Webern Vier Stuecke fuer Violine und Klavier – 4 pieces for Violin and Piano Op.7 (universal)

Webern composed these four short movements in 1910, and they were finally revised in 1914. Despite the significant reduction in their external dimensions, they are among the most eloquent works Webern ever wrote. The violin part in particular is virtuosic, a true compendium of violin playing styles. The original combination of tremolo at the bridge and pizzicato at the beginning of the second piece is as rare in Webern’s work as the octaves that appear shortly afterwards. Fast and slow movements alternate in regular succession. The extremely slow movements (Nos. 1 and 3) make use of the sound possibilities of the violin tone (the first note of the third piece lasts 20 seconds) and the piano pedal; standing sounds alternate with slow ostinatos. The extroverted second piece presents a seemingly colorful jumble of the most divergent shapes, similar to the third piano piece in Schoenberg’s op. 11. Contrast is its formal principle. As in the fourth piece, the dynamic register in the second also ranges from ppp to fff. The last piece, however, is less discontinuous: from the lively outburst of the first bars, it leads to the adagio of the end, fading away “like a breath”. (Manfred Angerer)

(translated from German by Google)