Classical Music | Piano Music

Recorded on 03/04/2009, uploaded on 05/29/2009

Musician's or Publisher's Notes

Die Forelle ("The Trout") is one of Franz Schubert's most popular Lieder. Composed in 1817, Schubert later used its familiar melody as the basis for the variations in the fourth movement of his Piano Quintet in A major, known as the "Trout" Quintet. Later in 1846, it was also one of the many Lieder that Franz Liszt adapted for piano solo.

The poem used by Schubert, written by Christian Schubart, describes a trout swimming through a brook and the poet's indignation when an angler unfairly catches it. The accompaniment of Schubert's settings is built around a motif of rising sextuplets depicting the trout motion in the water. The vocal melody is a superb example of Schubert's remarkable ability to achieve the high levels of art song yet maintain the simplicity of folk music.

Liszt's transcription of Die Forelle is largely an embellishment of Schubert's Lied. Liszt first gives an extended introduction based on the accompaniment's characteristic motif. The melody is first heard in the middle of the texture and then shifts to the upper voice on repetition. Liszt's adaptation becomes increasing virtuosic, inserting several improvisatory-like passages of scales and arpeggios.     Joseph DuBose

Courtesy of International Music Foundation.