Franz Schubert

Who is Franz Schubert?

Franz Schubert was an Austrian composer born in Vienna, celebrated as a master of the early Romantic era despite dying at only thirty-one. In his short life he produced an extraordinary body of work, including more than six hundred songs (Lieder), symphonies, sacred music, operas, and a large quantity of piano and chamber music. His song cycles Die schöne Müllerin and Winterreise transformed the art song into a major genre, marrying poetry and music with unprecedented emotional depth. His instrumental masterpieces include the Unfinished Symphony, the Great C major Symphony, the String Quintet in C major, and the Trout Quintet. Largely unrecognized commercially during his lifetime, Schubert was supported by a circle of friends and admirers in gatherings that came to be called Schubertiades. His reputation grew enormously after his death, and he is now considered one of the greatest composers of the nineteenth century.

Sources: Elizabeth Norman McKay, Franz Schubert: A Biography, 1996 · Brian Newbould, Schubert: The Music and the Man, 1997 · Otto Erich Deutsch, Schubert: Thematic Catalogue of All His Works, 1951