Piano Sonata in A-flat major, D 557 (Schubert)

Franz Schubert's Piano Sonata in A major, 557 was composed in May 1817.

Movements The work is relatively short and a performance takes somewhat between 10 and 15 minutes. The sonata is cheerful and uncomplicated, and carries remembrances of Mozart and the Baroque era.David Doughty in album notes of Brilliant Classics Nr. 99678/4 (2001)

The beginning of the first movement resembles the opening of the menuetto, D. 380, Nr. 3.Deutsch 1978, pp 323-324

The final movement has a dance-like character. The fact that it is in the key of E major rather than the tonic key of A major is evidence in favor of Schubert possibly intending to add a fourth movement, although the extant third movement has much of the character of a finale. At the time this was written it was quite unusual to end a composition in another key than its tonic, however Schubert did do this in some of his early works, e.g. D. 553 ("Auf der Donau", beginning in E major and ending in F minor).Badura-Skoda 1997, p VII Score The sonata was first published in 1888, in the Breitkopf & Härtel complete edition.

Manuscripts The autograph of the sonata, dated May 1817, is incomplete — it stops at the 28th measure of the third movement, but there is a contemporary complete manuscript.

First publication — Alte Gesammtausgabe (AGA) D. 557 was first published in 1888 as No. 3 of the Piano Sonatas volume (Series X) of the Kritisch durchgesehene Gesammtausgabe.

Urtext Editions Both Paul Badura-Skoda (Henle) and Martino Tirimo (Wiener Urtext) published an Urtext edition in 1997.Tirimo 1997

Neue Schubert-Ausgabe (NSA) In the New Schubert Edition D. 557 is given in VII/2/1.Litschauer 2000

References

Sources Franz Schubert's Werke: Kritisch durchgesehene Gesammtausgabe (AGA): Leipzig, Breitkopf & Härtel: Julius Epstein (ed.) Serie 10: Sonaten für Pianoforte — No. 3 (1888). Urtext editions: Paul Badura-Skoda (ed.) Franz Schubert: Piano Sonatas — Volume III (Early and Unfinished Sonatas) . G. Henle Verlag (1997). Martino Tirimo (ed.) Schubert: The Complete Piano Sonatas — Volume 1 Vienna: Wiener Urtext Edition (1997). ISMN 979-0-50057-223-7 Franz Schubert: Neue Ausgabe sämtlicher Werke (NSA): Kassel, Bärenreiter: Otto Erich Deutsch. Series VIII: Supplement — Volume 4: Franz Schubert, thematisches Verzeichnis seiner Werke in chronologischer Folge — pp. 323-324 (1978). ISMN 9790006305148 — Walburga Litschauer (ed.) Series VII: Piano Music, Part 2: Works for Piano Two Hands — Volume 1: Klaviersonaten I (2000). ISMN 9790006497119

External links VII,2/1: Klaviersonaten I at the Neue Schubert-Ausgabe website