The Polonaise in B flat for Violin and String Orchestra, D. 580, counts among Franz Schubert's lesser known works. Of course, with a composer as prolific as Schubert, the sheer volume of output disperses one's attention; in 1817, the year that saw the completion of the Polonaise, the young composer also produced five piano sonatas, a sonata for violin and piano, and around 60 songs. This period also produced a few other works for violin and strings, including the Konzertstück in D major, D. 345, and the Rondo in A major, D. 438—all originally conceived for performance by the composer's violinist brother Ferdinand. These works, of slightly larger stature, overshadow the brief, single-movement Polonaise, which was not even published until over a century after Ferdinand gave it its premiere in Vienna. To recognize the piece's humbler scope, however, is not to diminish its appeal. The piece offers few surprises, its phrases etched in clear-cut exchanges between the soloist and the ensemble. The violin's playful opening theme, supported by a characteristic triple-meter accompanimental pattern, is dutifully taken up by the strings, while the more demure second theme leads the soloist wandering alone toward a hesitant half-cadence, which in turn facilitates an expository return. A sudden shift to minor at the beginning of the second section introduces a new relationship between solo and orchestra, with the assembled strings taking the lead with accompanimental textures while the solo violin enters only after a hesitation. With occasional shifts back to major, the soloist is more resolute, with smart leaps upward and winding melodic flourishes. A leisurely chromatic line in the violin leads back to the original key and mode, and a return of the opening melody.

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