Liszt's Interpretation of Schubert's Works:

The Implications and the Value of his Transcriptions for Performances

on Modern Pianos

Liszt’s Bösendorfer (1873), Budapest

Beth Chen

What could Schubert’s and Liszt’s notation processes tell us?What is the relation between Liszt’s transcriptions and Schubert’s original works?What is the value and what are the implications of Liszt’s transcriptions?

Schubert (1797-1828) –drafts (mainly notes); details later in fair copies.

Liszt (1811-1886)- notes and a few articulation details; more details later in coloured pen in the same score or in the first edition.

Notation process:

Articulation, dynamic and expression markings.

Schubert Sonata in A, D. 959, first movement, bars 1-6

ed. Walburga Litschauer, 1996

Schubert: Der Leiermann

Autograph is in the Pierpont Morgan Library, New York

ligato

Schubert – Details

Liszt Rhapsody no. 19

Liszt SonnettoNo. 47 first edition first version (1843-46)

Articulation, dynamic and expression markings were important parts of both composers’ musical presentation.

Schubert’s and Liszt’s notation processes:

What could Schubert’s and Liszt’s notation processes tell us?What is the relation between Liszt’s transcriptions and Schubert’s original works?What is the value and what are the implications of Liszt’s transcriptions?

Generally faithful to Schubert's articulation, dynamic markings(apart from his added virtuosic or variation passages)Schubert's details – Liszt further details

Liszt’s transcriptions

Schubert Winterreise (manuscript 1827), Part II, f. 12r (The Morgan Library)

Faithful Transcription Con molto sentimento

1827

1839

Liszt letter to Lebert Oct, 1868

Liszt’s Briefe, II (ed. La Mara, 1894), p. 160* Lebert was an editor for the firm of Cotta, Stuttgart.

My responsibility with regard to Cotta’s edition of Weber and Schubert I hold to be: fully and carefully to retain the original text together with provisory suggestions of my way of rendering it, by means of distinguishing letters, notes, and signs.

Der stürmische Morgen

Schubert-Liszt Die Rose [Schubert, D745] 1833Fantasie sur une valse de F. Schubert 183412 Lieder von Schubert 1837-1838Schwanengesang (14 pieces) 1838-1839Winterreise (10 pieces) 1838-1839Franz Schuberts geistliche Lieder (4 pieces)

1840

Sechs Melodien von Franz Schubert 1844Schuberts Märsche für das Pianoforte solo

1846

Die Forelle 1846Müllerlieder 1846Franz Schuberts Grosse Fantasie op.15

1851 (solo piano and orch.)

Franz Schuberts grosse Fantasie op.15

After 1851 (2 pianos)

Franz Schuberts Märsche: 1 Vivace, b, 2 Trauermarsch, e , 3 Reitermarsch, D, 4 Ungarischer Marsch, d

1859-1860

Generally faithful to Schubert's articulation, dynamic markings(apart from his added virtuosic or variation passages)Schubert's details – Liszt further details

Liszt’s transcriptions

Further details

marcato

Schubert

Liszt

Schubert

SchubertLisz

t

staccato

Schubert Wanderer-Fantasie

Liszt Grosse Fantasie

fz

Der stürmische Morgen, bars 1-3

Schubert

Liszt

Further details

Guidance for both the music and technique

Why did Liszt indicate these signs?

Guidance particularly for technical hints

Notation only when possible - reliance on grammatical rulesOften composers presented only limited details.

18th-century and early 19th –century notation

Dissonances are played stronger

Interrupted cadence

Notes lie outside the key, either consonances or dissonance

C. P. E. Bach: Versuch über die wahre Art das Clavier zu spielen (Part I, Berlin 1753)

Leopold Mozart: Versuch einer Gründlichen Violinschule (1756)

Syncopationf

p

Metrical accent

Long notes

The highest notes

Long notes

Long notes

Quantz: Versuch einer Anweisung die flute traversière (1752/1789)Chapter XVII, section VI Of the Keyboard Player in Particular

Türk: Klavierschule (1789)

Dissonant

Syncopated note

modulation

Longer note; highest or lowest note

Harmony

EMPHASES VI, § 15, p. 337

Prepare for dissonant interval

Liszt AbschiedC

C

Liszt

Schubert

Frederic Chiu

Liszt’s use of these two accent signs in Abschied shows him indicating what Schubert did not or could not indicate.

Different degrees of emphasis

Emphasis on metrical accents

Leopold Mozart: Versuch einer Gründlichen Violinschule (1756)

Syncopationf

p

Metrical emphasis

Long notes

The highest notes

Long notes

Long notes

One has to continue in this way to emphasize the first note, until change becomes apparent. (trans. Andreas Blender)

Türk: Klavierschule (1789)Metrical Emphasis

H. Koch: Musikalisches Lexikon (1802) Der grammatikalische Accent

Hermann Mendel (1870) Musikalisches Conversations-LexikonAccent

August Reissmann (1882) Handlexikon der Tonkunst

Accent

Liszt Abschied

C

C

Liszt

Schubert

Frederic Chiu

the ‘caret’, le petit chapeau, Dachakzent

Schubert did not use He used >, fp, >fp, fzp>, fzp, and fz Liszt: one of his accent/emphasis signs

Liszt Abschied

C

C

Liszt

Schubert >?

Technical emphasis (unindicated accents)

1. Metrical emphasis2. First note in a slur

C. P. E. Bach (1753)

C. P. E. Bach, Versuch, Versuch über die wahre Art das Clavier zu spielen (Part I, Berlin 1753) Part I, III §21, 127

Die Fig V. befindlichen Noten spielt man so, daß der Anfang des Bogens mit dem Finger einen kleinen Druck kriegt. (a small accent)

Slurs and gentle Accents

Durch den längern oder kürzern Bogen bestimmt der Komponist wie viele Töne an einander geschleift werden sollen […] Man merke hierbey noch, daß die Note, über welcher der Bogen anfängt, sehr gelinde (kaum merklich) accentuirt wird. (Türk, VI Part Three § 38, 355)

Türk (1789)Slurs and gentle

Accents

Der stürmische Morgen

Schubert

Liszt

Türk (1789)

C

C

Liszt Abschied

Liszt Abschied

ten ten

Schubert: Mut

Snow falls on my cheekI carelessly brush it awayIf my heart speaks of its troublesI’ll drown it out with a happy songBarry Mitchell

Sing' ich hell und munter

Fliegt der Schnee mir ins Gesicht

Schüttl' ich ihn Wenn mein Herz im Busen

spricht

Schubert Autograph Morgan L.

herunter

What could Schubert’s and Liszt’s notation processes tell us?What is the relation between Liszt’s transcriptions and Schubert’s original works?What is the value and what are the implications of Liszt’s transcriptions?

The Value of Liszt’s Transcriptions

Insight to interpret Schubert’s musical detail Insight for the possibility of further and clearer performing guidance.

The Implications of Liszt’s TranscriptionsThe existence of unindicated

accents in music makingThe limit of past composer’s notations*The possible value of editorial editions

Beethoven Sonata op. 31/1, III

1846

Mozart, K. 330, 1st mvt, bars 1-4

Thank you

Sincere thanks to the National Széchényi Library and the Liszt Ferenc Memorial Museum for the Liszt facsimiles used in this presentation.