The Arpeggione Sonata was written in 1824, soon after Schubert’s Schöne Müllerin song cycle and shortly before the Great C major Symphony of 1825-28 and the C major String Quintet of 1827, perhaps his finest instrumental works.
The first movement, in A minor, is imbued throughout with a touching blend of sadness and joy (as was Schubert’s own life), the beauty, sensitivity and lyricism of its first theme contrasting with the carefree nonchalance of the second, a shattering outburst of pain (like Gretchen’s scream) at the climax of the development section leading through the recapitulation to the last breaths of the instruments and culminating in the death sentence of the two closing chords.
The theme of the second movement in E Major, unfolding like a love song, is clearly derived from the Larghetto of Beethoven’s Second Symphony. However, a sinister undercurrent emerges, threatening the tranquil beauty of this world and anticipating the icy bleakness of the Winterreise. The movement ends, like its predecessor, in an experience close to death, the pace slowing almost to a complete stop before finding the most fragile of lifelines to carry the music through to the finale.
The last movement begins as an ecstatic rondo, the gushing theme predominantly bathed in the sunshine of A Major, interspersed with energetic, lively interludes with traces of folk idioms and demanding considerable virtuosity from both performers. A nostalgic piano solo temporarily eclipses the spotlight on the string instrument before the final return of the rondo theme, ending with one of the many rising arpeggios that are featured in this work, a positive and satisfying end to a composition that has reflected the whole gamut of human experience.
Here is Yo Yo Ma to play this music for you:
