Written when he was just 15 years old, Webern’s two pieces for Cello and Piano are possibly the first pieces the composer ever wrote. This heartfelt work unabashedly wears romanticism and youth on its sleeve.As early as the work is, a nascent inclination toward distillation and sparseness is in evidence, traits that are hallmarks of Webern’s mature voice. Webern’s entire output lasts only 2.5 hours — about the length of the very shortest of Wagners operas. Yet what his music lacks in duration it makes up for in expression. Webern manages to reduce intense and passionate feeling in music to microscopic events. For Webern, a single sigh can embody a world of expression. Alexander Hersh
Classical Music | Cello Music
Alban Berg
Langsam in F Major Play
Recorded on 11/27/2019, uploaded on 06/26/2020
Musician's or Publisher's Notes
Written when he was just 15 years old, Webern’s two pieces for Cello and Piano are possibly the first pieces the composer ever wrote. This heartfelt work unabashedly wears romanticism and youth on its sleeve. As early as the work is, a nascent inclination toward distillation and sparseness is in evidence, traits that are hallmarks of Webern’s mature voice. Webern’s entire output lasts only 2.5 hours — about the length of the very shortest of Wagners operas. Yet what his music lacks in duration it makes up for in expression. Webern manages to reduce intense and passionate feeling in music to microscopic events. For Webern, a single sigh can embody a world of expression. Alexander Hersh
More music by Alban Berg
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Sonata Op. 1
Lieder Op. 4, no. 2
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Lieder Op. 4, no. 3
Schilflied, from Sieben frühe Lieder
Wozzeck, Act II, Scene 1
Die Nachtigall, from Sieben frühe Lieder
Wozzeck, Act II, Scene 2
Performances by same musician(s)
Sonata for Cello and Piano
String Quartet in E-flat Major, Op. 127
String Quartet No.1 in a minor, Op. 41, No. 1
Sonata for Cello and Piano
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