Schubert & Burgmüller: Works for Arpeggione

Featuring

Lorenz Duftschmid
Paul Gulda
Chris Pichler
Michael Dangl
David Bergmüller
Franz Schubert

Miscellaneous
Johann Friedrich Franz Burgmüller

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Recording & Production

This recording uses an original pianoforte by Conrad Graf from 1824 and an original guitar by Georg Stauffer from 1803, the inventor of the Arpeggione.

Interpretation

Many of the sound effects Schubert intended for the Arpeggione Sonata are lost when played on modern cellos or violas due to their different tuning.

Composition History

Schubert's Arpeggione Sonata was composed in November 1824, but its first edition was only published in January 1871, more than 40 years later.

Composer Biography

Friedrich Burgmüller, whose Nocturnes are featured on this album, was the brother of Norbert Burgmüller, a composer admired by Schumann, and he pursued a more popular musical style.

Compositional Technique

The Arpeggione's harp-like broken chords, or 'arpeggios,' were a special quality that likely attracted Schubert, as they produced a pure and full sound.

Instruments

The Arpeggione combined guitar fingerings with a cello bow, and its frets made good intonation easier for the musician.

Instruments

The Arpeggione, a string instrument for which Schubert wrote his sonata, was invented by Viennese instrument maker Georg Stauffer and was popular for about a decade before disappearing.