A good intention is never good enough (according to Kurt Tucholsky): the Arpeggione, this kind of hybrid - a large guitar rubbed by a bow - has never succeeded in imposing itself on musicians. This organological curiosity would certainly have long since been forgotten in the most total oblivion if precisely Franz Schubert had not composed his sonata in A minor for this instrument. And this work in three movements is truly immortal. But it also poses a problem for Urtext, because without certain interventions in the text, the original arpeggione part could not be performed on the instrument closest to the timbre, namely the viola or the cello. The publishing house G. Henle thus solves the dilemma: on the one hand, the original arpeggione part is superimposed on the original piano part (score), on the other, in the separate part attached to the score the rare essential octave changes are clearly indicated. It was out of the question for us to consider another part - the violin for example (as in the Diabelli edition published after the composer's death), the flute or any other melodic instrument with a sharp range - because all these alternatives are deviate too much from the stamp representations that Schubert could have. Ideally, we could consider - why not? - a part of double bass.
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