Schubert: Piano Sonatas Shai Wosner

• Franz Schubert (1797 - 1828): Piano Sonata No. 16 in A Minor, D. 845:
• 1 Piano Sonata No. 16 in A Minor, D. 845: I. Moderato 11:47
• 2 Piano Sonata No. 16 in A Minor, D. 845: II. Andante poco moto 11:19
• 3 Piano Sonata No. 16 in A Minor, D. 845: III. Scherzo. Allegro vivace – Trio. Un poco più lento 06:50
• 4 Piano Sonata No. 16 in A Minor, D. 845: IV. Rondo. Allegro vivace 06:02
• Piano Sonata No. 18 in G Major, D. 894:
• 5 Piano Sonata No. 18 in G Major, D. 894: I. Molto moderato cantabile 17:14
• 6 Piano Sonata No. 18 in G Major, D. 894: II. Andante 08:23
• 7 Piano Sonata No. 18 in G Major, D. 894: III. Menuetto. Allegro moderato 04:05
• 8 Piano Sonata No. 18 in G Major, D. 894: IV. Allegretto 09:02
• Piano Sonata No. 19 in C Minor, D. 958:
• 9 Piano Sonata No. 19 in C Minor, D. 958: I. Allegro 09:52
• 10 Piano Sonata No. 19 in C Minor, D. 958: II. Adagio 08:19
• 11 Piano Sonata No. 19 in C Minor, D. 958: III. Menuetto. Allegro 03:15
• 12 Piano Sonata No. 19 in C Minor, D. 958: IV. Allegro. 08:59
• Piano Sonata No. 21 in B-Flat Major, D. 960:
• 13 Piano Sonata No. 21 in B-Flat Major, D. 960: I. Molto moderato 20:00
• 14 Piano Sonata No. 21 in B-Flat Major, D. 960: II. Andante sostenuto 10:09
• 15 Piano Sonata No. 21 in B-Flat Major, D. 960: III. Scherzo. Allegro vivace con delicatezza 04:08
• 16 Piano Sonata No. 21 in B-Flat Major, D. 960: IV. Allegro ma non troppo 08:29
• Total Runtime 02:27:53

Info for Schubert: Piano Sonatas

Following on his critically acclaimed disc of Brahms and Schoenberg, Shai Wosner s second release for Onyx focuses on the music of Franz Schubert. Here he plays a selection of music including the composer s two late sonatas in fabulous performances that are sure to enhance his rising-star status. These works are in many ways polar opposites. Written in 1825, a year when the composer s health was robust and his finances in good order, the powerful, unfinished sonata D840 is monumental, stark and monolithic. The sonata D850, written at a time in the composer s life when he was broke, lonely and fighting with his publishers, is remarkable for its sunny disposition. This late masterwork was one of the few sonatas Schubert was able to publish during his lifetime and it brought him a very welcome payday of 300 florins.

"His playing of the German Dances has a muscularity and a lovely transparency, while the Hungarian Melody has an exquisite soulfulness. But what strikes the listener from the first few bars of the Sonata which opens this recording...is the aristocratic grace of Wosner's tone, and his expressive shades of staccato." (BBC Music Magazine)

"With this recital Shai Wosner declares himself a Schubertian of unfaltering authority and character. Entirely modern in style (tonally lean and sharply focused, never given to easy or sentimental options), he relishes every twist and turn in the so-called Reliquie Sonata...Wosner rivets your attention at every point. He also shows a high degree of charm and affection in the German Dances and the Hungarian Melody" (Gramophone Magazine)

"Wosner's performance, with its extremes of dynamics, glistening pianissimos followed by thunderous fortissimos, certainly projects [a] sense of something epic, while making a link to late Beethoven, and to his last sonata, Op 111, in particular." (The Guardian)

Shai Wosner, piano

Shai Wosner
has attracted international recognition for his exceptional artistry, musical integrity and creative insight. His performances of a broad range of repertoire, from Beethoven and Mozart to Schoenberg and Ligeti, as well as music by his contemporaries, communicate his imaginative programming and intellectual curiosity. Mr. Wosner has appeared with major orchestras worldwide including the Chicago Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, Philadelphia Orchestra and San Francisco Symphony in the US, and the Barcelona Symphony, Frankfurt Radio Symphony, Hamburg Symphony, LSO St. Luke’s and Staatskapelle Berlin in Europe, among others. He has worked with conductors Daniel Barenboim, James Conlon, Alan Gilbert, Zubin Mehta and Leonard Slatkin. Mr. Wosner is the recipient of Lincoln Center’s Martin E. Segal award, an Avery Fisher Career Grant, and a Borletti-Buitoni Trust Award—a prize he used to commission Michael Hersch’s concerto Along the Ravines, which he then performed with the Seattle Symphony and Deutsche Radio Philharmonie-Saarbrücken.

Widely praised for his interpretations of Schubert’s solo repertoire, Mr. Wosner has been focused on the composer in recent seasons and has performed his solo works in recitals across the US and at London’s Wigmore Hall. Mr. Wosner is widely sought after by colleagues for his versatility and spirit of partnership and often performs duo recitals with violinists Jennifer Koh, Viviane Hagner and Veronica Eberle. He is a former member of Lincoln Center's Chamber Music Society Two and performs regularly at various chamber music festivals. For several consecutive summers, he took part in the West-Eastern Divan Workshop led by Daniel Barenboim and toured as soloist with the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra. Mr. Wosner has recorded three albums of solo works which were released by Onyx: Schubert’s Six moments musicaux, D. 780, Missy Mazzoli’s Isabelle Eberhardt Dreams of Pianos, and Schubert’s Sonata in A Major, D. 959. in November 2014; a selection of piano works by Schubert that incorporate elements of folk music in October 2011; and his debut solo recording of works by Brahms and Schoenberg in August 2010. His first joint recording with Jennifer Koh, Signs, Games + Messages, featuring works by Bartók, Janáček and Kurtág, was released in October 2013 on the Cedille Records label.

During the 2015-16 season, Mr. Wosner continues his collaborations with violinist Jennifer Koh with the Bridge to Beethoven series. The project explores the impact and significance Beethoven has had on a diverse group of composers and musicians. By pairing Beethoven’s ten sonatas for violin and piano with new works over four programs, this project seeks to ignite creative conversations around his music not only as a cornerstone of classical music but as a universal, culture-crossing source of inspiration. Bridge to Beethoven features new commissions from composers Vijay Iyer, Andrew Norman and Anthony Cheung. Bridge to Beethoven will be presented in venues such as the 92nd Street Y in New York City, Hahn Hall in Santa Barbara, and Herbst Theatre in San Francisco, among others. Mr. Wosner’s upcoming orchestral engagements include performances with the Badische Staatskapelle Karlsruhe, Hungarian National Philharmonic Orchestra, Columbus Symphony, Florida Orchestra, Jacksonville Symphony, Phoenix Symphony Orchestra, and Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra.

Booklet for Schubert: Piano Sonatas