Scharoun Ensemble @ LoC

Charles T. Downey, Scharoun Ensemble Berlin plays Schubert with polish at Library of Congress (Washington Post, March 17, 2014)

Schubert, Octet, D. 803, Scharoun Ensemble Berlin (Tudor, 2005)

Schubert’s “Octet,” D. 803, is a piece that one does not hear live all that often. It is written for an unusual instrumentation — five strings, horn, bassoon and clarinet — for which few other composers have composed. The Scharoun Ensemble Berlin, composed of musicians from the Berlin Philharmonic, is in the midst of a U.S. tour, and they performed the “Octet” at a concert on Saturday afternoon at the Library of Congress.

This piece is the group’s signature work, performed at its public debut in 1983, and its selection of eight instruments determined the group’s core membership. Schubert gave us about an hour of music in the “Octet,” with two complete slow movements and two dance movements with trios, enough music to justify getting such an unusual ensemble together. [Continue reading]

Scharoun Ensemble Berlin
Dvořák, Czech Suite (arr. Ulf-Guido Schäfer)
Schubert, Octet in F major, D. 803
Library of Congress