There is something magical about Sokolov's playing here. I cannot really put it into words, but at a certain point he just grabs your feelings and never lets them go. Profoundly moving. Once again, thank you so much for this upload. You are truly the unsung hero of UA-cam!
@@theslayer1120 Alas! Neither of the two scores on imslp contains the Andantino of 09:24 Where do I find the score for Andantino? The one @Ashish Xiangyi Kumar used to create this video
Hi! I just wanted to thank you for the wonderful effort put into your videos. This video got me into Schubert and now I am learning the second piece and it's been such a great experience. Cheers!
Also possible that he lost ideas and could no longer write masterpieces. Talking about authors proliferating when they were young and running out of talent when they grew older. No idea what Schubert would become in his thirties and forties. Just enjoy Schubert as it is.
Leif Ove Andsnes played #2 in Paris during a concert in which he was accompanying Matthias Goerne for a Lieder recital a few years back, I must confess I could not refrain myself from weeping silently when he played that part, absolutely perfectly melancholic. What absolute geniuses those composers were, especially living in the conditions and environment of those days! Feeling so humbled!
I find the way Schubert deploys the secondary dominant at 5:15 to be breathtaking. Sokolov's jazzy treatment of this passage - especially the relaxed handling of the decoration - makes it an emotional highlight to me.
I haven't listened Sokolov's playing yet, but both of them didn't skip the repeats, right? No skipping of repeat is one of the characteristic signs of a great Schubert interpreter!
La música de Schubert es un canto a la maravillosa y a veces terrible vida. Pero Schubert siempre canta. Su canto es un agradecimiento por haber llegado a la vida!
I get the shivers every time I hear the modulation from nominal C major to D-flat major at 28:42 (for Sokolov) for the 3rd Klavierstücke when transitioning to the beautiful "B" section. Gorgeous!
It took me really by surprise just how much I like Avdeeva‘s interpretation. yes I know, she‘s a great pianist but I tought she would just not stand up to a direct comparision against Sokolov. But she does. And in many ways I like her more lyric style even more than Sokolov. Simply amazing!
I love how natural Sokolov can make the switch from the beat being split into three to the beat being split into two in the first movement so natural. I didn't even notice until I looked at the music and I was stunned.
I heard Sokolov playing this live. My goodness, section B of No.2 was so intense. I remember I was in a trans-like state, stopped breathing and almost fainted there.
18:48 - 2 measures with a bunch of sharps, next 2 measures bunch of naturals, next measure bunch of flats - no one moves between keys so naturally (no pun intended) like Schubert. Looks so simple but try to compose this yourself without sounding like hot garbage.
Must have been awesome !.. I saw A Brendel on these pieces and nothing to envy to Avdeeva and Sokolov. The three of them are true masters with a huge sence of piano playing just marvelous!!...
6:21 - Grigory plays a d natural instead of d sharp in the grace note return to the third beat - mistake, or intentional Sokolovian idiosyncrasy? Either way, it works for me - adds to the rather nervous unsettled mood that Ashish describes so well!
Shubert, i always think of him as mozart but in a special way... although they both have died at a very young age with many super piece of works that can last for decades and more
What a treat! Thank you so much for going to all this trouble. I found it absolutely enthralling to compare these two very different performances with the score. There is so much to enjoy here that it's hard to know how where to start. There is such fantasy and strangeness in this music, which becomes so much more apparent when you are able to follow it with the score. At the risk at sounding horribly reductive I did wonder whether the essential difference in approach between the two artists boiled down to a masculine vs feminine sensibility. But that is not to say I necessarily preferred one to the other. On there own terms they are both convincing. Sokolov often seems to touch upon a nervy muscularity in the writing whereas Avdeeva sees these as having a more reflective sensibility. Overall, though I think I would want to live with Avdeeva simply because of the attention to the myriad details, some of which appear to be extremely difficult to pull of the modern, metal framed grand piano. Thank you Ashish and thank you Schubert.
I've played this. Accordingly, from Sokolov... 1rst piece: 1) Artist injects fermatas in the middle of measures 6 & 14 (he delays the octave G's). Why? I dunno. We certainly have nothing from Schubert there. 2) He also apparently has trouble accepting the 'fz' at the 3 half notes in the 2nd page. Every other recording I've ever heard of this (going back at least as far as Walter Gieseking's) lets it all hang out there w/o hesitation. I don't know why this guy held back. 3) Other stretto's and other rubatta-ish stuff throughout. I do not like this interpretration at all. 2nd piece... 1) 16:38 - Whatever happened to the phrase there? Artist plays it stacatto. Never heard anyone else play it that way, either. He keeps doing it throughout the section. I'm enjoying Avdeeva's take on things more almost immediately. Except for the last piece (the one in C): Played [I thought] too slowly.
oh, the charming and mysterious Schubert - is so seemingly simple and approachable, but so magnetic and attractive that does not let go and does not allow to fall asleep
Sokolov, as per usual, is unbelievable, almost ethereal, which are odd descriptions to apply to a phenomenon I would describe as being in regularity, but such is his mastery.
9:13 The V over I (without the 3rd), Bb in the treble over Eb in the bass was such a revolutionary colorful sound for it's day, yet nobody in the comments or in the video description points this out. The omission of the 3rd (G) in the Eb chord in the bass adds a deep peddletone with a rustic fifth sounding quality. For a piece that is otherwise pure in its classical roots, theory, and voice leading mechanics, the V over I adds such a unique charm and break in the otherwise traditional sound of Schubert and the style of his day. All music lovers should really appreciate the musical relevance of this piece and the beautiful obscurity of this harmonic device. Schubert was sharing something that even he didn't know would become somewhat commonplace over a hundred years later in jazz and modern music.
Great insight. I particularly love that chord, especially in the ending of a piece with a fermata or ritardando, from V(V7) with tonic bass support, resolving to tonic. It's a wonderful technical device, (like Neopolitan 6ths), that is not often recognized. Although, besides Schubert, I've heard in a number of pieces by other composers. It's in the slow movement of Beethoven's Sonata 11, and in several Brahms' pieces, including: Brahms' op. 76 no 6, and op. 116 no. 4 at the ending, Brahms' Symphony no 1 slow movement, Brahms' Violin Concerto slow movement at the end, and even in the "Andante Spianato" by Chopin. Indeed, it is a sweet technique that was part of so many other harmonic shifts, that only developed further in music history.
I've been searching the net for the crossed out C-section everywhere. IMSLP/Mutopia don't have it. They don't even provide manuscript. Where did you get your copy so that i can buy a copy of it. It's the part I'm missing(Andantino) Crossed-Out C Section.
Wonderful pieces. Having just 'discovered" Avdeeva I must say she plays these pieces exquisitely. Thanks for the post. And, I will forgive you for saying that you once thought Schubert was a mere melodist given that I once thought Berlioz was a one-hit wonder until I really paid attention to La Damnation de Faust...
This Avdeeva album has been a routine selection in my listening repertoire ever since it got released, I’m so glad I found it here along with the respect that Avdeeva deserves! I find it ironic that also saying her Chopin playing is out of this world is “controversial”. Avdeeva is certainly an exceptional talent, and whatever she plays, she always manages to strip the music bare, extracting the most intimate moments in an utmost delicate manner. I feel like her winning of the Chopin 2010 did her more harm than good in terms of popularity, perhaps fueling sexist/political biases which already existed.
Franz Schubert has always been known for uncertainty of key, but in the third piece he writes with a sensitivity only possible close to death, which in fact he was. And Sokolov plays beautifully, as one would expect. I'm glad that his last wish, to be buried next to Beethoven, was granted.
I saw A Brendel playing these pieces in the Musikverein in Vienna and nothing to envy to Avdeeva and Sokolov. The three of them are true masters with a huge sence of piano playing just marvelous!!
Never heard these pieces til today.. would not have heard it and concluded it was Schubert.. sounds more like movies soundtracks for action scenes to me...pianists here did a great job making it sound musical... While it to me as written seems largely mechanical, as if Schubert was testing new things to try on a piano. Lacks the haunting melodies I associate with Schubert. posters commentary are also quite interesting!
Unexpectedly harsh tone by Sokolov in nr 3. I'm not convinced by his choice of tempi in nr 2 either. Personally I found in Pollini's live recording of this set, available on youtube, the best rendition thereof
If Lang Lang puts on airs and prances around, then Sokolov is the stiff-lipped, contemplative renaissance man. He is a pragmatist- if an idea is good, however simple, it is still worth doing well. I tend to agree with this interpretive focus he puts forth.
I honestly felt that the first one was largely Mozartian, with a little bit of Liszt and VERY Beethovenian..... But nothing beats Schubert's originality in the other two!
ashish, you choose volodos for rachmaninoff piano concerto 3, could you recommend us other interpretations? i think it's a work who deserves deeper dedication. thx! (and i trust in you)
Sokolov:
00:00 - No.1, Allegro assai
14:10 - No.2, Allegretto
27:44 - No.3, Allegro
Avdeeva*:
34:16 - No.1, Allegro assai
48:47 - No.2, Allegretto
1:02:32 - No.3, Allegro
There is something magical about Sokolov's playing here. I cannot really put it into words, but at a certain point he just grabs your feelings and never lets them go. Profoundly moving. Once again, thank you so much for this upload. You are truly the unsung hero of UA-cam!
Kind sir! Could you please share the score you used for the part beginning at 43:54? It would be much appreciated! Thanks in advance!
@@theslayer1120 Alas! Neither of the two scores on imslp contains the Andantino of 09:24
Where do I find the score for Andantino?
The one @Ashish Xiangyi Kumar used to create this video
@@theslayer1120 Thanks! I'm aware of the omission, I just don't know where to find a copy which has the omitted part back
Hi! I just wanted to thank you for the wonderful effort put into your videos. This video got me into Schubert and now I am learning the second piece and it's been such a great experience. Cheers!
I'm trying to decide if Schubert loved triplets as much as Schumann loved dotted rhythms.
Still not as much as Brahms loved 3 against 2.
@@Henry-uv9xu Very true. That and weird hidden melodies in middle voices..
And Rachmaninoff for the 3 vs 2 aahahah
And Beethoven the sfz's
what are dotted rhytms?
Schubert is unrivaled. Warmth from every note. Ingenuity in every passage.
How many more master pieces would Schubert have left us if he didnt die at this young age?.....😫😫
Imagine Mozart
We definitely missed out on what could’ve been some of THE GREATEST pieces. Mozart, Schubert and many other composers died too young :(
sadly we shall never know
Imagine he lived ten years more. in his last years he composed an average of 50 works a year. Imagine another 500 schubert works.....crazy
Also possible that he lost ideas and could no longer write masterpieces. Talking about authors proliferating when they were young and running out of talent when they grew older. No idea what Schubert would become in his thirties and forties. Just enjoy Schubert as it is.
Why does nobody talk about how perfect 20:25 is?!?!
Perhaps because words cannot capture the rapture and sadness - there, I failed.
I blame malice
It's the same motif that makes up the second theme (in F sharp minor) of the B flat major sonata (first movement)
Leif Ove Andsnes played #2 in Paris during a concert in which he was accompanying Matthias Goerne for a Lieder recital a few years back, I must confess I could not refrain myself from weeping silently when he played that part, absolutely perfectly melancholic. What absolute geniuses those composers were, especially living in the conditions and environment of those days! Feeling so humbled!
the obvious Beethoven influence in many of the passages, with Schubert melodies makes a perfect Classical piece
I totally agree with you. 3 Klavierstücke are probably the most Beethoven'esque pieces written by Schubert.
The middle section of the 2nd piece can make grown men cry
Yes!!! More Schubert plz
Ashish how would I enjoy this music without your notes?
It feels strange clicking on show more and then nothing is in the description.
@@OneConcertante I couldn't work out if it was actually his channel....
Try listening to it.
...or without comments ;-)
He doesn't ALWAYS have to write descriptions, even if we enjoy them.
I find the way Schubert deploys the secondary dominant at 5:15 to be breathtaking. Sokolov's jazzy treatment of this passage - especially the relaxed handling of the decoration - makes it an emotional highlight to me.
I recommend listening to this while at the same time listening to Sorabji's first piano sonata, they go suprisingly well together
I want whatever you were smoking when you wrote this.
@@p-y8210 Smoking the ashes of classical music
Wow wasn’t expecting to read this comment
I haven't listened Sokolov's playing yet, but both of them didn't skip the repeats, right? No skipping of repeat is one of the characteristic signs of a great Schubert interpreter!
Wonderfull music, but where is your analysis?
La música de Schubert es un canto a la maravillosa y a veces terrible vida. Pero Schubert siempre canta. Su canto es un agradecimiento por haber llegado a la vida!
I get the shivers every time I hear the modulation from nominal C major to D-flat major at 28:42 (for Sokolov) for the 3rd Klavierstücke when transitioning to the beautiful "B" section. Gorgeous!
Avdeeva does the best on this piece. Probably the best of any player for this piece. I especially like the 2nd movement.
Completely usual for nowadays pianists, she's the kind that deeply understand a wide range of repertory she plays.
55:10
It took me really by surprise just how much I like Avdeeva‘s interpretation. yes I know, she‘s a great pianist but I tought she would just not stand up to a direct comparision against Sokolov. But she does. And in many ways I like her more lyric style even more than Sokolov. Simply amazing!
Too much Rubato for my taste. That said, while I liked Sokolov's interpretation more here, I do indeed prefer Brendel or Richter by a fair margin.
I like the 2nd movement, and Avdeeva does the best on this piece.
Sokolov live is 1000 times better than the recording
I personally think Michel Dalberto's version is the best one out there, really recommend listening to him!
Wow just yesterday I listened to Brendel playing these beautiful pieces.
The melodies in the second piece are so damn beautiful
I love how natural Sokolov can make the switch from the beat being split into three to the beat being split into two in the first movement so natural. I didn't even notice until I looked at the music and I was stunned.
The first second of the first piece instantly reminded me of Scriabin's 12th etude. Nonetheless, great works that are unfortunately underperformed.
I never heard the missing bars of the first edition of Klavierstück 1 that Sokolov plays here! Thanks for this rarity.
Same here, a pleasant surprise eh.
the andantino part?
@@dawlims1334 Right you are.
I heard Sokolov playing this live. My goodness, section B of No.2 was so intense. I remember I was in a trans-like state, stopped breathing and almost fainted there.
18:48 - 2 measures with a bunch of sharps, next 2 measures bunch of naturals, next measure bunch of flats - no one moves between keys so naturally (no pun intended) like Schubert. Looks so simple but try to compose this yourself without sounding like hot garbage.
Amazing performance by Sokolov!
I saw Avdeeva play the wanderer fantasy very recently, it was incredible.
Must have been awesome !.. I saw A Brendel on these pieces and nothing to envy to Avdeeva and Sokolov. The three of them are true masters with a huge sence of piano playing just marvelous!!...
Oh wow. Wasn't expecting these from you. What a pleasant suprise.
6:21 - Grigory plays a d natural instead of d sharp in the grace note return to the third beat - mistake, or intentional Sokolovian idiosyncrasy? Either way, it works for me - adds to the rather nervous unsettled mood that Ashish describes so well!
25:42 - Darkness in pure sense...
Shubert, i always think of him as mozart but in a special way... although they both have died at a very young age with many super piece of works that can last for decades and more
What a treat! Thank you so much for going to all this trouble.
I found it absolutely enthralling to compare these two very different performances with the score. There is so much to enjoy here that it's hard to know how where to start. There is such fantasy and strangeness in this music, which becomes so much more apparent when you are able to follow it with the score.
At the risk at sounding horribly reductive I did wonder whether the essential difference in approach between the two artists boiled down to a masculine vs feminine sensibility. But that is not to say I necessarily preferred one to the other. On there own terms they are both convincing. Sokolov often seems to touch upon a nervy muscularity in the writing whereas Avdeeva sees these as having a more reflective sensibility. Overall, though I think I would want to live with Avdeeva simply because of the attention to the myriad details, some of which appear to be extremely difficult to pull of the modern, metal framed grand piano.
Thank you Ashish and thank you Schubert.
Poignant. So noble a chant in so deep a distress... How to refrain tears? But also how to receive such a lesson of relief and faith in art?
Beautiful description as it really is!!🎼🎶🎵
I love These pieces 😍
It's just wonderfull how Schubert understood the Music.
I've played this. Accordingly, from Sokolov... 1rst piece:
1) Artist injects fermatas in the middle of measures 6 & 14 (he delays the octave G's). Why? I dunno. We certainly have nothing from Schubert there.
2) He also apparently has trouble accepting the 'fz' at the 3 half notes in the 2nd page. Every other recording I've ever heard of this (going back at least as far as Walter Gieseking's) lets it all hang out there w/o hesitation. I don't know why this guy held back.
3) Other stretto's and other rubatta-ish stuff throughout. I do not like this interpretration at all.
2nd piece...
1) 16:38 - Whatever happened to the phrase there? Artist plays it stacatto. Never heard anyone else play it that way, either. He keeps doing it throughout the section.
I'm enjoying Avdeeva's take on things more almost immediately.
Except for the last piece (the one in C): Played [I thought] too slowly.
oh, the charming and mysterious Schubert - is so seemingly simple and approachable, but so magnetic and attractive that does not let go and does not allow to fall asleep
20:25 - brilliant minor composition - ultra-subtle and deeply realized irony, self-irony, reconciliation, forgiveness
20:30
20:26 it's almost similar to the second theme of the first movement of the composer's B flat major sonata.
Sokolov, as per usual, is unbelievable, almost ethereal, which are odd descriptions to apply to a phenomenon I would describe as being in regularity, but such is his mastery.
9:31 - is that a mistake?
Why Schubert didn't include theme of 1st piece into the 3rd, like in trio 2?
Which edition and where can I find a score that had the c section of the 1st klavierstuke
Bravo bravo bravo brilliance grandiose music super
9:13 The V over I (without the 3rd), Bb in the treble over Eb in the bass was such a revolutionary colorful sound for it's day, yet nobody in the comments or in the video description points this out. The omission of the 3rd (G) in the Eb chord in the bass adds a deep peddletone with a rustic fifth sounding quality. For a piece that is otherwise pure in its classical roots, theory, and voice leading mechanics, the V over I adds such a unique charm and break in the otherwise traditional sound of Schubert and the style of his day. All music lovers should really appreciate the musical relevance of this piece and the beautiful obscurity of this harmonic device. Schubert was sharing something that even he didn't know would become somewhat commonplace over a hundred years later in jazz and modern music.
Great insight. I particularly love that chord, especially in the ending of a piece with a fermata or ritardando, from V(V7) with tonic bass support, resolving to tonic. It's a wonderful technical device, (like Neopolitan 6ths), that is not often recognized. Although, besides Schubert, I've heard in a number of pieces by other composers. It's in the slow movement of Beethoven's Sonata 11, and in several Brahms' pieces, including: Brahms' op. 76 no 6, and op. 116 no. 4 at the ending, Brahms' Symphony no 1 slow movement, Brahms' Violin Concerto slow movement at the end, and even in the "Andante Spianato" by Chopin. Indeed, it is a sweet technique that was part of so many other harmonic shifts, that only developed further in music history.
55:10
I've been searching the net for the crossed out C-section everywhere. IMSLP/Mutopia don't have it. They don't even provide manuscript. Where did you get your copy so that i can buy a copy of it. It's the part I'm missing(Andantino) Crossed-Out C Section.
Why is the C section of the first piece gone in most editions?
j'apprécie énormément les tempi surtout du deuxième mouvement
MIND BOGGLING!
Wonderful pieces. Having just 'discovered" Avdeeva I must say she plays these pieces exquisitely. Thanks for the post. And, I will forgive you for saying that you once thought Schubert was a mere melodist given that I once thought Berlioz was a one-hit wonder until I really paid attention to La Damnation de Faust...
La deuxième partie intermédiaire du K2 par Sokolov est assez exaspérante à force d'interprétation du rythme. Cela me semble aberrant.
hi does anyone know where find a pdf sheet music with the "Andantino" part of Klavierstucke no. 1??
10:13 I know this theme from somewhere...
The first Klavierstuecke sounded surprisingly almost Schumannesque....
This Avdeeva album has been a routine selection in my listening repertoire ever since it got released, I’m so glad I found it here along with the respect that Avdeeva deserves! I find it ironic that also saying her Chopin playing is out of this world is “controversial”. Avdeeva is certainly an exceptional talent, and whatever she plays, she always manages to strip the music bare, extracting the most intimate moments in an utmost delicate manner. I feel like her winning of the Chopin 2010 did her more harm than good in terms of popularity, perhaps fueling sexist/political biases which already existed.
Franz Schubert has always been known for uncertainty of key, but in the third piece he writes with a sensitivity only possible close to death, which in fact he was. And Sokolov plays beautifully, as one would expect. I'm glad that his last wish, to be buried next to Beethoven, was granted.
I love your descriptions!
I saw A Brendel playing these pieces in the Musikverein in Vienna and nothing to envy to Avdeeva and Sokolov. The three of them are true masters with a huge sence of piano playing just marvelous!!
Never heard these pieces til today.. would not have heard it and concluded it was Schubert.. sounds more like movies soundtracks for action scenes to me...pianists here did a great job making it sound musical... While it to me as written seems largely mechanical, as if Schubert was testing new things to try on a piano. Lacks the haunting melodies I associate with Schubert. posters commentary are also quite interesting!
14:11
Solokov must not be familiar with time or meter because the first piece is butchered from all the rubato. "Weird" is too polite.
Unexpectedly harsh tone by Sokolov in nr 3. I'm not convinced by his choice of tempi in nr 2 either. Personally I found in Pollini's live recording of this set, available on youtube, the best rendition thereof
5:28
It's embarrassing, I don't know exactly why I cannot appreciate Sokolov. It must be personal...because it cannot be an artistic aversion!
Fell like that about Lang Lang....lol
If Lang Lang puts on airs and prances around, then Sokolov is the stiff-lipped, contemplative renaissance man. He is a pragmatist- if an idea is good, however simple, it is still worth doing well. I tend to agree with this interpretive focus he puts forth.
@@ninjaassassin27 Good for you.
35:23 35:25
Que bello es SUBERT me gusto mucho . obra desconosida para mi
So beautiful, thanks for uploading ❤
20:25
These interpretations are both world class, they can't compete with the one from Brendel tho.
Thank you! I've been looking for these pieces!
IM ALWAYS HERE FOR UR ANALYSIS WHERE IS YOUR ANALYSIS MAN????
OMG MY FAV SHUBERT'S PIECE
i already listened to it 5 times completely
Wow
I honestly felt that the first one was largely Mozartian, with a little bit of Liszt and VERY Beethovenian..... But nothing beats Schubert's originality in the other two!
Amazing thanks
Where can I download these sheet music?))
IMSLP
video downlod helper for firefox.
20:27 sounds strangely Christmassy
The second trio of the second piece is in A Flat Minor, not in E flat minor like you wrote down above, nice job however, i love your work!!
Sokolov better version, more liveliness
39:21 awwwww that A natural! So eerie!
it sounds bechstein to sokolov
Would you consider uploading Liszts Mephisto Waltz No3
There are 3?? I only thought there was one.
Anthony Gaming There are 4. No 3 is one of my favourites
Classical Music Lover oh boy and I thought one was amazing I have 3 more to listen to yessss!
Anthony Gaming Enjoy them ;) They are very advanced and creative in their harmonic language. Liszt was a genius
I love Mephisto Walz 3
55:10
20:28
I'm here for Seo InWoo 👍
Beautiful pieces!
Bravo.....
34:16
Where do I find the score for Andantino of 09:24?
The Wiener urtext edition has it. I studied it
ashish, you choose volodos for rachmaninoff piano concerto 3, could you recommend us other interpretations? i think it's a work who deserves deeper dedication. thx! (and i trust in you)
Weissenberg maybe ?
Horowitz... with Reiner!
10:15
i prefer Brendel's interpretation
激情澎湃的演奏，谢谢
23:00
More Schubert! Yes!
yay, another post! 5th
This is awesome, thank you.
Ooooooh yes!!!
Adverts in the middle of a movement is an act of violence. Thus a thumbs down from me.