Classical Music | Music for Saxophone

Recorded on 08/12/2012, uploaded on 12/13/2012

Musician's or Publisher's Notes

(originally written for the horn, transcribed for the saxophone).

The Adagio and Allegro dates from 1849, when Schumann was in good health and spirits, and producing music with greater ease and speed than at almost any other time in his life — some thirty works date from what he referred to as "my most fruitful year." He originally composed the piece for French horn and piano but specified it could be performed by other instruments, specifically the cello or the violin.  More recently, it has been taken up by oboists and clarinetists, and today is performed on soprano saxophone.

It is a work of optimism and good cheer whose two contrasting movements achieve a particularly satisfying formal balance.  The dark opening section is suffused with a melancholy cast, but this vanishes at the second section, marked “Fast and fiery.” The Allegro bursts to life here in a flurry of triplets, and this music demands athletic playing through a very wide range. A quiet interlude provides some relief before the exciting rush to the close.       Michael Krenn

Courtesy of International Music Foundation.