Schubert's sonata for piano 4-hands in C Major, usually known as the Grand Duo, is his largest work for piano duo and one of the greatest of works ever composed for this instrumentation. Like many of Schubert's mature piano compositions, the Grand Duo (not the composer's title, by the way) seems to burst the bounds of its genre, and the writing -- although undeniably pianistic in some places -- also teems with what seem to be orchestral effects in piano dress.
It was this duality in the character of the music that led Robert Schumann and others to suspect that this sonata might be in fact a 4-hand draft of a symphony which Schubert was believed to have composed at Gastein. More modern research has proved that the so-called "Gastein symphony" was in reality the work now universally known as the "Great" C Major Symphony (# 9 in the conventional numbering).
However, in the 1800s the first of a number of attempts to orchestrate the Grand Duo was made by the noted violinist, conductor and composer Joseph Joachim. There have been other versions made by other hands since then, but the Joachim version was the first to become known -- due in part to the enthusiastic advocacy of Sir Donald Tovey -- and the first to be recorded, under Toscanini in the 1920s. It has also achieved the distinction of being recorded twice. The second time, much more recent, was laid down in the late 1980s by the Chamber Orchestra of Europe under Claudio Abbado, as part of a cycle of the complete Schubert symphonies for DGG.
Some purists may cringe at the idea of listening to an arrangement by other hands of Schubert's great piano work. There are also those who find Joachim's orchestration dull and boring, and not worth the trouble of playing or listening.
It's clear right from the get-go that Abbado and company suffer from no such scruples or doubts. In line with the interpretation of the other seven standard symphonies, the orchestration of the Grand Duo is treated to a lively, bright-eyed performance finely recorded in a rich but clean acoustic.
The first movement is one of Schubert's rich outpourings of melody, yet remains firmly controlled within the classical sonata-form structure. One of the most striking moments is the series of rising modulations that carries the key from the tonic to the dominant for the second subject. In the recapitulation this sequence becomes an even longer ladder rising through still more keys to finally land the second subject in the tonic key itself, opening the way to the conclusion. Abbado manages this rising series of modulations beautifully, with each successive entry adding just a little more volume than the one before to keep the tension rising along with the pitch.
The gentle, lyrical andante of the second movement benefits enormously from the orchestration, since the legato lines are more easily sustained by the winds and strings than on the piano.
The scherzo is perhaps the least convincing in this version, as the writing in the original is at its most pianistic, with frequent chains of hammered chords in the bass. Although rooted in Austrian folk dance, this rapid movement points the way towards the symphonic scherzos of Bruckner in its scale and force. The orchestra here makes the most of the hairpin dynamics frequently repeated throughout the piece. The slower trio, which always sounds to me for all the world like an animal loping slowly along, is well contrasted, and the sharp attack at the return of the scherzo is perfect.
The finale is built up nicely from its quiet opening to the dramatic pages near the end, and here conductor and orchestra alike maintain absolute clarity even in the heaviest scoring. The grandiose "rejoicing" theme which is heard twice, rising on top of the harmony, comes across more clearly in the orchestrated version. Just a few bars from the end are two long-held chords, each ended by two quickly hammered notes. These are scored for nearly the full orchestra, and the two quick staccato chords in each case are nailed with impressive unanimity.
Does the orchestrated version supplant Schubert's original? By no means, and I'm sure Abbado would never have suggested that it did. But I certainly feel it's worth hearing in its own right, not least because the feel of the mature Schubert's orchestral style is so aptly captured by Joachim's skilled arrangement.
And since the 4-hand piano music of Schubert is itself rarely heard today, anyone who enjoys this should certainly seek out one of several recordings available of the Grand Duo as written, and hear the composer's own thoughts on this magnificent work.
Even if it's not a lost Schubert symphony, I'm glad Abbado recorded the Joachim arrangement of the Grand Duo and got it released as part of his complete Schubert symphony cycle.
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