Schubert

Schubert, FRANZ PETER (1797-1828), one of the greatest of musicians, was born in VIenna of a musical family, and at the age of seven became a pupil of one Michael Holzer. His family did not desire him to become a professlona1 musician, having the idea that he would do better in some other walk of life. His remarkable genius was so soon manifested that he composed some beautiful pieces while almost an infant, and his excellent voice procured him admission to the choir of the Imperial Chape1. His father was a hnmble schoolmaster, and gave him a fairly good education, and, to his disappointment, he was obhged to assist him in the tuition of the school, thus interrupting rather seriously his musical studies. He was enabled to take lessons from Salieri, and after a time began to teach pupils himself as a means of livelihood. He was at this time, as all through h1s later career, a most volnminous composer, attempting every branch of the art, and completing sonatas, operas, masses, overtures, symphonies, and cantatas. His first mass in E fiat which was found among the enormous quantity of MSS. he left behind him, is a magnificent work. He was a great admirer of Beethoven, and felt something like reverence for that master. Beethoven recognised his genius also, being one of the few who did so during Schubert's life. He was much disappointed at the lack of appreciation of his earlier operas and other ambitions works, and died in Vienna where he had mostly lived, of a fever. It is curious, seeing his notable feeling for Beethoven's music, that there is so little sign of the latter's influence in his works. He was a most strikingly original composer, and was perhaps at his best as a song-writer. His songs, which number about six hundred, are often perfect, and give the highest expression known to music of the sense of harmony and melody. It has often been regretted that his early masters did not more strictly supervise his budding genius, as otherwise there can be no donbt that he would have done work as memorable in other branches as in that of the lyric; but his teachers used to exclaim that his powers were so astonishing that they could not teach him anything. He set 67 of Goethe's and 54 of Schiller's songs to music. Schumann said of him that he could have set a placard to music, and Vogl described his glorious lyrics as "divine inspirations - utterances of a musical clarvoyance." Despite his marvellous gifts, Schubert had much difficulty in inducing the publishers to take his compositions, and when he died he left a tremendous mass of MSS. to his brother, which his friends and admirers proceeded to get published as speedi1y as possible, and even now that process of publication is going on. Schubert was buried near Beethoven in Vienna. Liszt has done a great deal to spread a knowledge of Schubert's genius, and was a passionate admirer of his works. Schubert wrote with great rapidity, 1815 being his most prolific year. His life has been often written. A complete list of his works is in Grove's Dictionary of Music.