Schubert's achingly beautiful melody

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Schubert's achingly beautiful melody

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6 ай бұрын

Schubert's Impromptu Op.90 No.3 in Gb Major.
I've never really found this piece all that interesting when I was younger but with time, the apparent simplicity of this piece revealed itself as something much more profound than I had originally thought.
The opening bars could hardly be simpler but it's exactly that which makes it almost surprising to the listener, the Eb minor chord colouring the same note differently after three iterations of the same Gb major chord.
Of course, Schubert is a master of melodies and his supporting harmonies take surprising turns in different tonalities while always maintaining a careful and perfectly balanced discourse.
Recording (Horowitz): • Vladimir Horowitz - ...
Contact me for lessons in composition or analysis: skylarlimex@gmail.com

Пікірлер: 388

@davidmfoxe 6 ай бұрын

Ebb and flow

@skylarlimex 6 ай бұрын

Underrated comment

@mymatemartin 6 ай бұрын

@@skylarlimex Yes, it did fall rather flat.

@MikehMike01 6 ай бұрын

this video was really boring

@walturwhit 6 ай бұрын

@@MikehMike01 no one asked

@andytinganyang4706 6 ай бұрын

@@MikehMike01you’ll get it

@StoneChords 6 ай бұрын

My father (doctor by profession) taught himself to play this , and was quite good. He taught it to me when I was a young man. He wooed my stepmother with it in their courtship days. 40 years later, I played it during his long decline in health, and finally, on his piano at home during home hospice, when he could no longer communicate, but would conduct his fingers as I played. And then I played it as his funeral. When he was alive, and could still communicate, this would be the piece that could bring him into sharpest emotional focus (he would weep throughout, and tell me afterward it's impossible not to, because it's so F-ing gorgeous). This perfect composition has touched the lives of millions; this is how it touched my family and me.

@Fire-jk8ye 6 ай бұрын

What a wonderful day to be able to read, thank you for sharing

@luigipirandello5919 6 ай бұрын

Beautiful words. Thank you.

@analogman9697 6 ай бұрын

We should all be as fortunate as you to have that close a bond with our Dads.

@Beth-yb2kv 6 ай бұрын

What a beautiful story. And such lovely music. I’m sorry for the loss of your beloved father.

@e.conboy4286 6 ай бұрын

You must

@TheRealJoseramirez 6 ай бұрын

One of my favourite composers. And died at 31 years of age. We can only wonder at what he would have achieved had he lived another 20 years.

@spanishpeaches2930 6 ай бұрын

If hadn't been shagging around..and caught syphillis...he'd have bewn around a lot longer.

@sandrapaton3787 6 ай бұрын

Apparently God took him because he had already done his Best!

@blazingchris5048 5 ай бұрын

@@sandrapaton3787Well, I'm not sure about God. Franz had syphilis and died of thyphoïd fever...

@sandrapaton3787 5 ай бұрын

@@blazingchris5048 oops! Quite right God didn’t have a hand in that mess!

@commontater8630 5 ай бұрын

@@sandrapaton3787 You're being ironic, I hope.

@TeslasMoustache419 6 ай бұрын

That Ebb note is magical.

@MrAzureJames 6 ай бұрын

what would it be microtonally?

@DavM310 6 ай бұрын

It's not microtonal

@aldeayeah 6 ай бұрын

@@MrAzureJames E𝄳𝄳𝄳𝄳

@felixclm 6 ай бұрын

@@MrAzureJamesno, just 2 half steps from E (D)

@MrAzureJames 6 ай бұрын

@@felixclm if it were on an antique microtonal organ it would just be D?

@404NotFoundLambSauce 6 ай бұрын

The two sets of impromptues written by Schubert are in my opinion the most beautiful piano work ever created.

@skylarlimex 6 ай бұрын

It's even more incredible on some accounts on how fast he wrote them! I read somewhere that he'd written this particular one in a day!

@gmnotyet 6 ай бұрын

@@skylarlimex OMG

@cblse 6 ай бұрын

Is music created.... or discovered?

@user-sg4ov7ng4h 6 ай бұрын

@@cblseis that a philosophical question? whats your answer?

@cblse 6 ай бұрын

@@user-sg4ov7ng4h I suppose it is a philosophical question. I don't have a ready answer just an intuitive leaning. It seems to me that beauty exists in the world and geniuses reveal it to us.

@amadeus5889 6 ай бұрын

This will forever be one of my favorite piano pieces. If there’s an afterlife, this is what it sounds like to glimpse it.

@analogman9697 6 ай бұрын

There is a Heaven, and the music there will make this sound like a squeaky wheel.

@amadeus5889 6 ай бұрын

@@analogman9697 I don’t personally believe that, but if you do, I’m happy for you.

@MsDormy 6 ай бұрын

I believe in heaven, and am happy to believe that this impromptu is a glimpse …. God bless Schubert.

@user-sg4ov7ng4h 6 ай бұрын

@@analogman9697why are we trashing good musicians tho and comparing it to smth youve never heard yet

@valerietaylor9615 6 ай бұрын

If there is a Heaven, I hope I’ll be able to meet all the great composers and hear them play their own music, as it sounded originally. 🎼

@JIM-ot4ws 6 ай бұрын

One of the most exquisite bitter-sweet pieces ever, I used to play it many years ago. It is one of those pieces that just grabs you!

@parrotlover9035 6 ай бұрын

I couldn't agree more. The tears flow every time.

@greghill7759 6 ай бұрын

As a twelve-year old, my first introduction to Schubert was "The Trout". I found it so dull and stilted that I never bothered to listen to another piece from him. Years later, his "Impromptu" shocked me with its sensitivity, and I then went on to discover his "Serenade", which in my opinion is one of the most elegant, soulful, and erotic compositions ever written.

@GreenTeaViewer 6 ай бұрын

I loved the ""Trout" when I heard it at around the same age. I often wonder why we have certain reactions hardwired into us at a young age.

@greghill7759 6 ай бұрын

@@GreenTeaViewer Well, whenever I hear "The Trout", I want to run away, so it may possibly be part of our individual survival instincts!

@valerietaylor9615 6 ай бұрын

I first heard “ The Trout” ( “ Die Forelle”, in German) when I was seventeen, and loved it. I love all of Schubert’s songs, but one of my favorites is “An Die Musik” ( “To Music”). In that song, the singer thanks the art of music for transporting him/her to a better world ( the words are by Schubert’s friend, Franz von Schober.) I also adore the song cycle, “Die Schöne Müllerin“ ( „The Miller‘s Beautiful Daughter.“)

@julianbrelsford 6 ай бұрын

There are a lot of reasons why a kid might love or hate "the trout" or any other piece of music, but the context in which it is performed and the quality of performance are pretty darn important.

@joeballog6566 6 ай бұрын

The Trout is such a lovely, joyous piece of music. And so unhurried. When he gets to the end, he does the whole thing again, note for note, in a different key! It's like floating down the river in a punt on a relaxing afternoon. You are really selling it short by allowing your 12-year-old self to have the final word on it.

@KarlRKaiser 6 ай бұрын

Chopin's first Etude in Op.25, in a-flat, also starts with a repeated "so", first five times, followed by "la" and then "so" five more times. It is also accompanied by an undulating left-hand line to create motion under the stillness.

@jimcoughlin4057 6 ай бұрын

I discovered this piece too late in life, I have played it now for years but it never ceases to grip my soul and bring me to tears. It is simple, yet requires such skill!

@ellybargmusic 6 ай бұрын

I haven't heard this piece before but this really is stunning! I feel like Schubert is so underrated and it's always great to find new pieces that are pretty but reasonably simple to play. Thanks for sharing this gem ♥

@skylarlimex 6 ай бұрын

Schubert is grossly underrated really...

@vibey8558 6 ай бұрын

@@skylarlimex agreed! Had Schubert lived longer, I reckon he might have reached the likes of Mozart and Beethoven

@skylarlimex 6 ай бұрын

@@vibey8558 I think he might have even surpassed them considering what he had already achieved by such a young age

@castheeuwes1085 6 ай бұрын

@@skylarlimex Yep. At their ends, Beethoven was on a dead end, and Mozart was pretty much finished, same Bach. Schubert was still rolling!

@daftheck1439 6 ай бұрын

i want to forget this piece just to discover it again you lucky 😁

@mustafaweewees 6 ай бұрын

Beautiful ... I can hear strains from Schubert's own ' Ave Maria '

@parrotlover9035 6 ай бұрын

The first time I heard this Impromptu, its beauty hooked me for life. I especially love Horowitz's interpretation.

@feraudyh 6 ай бұрын

I remember a concert at a friend's place where this was played. Some people cried .

@johnchessant3012 6 ай бұрын

Schubert is so awesome

@luuktorn 6 ай бұрын

One of my favourite pieces by Schubert. It's so beautiful ❤️

@andrewmildinhall8210 6 ай бұрын

Schubert is the only composer who frequently reduces me to tears. There is often so much pain but joy as as well of course. Which is how life is and perhaps that's the point. More than any other composer Schubert' s music is essentially about the human condition. Its brutally honest and therein lies it's greatness.

@terencemeikle534 4 ай бұрын

That slow movement of the String Quintet, in particular. It has a similar effect upon me to the slow movement of Rachmaninoff's second concerto. They reduce me to a wreck. I can cry simply by hearing them in my head.

@nicolasgoosen5142 6 ай бұрын

I've never had such a good music appreciation lesson - thank you!

@skylarlimex 6 ай бұрын

Ahh that's very kind of you! Thanks for the comment

@Capochin950 6 ай бұрын

Schubert was a creative genius.Not of this world but from a heavenly place.

@pauldrapiewski6761 6 ай бұрын

There is other composer in the history of music who created so much music, of the most astounding quality, at such an early age. He died at 32! Most composers, if they had died at that point, even Beethoven, would not be nearly so famous. Just imagine if he had lived decades more. Perhaps he would have been declared the greatest of all time. Interesting that the three great composers who died at a very early age Schubert, Chopin and Mozart, are also the ones who had a body of work worthy of a very long lifetime. This Impromptu always brings tears to my eyes Is there anything more beautiful?

@eyuin5716 6 ай бұрын

He was actually only 31 when he died.

@taniacummings9207 6 ай бұрын

@@eyuin5716Then he had lived 32 years.

@eyuin5716 6 ай бұрын

@@taniacummings9207 He lived from 1797 - 1828. Did you flunk out of basic math?

@janiidekock 6 ай бұрын

add the months from birth to death and you will probably then discover he lived more than 31 years .. which I think is what the '32' was alluding to. 😊

@SMtWalkerS 6 ай бұрын

I know nothing about classical music. I find this enchanting.

@stillbill6408 6 ай бұрын

Welcome to the most beautiful of all music; a wonderful adventure awaits you. Embrace it.

@Kodexj 6 ай бұрын

You dont have to know anything, just enjoy it. Honestly the only thing stopping people from loving all genres is preconceptio s

@pegasus5287 6 ай бұрын

Listen to clair de lune

@paullewis2413 6 ай бұрын

The famous Russian composer Rachmaninov very accurately said - “ Music is enough for a lifetime but a lifetime is not enough for music”. Couldn’t agree more.

@deedeechur 4 ай бұрын

If you find this enchanting you know just enough ✨☺️

@user-wu3ly6cl3b 6 ай бұрын

I first heard this around 5 years ago when I watched Michael haneke’s film Amour and it has truly stuck with me since. I think it is one of the most beautiful pieces ever written… thank you for your video.

@Jean-rg4sp 6 ай бұрын

I never studied music so I have no understanding of all the writing but I can appreciate the melody on this piano and I wished to hear more.

@jasoncoleman3611 6 ай бұрын

I learned a few instruments. Piano was my first. It's it a very advanced key and the Melodie is so subtle it is the equivalent of triple purified water. Pure perfection and beauty. My guess is only older souls could interpret this piece properly.

@commontater8630 5 ай бұрын

This piece is from Schubert's Opus 90, a set of four impromptus. That set was followed by another set of four, Opus 142 (D. 899 and D. 935 respectively). Look them up, you won't be sorry.

@stillnessflowing9480 6 ай бұрын

Schubert's Impromptus are all beautiful. No 2 has a section with triplets where the first note of each triplet forms the most beautiful melody inside a beautiful melody of triplets. They're all quite subtle, and complex compositions.

@justusmache8814 6 ай бұрын

Such a lovely piece! I always feel that the second phrase starting bar 9 is picked up by Schumann in "Dichterliebe"s first song "Im wunderschlnen Monat Mai" where this phrase is combined with the text "Da ist in meinem Herzenen, die iebe aufgegangen / In my heart, love has risen". Which for me also perfectly matches the feel I get when hearing this phrase in the Schubert impromptu!

@mateojames3231 6 ай бұрын

I sung Im wunderschonen. I didn’t realize that until you pointed it out. Im wunderschonen was an emotional roller coaster of a piece for my Senior Recital. The use of the dominant never finding a resolution. Beautiful.

@cjams115 6 ай бұрын

I came here to comment the same thing

@freeguy77 Ай бұрын

His Great Symphony #9 was my favorite, and first heard it in Music Appreciation class, along with many other composers' best classical pieces. Beethoven's 7th is another of my favorite symphonic pieces!

@sammyr713 6 ай бұрын

I started playing this piece as the flawless recordings make it sound relatively easy and 'flowy'. Imagine my shock when I realised how difficult it actually was to retain the melody notes and make them stand out.

@johntyjp 6 ай бұрын

I have Schubert s Unfinished on a set of 78s, conducted by Sir Henry Wood that I still love to play! I must get them transferred to a DVD🧐

@Max-du9oj 6 ай бұрын

It’s incredible because on KZfaq videos I’ve seen, nobody seems to realize that Horowitz, who’s the interpret here, does a stunning re-harmonization of the original score at 0:23 🔥

@secrets7301 6 ай бұрын

I adore this piece, especially this interpretation by Horowitz. It's heart breaking.

@albertperson4013 6 ай бұрын

I love Schubert for his ability to mimic other very famous composers yet compose original themes.

@malicant123 6 ай бұрын

This is instantly calming.

@Firebrand55 6 ай бұрын

Excellent analysis...beautiful music written on paper brought to life!

@danutahull9319 6 ай бұрын

A beautiful brilliant Schubert composition ⭐️

@barcarolleenjoyer 6 ай бұрын

Also: note that Horowitz modifies the score at 0:22, instead of going directly from I-vi, he goes I-V7-vi (V7 is dominant seventh, idk music theory well enough to know what the correct term for it is)

@skylarlimex 6 ай бұрын

Interesting because I didn't hear that in other interpretations

@gahlol7069 6 ай бұрын

Yup I suspect it’s a Horowitz thing but a very good addition to this repeated phrase where it continues to the vi.

@barcarolleenjoyer 6 ай бұрын

@@skylarlimex yeah Horowitz loves playing with the score and making his improvements

@jamesandrewes9640 6 ай бұрын

The modification comes originally from Liszt, who edited Schubert's Impromptus in the late 1860s, in an edition published by Cotta. In addition to this harmonic change, Liszt - more significantly - develops the return to the A section by putting it up the octave, with rolling arpeggios in the left hand. Horowitz is not playing the Liszt version, but he must have liked that small harmonic change enough to add it into his own performance of Schubert's original.

@skylarlimex 6 ай бұрын

@@jamesandrewes9640 thanks for that very interesting side note! I definitely wouldn't have known that

@morphicmusic 6 ай бұрын

Thank you for making this! I enjoy this kind of content!

@sharonevelynmclaren6274 6 ай бұрын

Beautiful piece from long ago. ❤❤❤

@pjesf 3 ай бұрын

This man’s music was a gift to the world ❤

@josephhenry4725 4 ай бұрын

It is just beautiful.

@johnrobinsoniii4028 6 ай бұрын

This Piano masterpiece has lots of emotional involvement.

@lionelalberts2650 6 ай бұрын

Such a sad beautiful serene melody.

@MrPienaarza 4 ай бұрын

Soothing for the soul, thank you!

@JediMaestr0 Ай бұрын

I played this one just a couple days ago! This one and the E flat impromptu are both super pretty and fun to play.

@Zerpentsa6598 6 ай бұрын

Yes. One of my favourite piano pieces.

@xenopis7862 6 ай бұрын

This piece is currently in my repertoire, and I have to say this is one of the most beautiful piano pieces I have ever heard. And, surprisingly challenging in some ways. My piano is terrible at the moment so the voicing is quite difficult to achieve at the moment but still, whenever I get to play this piece on my teachers piano, it is an absolute treat.

@thorstambaugh1520 6 ай бұрын

To tease the resolution so masterfully

@cyruschang9430 6 ай бұрын

Amazing piece! Btw it kinda reminds me of Liebestraum no.3

@hermeticinstrumentalist6804 6 ай бұрын

Very pretty. Thank you.

@josephdunlap6747 5 ай бұрын

Melodically beautiful! Bravo! 🙏🙏❤️

@Hjominbonrun 13 күн бұрын

I like the Schnabel interpretation of this. It doesn't have to be played slowly to be beautiful.

@extanegautham8950 4 ай бұрын

i saw ur title and immediately thought, no, said out loud, "which one!..." great analysis

@patriciap6519 5 ай бұрын

SCHUBERT WROTE MUSIC FROM HIS HEART AND SOUL. Every one of these Impromptus have a special place in mine.

@horationelson57 6 ай бұрын

Achingly beautiful. Indeed. And a wonderful tonic, a refuge for only a few, gentle souls who care to take the time to listen

@user-kx3pq6mf6u 5 ай бұрын

Virtually everything that Schubert composed was perfection. Shame we don't have composers like this today.

@barrymcguinness2087 6 ай бұрын

It's beautiful

@wicksp335 6 ай бұрын

That is beautiful.

@scronx 6 ай бұрын

Sensitive playing.

@charlessomerset9754 6 ай бұрын

I wouldnt go so far as to say achingly. Barber's Adagio is achingly beautiful. This is more like pleasantly pretty.

@brucejackson4219 6 ай бұрын

A sublime composition.

@johnb3289 6 ай бұрын

Thank you for your wonderful analysis. Sing several of his lieder, and mourn the shortness of his life.

@loveonly000 4 ай бұрын

Only a beautiful mind can create such beauty ❤

@MayMay-fe2ki Ай бұрын

Thanks for your guidance.

@jamesshanahan7867 6 ай бұрын

awesome--would love to see more videos like this,. Very nice work.

@anled.composition 6 ай бұрын

Great analysis again, well done !

@skylarlimex 6 ай бұрын

Thanks as always!

@LukeFaulkner 4 ай бұрын

In Horowitz's hands every note and harmony makes sense. True mastery!

@ejvindgeckler4951 6 ай бұрын

Very beautifully played. Thank you.

@markneedham752 6 ай бұрын

I saw a Professor explain why a certain person, their personality denied them, from ever finding a partner. A million words to say, "the person is not nice." Now, Mr. Schubert..."That was beautiful."

@user-vl6ot6oo4e 6 ай бұрын

It's beautiful...I heard it quite a while back but didn't make a note of the title...Thanks

@herambaanjaneya2041 6 ай бұрын

Lovely! Absolutely lovely!❤

@gsm2424 5 ай бұрын

I didn't know this piece. Thank you, it is beautiful beyond words...

@user-rs2nb6ng8h 4 ай бұрын

Absolutely beautiful! I look forward to learning how to play this piece!

@margarethansen7480 6 ай бұрын

Great analysis!! Thanks❤👏👏

@gahlol7069 6 ай бұрын

You should cover the no. 1 of this op 90 too. It’s magical and emotional. A big adventure

@skylarlimex 6 ай бұрын

Definitely one of my favourites!

@ireneyoung8696 6 ай бұрын

Beautiful.

@nseim27 6 ай бұрын

I just played this last year! A wonderful piece, a ton of fun to learn and play. I didn't do much in-depth analysis of the theory though; this would've helped me a bit with my interpretation lol. Regardless, it's one of the most beautiful pieces I've ever played.

@skylarlimex 6 ай бұрын

You can try playing it again and see how much it changes!

@eoarwyn 6 ай бұрын

I loved this so much as a student I had to write lyrics to it ❤️ So charming yet bittersweet

@mortonbaychestnut4072 6 ай бұрын

Thanks so much!

@BobK5 6 ай бұрын

Raw genius, Schubert 😎

@jaypeej7830 6 ай бұрын

This Impromptu is probably Mendelssohn's inspiration for "Songs Without Words"

@celiagoldstein1806 6 ай бұрын

fun fact i have sobbed to this song

@sarahk.7302 6 ай бұрын

My favorite Schubert piece is ‘Fantasie in F Minor’ for two hands piano💛

@skylarlimex 6 ай бұрын

A classic!

@carryfreak5059 6 ай бұрын

I have played that one

@sverrearnes7769 6 ай бұрын

Watching what is happening around the world, it is hard to believe in an God. But when listening to this, it is like I want to give Him a chance ...

@marieclaude5360 5 ай бұрын

Très belle interprétation, toute en nuance, toute en retenue. Merci !

@jospenner9503 5 ай бұрын

Wonderful analysis. I would enjoy a full performance, bitte.

@whocares_bear 5 ай бұрын

"You are so beautiful to me...."

@dennysmith7862 6 ай бұрын

Arlna Hartshorne introduced me to Classical music... A group of us would pay R2.50 each (or less) to listen to full Cape Town Philharmonic orchestra on a Sunday evening at Cape Town City Hall... She once played a solo Wagnerian operetta for a week and advising not to attend as Wagner was depressing... Hope wherever she is she's doing well...

@ankavoskuilen1725 6 ай бұрын

Very nice way to explain the music! Thank you very much!

@skylarlimex 6 ай бұрын

Thank you for watching!

@shailen824 6 ай бұрын

oh! This video is wonderful thank you so much. It's one of my favorites to play. I think my favorite note in this section is the C natural in the measure at 1:37.

@OctopusContrapunctus 6 ай бұрын

I am practicing this piece right now in this very moment. I just wanted to take a break from and I sea infront of me😂

@agucci 6 ай бұрын

Schubert was a good composer. ❤

@cecilgriffiths6399 4 ай бұрын

Beautifully played 🙏❤️

@operaguy1 6 ай бұрын

Has an f-flat ever broken open the heart as tenderly?

@51saphire 5 ай бұрын

Beautiful!

@Chompanito 6 ай бұрын

Reminds of me of Liszt's Liebestraum, shockingly similar-but both near entirely unique to each other.

@egay86292 6 ай бұрын

love the achingly beautiful coughs.

@C_Domnick_Fair 6 ай бұрын

never heard of consequent or antecedent so thanks for teaching me that

@jimmybyun Ай бұрын

That Horowitz can really play! 😮‍💨

@shuyu4829 5 ай бұрын

町田樹さんの「継ぐもの」が脳内に再生されます。一音一音をステップや滑りやジャンプに替えてアーティスト町田樹の誕生。

@caesarsen5944 6 ай бұрын

Thanks. I have compiled my own requeim to be played on my last journey, along with this piece there are other pieces, e. g. Saint Saens "Dying Swan" and Brahms's 1st movement of "A German Requeim" and some other Baroque pieces by Albinoni et al.