6.Die Forelle (D. 550)

Schubert wrote Die Forelle (The Trout), set to texts by Christian Schubart, in 1818, and later reused its theme in the third movement of his famous Trout Quintet, writing a set of variations based on it. This is the second version Liszt wrote of Die Forelle, the first (one of six transcriptions in S. 563) also coming in 1846. In either rendition the composer takes some liberties with Schubert's song, thus producing works closer to a paraphrase, if one classifies its adaptive results. When Liszt transcribed music his approach in adapting the score to the piano varied widely, from the fairly literal, as with the Beethoven Symphonies, to paraphrases as typified in his various Verdi opera paraphrases and in Die Forelle, to Fantasies, which allowed him considerable freedom, as found in the Fantasy and Fugue on a Theme of Bach, which he transcribed for both organ and piano.

In this second version Liszt takes the Schubert song and fashions a new introduction, adding a cadenza of considerable brilliance. Thereafter Schubert's melody is given different accompaniment and appears in all registers of the piano—the upper (second verse), middle (first verse) and lower (third verse). Liszt shows considerable imagination in his handling of the theme and of his harmonies, making the music about as native to the piano as the Schubert original was to the realm of lieder. Liszt added further cadenzas, one at the close of the third verse and also at the end of the fourth.

Schubert's theme, carefree and optimistic, shines through here in Liszt's hands and, in the end, the piece is one of his more effective transcriptions.



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