Andras Schiff and Miklos Perenyi play Schubert's Arpeggione Sonata

Did you know that Schubert composed a sonata for an instrument resembling the viola da gamba—a hybrid between a guitar and a cello? Today, this sonata ranks among his most beloved chamber music pieces. The Austrian composer wrote a vibrant yet wistful Allegro moderato, a beautifully expressive, song-like Adagio, and a pastoral Allegretto for the arpeggione, also known as the “guitare d’amore”.

Frequently substituted by other instruments in contemporary interpretations, the arpeggione is replaced here by Miklos Perényi’s virtuosic cello playing. Accompanied on the piano by the illustrious Andras Schiff, he masterfully brings out the brilliance of this sonata, written to highlight the full expressive range of an instrument that has nearly vanished from use.