Description
Arnold Schönberg composed his final instrumental work in March 1949 at the suggestion of American violinist Adolf Koldofsky. Schönberg initially wrote just the violin part, only later adding the piano accompaniment. The piece is part of Schönberg's twelve-tone oeuvre, with the two parts based on row segments that, when played together, form complete tone rows.
While Schönberg designated this work as a "Phantasy" (Op. 47), its structure clearly follows the sonata form. A wealth of source materials survives for this composition, which has been meticulously sorted and evaluated by Eike Feß, a staff member at the Arnold Schönberg Center in Vienna. Two specialists in Schönberg's twelve-tone music, violinist Ulf Wallin and pianist Shai Wosner, have provided the fingerings for this piece.
