the same music and then head of in different directions. The opening one is another cheerful affair with some awkward leaps in the bass. The second goes off in different directions with more trills and some clever additions to the tune. The fourth of the set again uses the same starting point before heading off along another different path. All three sound distinctly Bachian in nature and are played with plenty of poise. After that, we have two other fugues, both fragments and both in E minor. The first starts mournfully with a questing phrase which seems to be slowly heading toward a major key resolution but never gets there due to Schubert abandoning the work. The last of these fugues is again sad and contains a lot of trills. This progresses along sedately for just over a minute and a half before abruptly halting. I do wish Schubert had finished these little works as they sound as though they might have gone in some interesting directions. All are played magnificently.
The final piece on this CD is Schubert’s own transcription of his overture to Alfonso und Estrella. I do like this work: its opening is mock-serious opening, then settles down to something calmer before energetically launching into some typical Schubertian high spirits. Schubert’s assertion that the most difficult thing he wrote for piano was the “Wanderer Fantasy” (D760) is given a run for its money here, as this sounds very difficult. It is again impeccably played and the orchestral details are well covered and evoked in the marvellous transcription. I cannot help wondering if there are more lost Schubert self-transcriptions in an archive somewhere, waiting to be discovered. If so, I sincerely hope that Mr. Waleczek might be given a chance to record them.
The sound quality is excellent and clear throughout and the disc is generously filled at 69 minutes. The cover notes are a little short but full of interesting information about these pieces. This is a fascinating release – of special interest to completists like me - and presents some different, less well-known facets of Schubert’s compositions, especially in the various fugues and the overture transcription found towards the end of the recording. The playing is confident and assured throughout and full of power where required. It is such a shame that Schubert left some of these little fragments incomplete as they contain some interesting germs of musical ideas. In short, this is a very interesting release and I would like to hear Mr. Waleczek in some of the other twenty-one Schubert sonatas, as he clearly has the right temperament for performing the music. I feel that he would also be perfectly suited to some of Liszt’s numerous Schubert transcriptions.
Jonathan Welsh
Contents
Scherzi (2), D593 [9:47}
Fantasie in C minor, D2e [6:18]
Allegro in E major, D154 [2:38]
Fantasie in C major, D605 (Fragment) [7:10]
March in E major, D606 [4:12]
March in B minor, op. deest. (D757a) [2:49]
Klavierstück in C major, D916b: Allegro (fragment) [3:54]*
Klavierstück in C minor, D916c (fragment) [5:24]
Fugue in D minor, D13 [3:30]
Fugue in C major, D24a [3:53]
Fugue in G major, D24b [2:18]
Fugue in D minor, D24c [4:52]
Fugue in C major, D24d (fragment) [0.54]*
Fugue in F major, D25c (fragment) [0.48]*
Fugal Sketches (4) in B flat major, D37a nos.1, 3 & 4 [2:20]*
Fugue in E minor, D41a (fragment) [0.58]*
Fugue in E minor, D71b (fragment) [1:34]*
Alfonso und Estrella - Overture (trans. Schubert), D759a [5:43]
*First recordings
