Connecting with Schubert’s delicate sensibility

For our concert in June, I and my sister are preparing a sonatina for piano and violin by Franz Schubert (1797–1821). Positioned in the grey area between the Classical and Romantic periods, Schubert’s presence tends to be somewhat overshadowed by two towering figures: Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827), an undeniable genius, and Felix Mendelssohn (1809–1847), who achieved remarkable success both musically and socially.

Looking at Schubert’s life, it seems that his boundless talent was unfortunately not fully recognized during his lifetime. In the world of music, fame is often shaped by connections and chance, and it is both fortunate and ironic that his works—largely unappreciated while he was alive—later gained recognition in part through performances conducted by the already celebrated Mendelssohn.

The piece we will perform in June, Sonatina for Piano and Violin in D major, Op. 137 No. 1 (D 384), was composed when Schubert was just 19 years old. In Schubert’s own manuscript, it is titled “Violin Sonata,” but in the edition published after his death, it was given the name “Sonatina,” implying a miniature version of a sonata.

It is said that his teacher, Salieri, criticized his compositional style as merely imitating Haydn and Mozart. However, whenever I listen to Schubert’s music, I always sense a distinct “Schubertian” quality. It lies in the ever-shifting interplay between major and minor modes, or in the subtle changes of tonality. These contrasts are never theatrical; they can be bold, yet they remain consistently delicate.

It is like a cloudy sky briefly pierced by sunlight—just as you notice it, it fades away, followed by a sudden rain shower, which then quietly stops again…

These changes in the “weather” seem to mirror the most sensitive and intimate corners of the human heart. A slightly shadowed accent within warm brightness can feel like a gentle sting to the heart. Yet this is never dramatic in the way Beethoven might be.

And perhaps because Schubert composed so many deeply moving songs in German language, even when his music is written for the violin, I feel as though I can hear the German language within it.

How deeply can I open my heart to Schubert’s honest music? How fully can I express its delicacy through the violin?

These are my challenges of this time.