Thematic Development of Schuberts Last Piano Sonata, D. 960 (First movement)

Research Paper (undergraduate) from the year 2009 in the subject Musicology - Miscellaneous, The University of Malaya, language: English, abstract: Franz Schubert last piano sonata, D. 960 in Bb Major by was written in 1828 (published in 1839), shortly after Beethoven s death -- he died in 1827. According to Robert Winter, Beethoven was the most influential composer for Franz Schubert. Schubert s sonatas, in particular, were modeled on Beethoven s in terms of form and structure. This last sonata is one of Schubert s popular sonatas, and is often performed. It also has been frequently criticized because of the unusual aspects of its sonata form. Winter has described the last sonata as, suffused by the composer s characteristic melancholy, mingled with a feeling of contemplative ecstasy. The stepwise elegiac opening alternates with disembodied trills in the bass, leading to remote keys, notably f# minor, before the exposition is over. This paper will discuss the following aspects of the first movement -- the form, the key schemes, and the development of themes.