JAVS Fall 2000

23

VIOLA CONCERTO IN E-FLAT MAJOR BY JOSEPH SCHUBERT

An example from the parts (shown above) will highlight one of these changes. It was noted earlier that the original music contained six wind parts, whereas the revised music contains twelve. Unfortunately, these original wind parts are no longer extant. However, we glimpse a part of them in the preceding excerpt. In it are the oboe and clarinet parts of the revised version from measure 81 of the second movement. Printed below this are the violin parts in the A hand, which contain wind cues presumably from the original wind parts: (4) The Band C parts were prepared. The changes referred to above were incorporated into these parts. The C parts are the ripieno parts (mentioned earlier and to be discussed more fully below) and were prepared from A. (5) Both violin A parts dropped out of use. (6) The composer added a transition from the second to third movements. The music was copied into the remaining string parts. (7) The extant wind parts were prepared. All of the above-mentioned changes were incorpo rated into these parts. As an example, note measures 46-48 from the first movement excerpted below. The violin parts (from the original version) contain cues from the oboe parts; however, these cue notes must refer to the original oboe parts, as the extant (revised) parts contain different notes.

be-

!'- !'- !'- !'- .p.

!'- !'- !'- !'- !'- .p.

II I

fortissi fortissi:

~

Ob.

II I

,.

o-

=--o......l

,.

~

ob: ~ ~ ~ f . oboi

b~ 6.

lfj~~f

II I ) : I ~

I

for:

<-

Vlns. (A)

t

for

'1

.,j'

I

I

~ I

~

~

<-

;b:

Example 2. Schubert, Viola Concerto in E-jlat Major, I, mm. 46-48, original version. Compare the oboe cues in the violin parts with the actual oboe parts.

(8) Copyist D, likely the soloist, added articulation markings, ornamentation, and cadenzas to the solo part. 21

The surviving parts, therefore, are a mix of the original parts (the string parts in the A hand) and other parts at various stages of the concerto's development. Even though we can arrive at a 'final version' of the orchestral parts, the solo part is quite different. It contains editorial changes (presumably added by the soloist for the performance of the revised version) that reveal trends of the emerging Romantic era, specifically slurs across barlines. The modern performer, therefore, must choose how to handle these differences of approach. Major Changes Numerous large and small changes to the orchestral parts testify to the evolution of this concerto. Three major structural changes, one in each movement, greatly alter the shape of the work and, at the same time, provide support for the proposed history of the versions. The change to the sec ond movement is the most notable, as it makes use of a Romantic device, namely, the linking of movements.