Matthias Goerne, one of the most high-profile Schubertians of his generation, has recorded a
selection of Schubert’s songs not in their original versions with piano but in orchestral
arrangements by Alexander Schmalcz, Goerne’s accompanist of many years’ standing. Goerne says
about Alexander Schmalcz’s arrangements: “His creativity in adapting these songs for the orchestra
is enormous, while his stylistic sensibilities and his subtle approach in deploying the right
instruments at the right moment are truly astonishing.” “Schubert’s ability to empathize makes him
one of the most important composers in the whole of human history. (…) He created “a perfect
balance between intellectuality and the greatest naturalness. With Schubert, even the most
complicated melodies and forms sound entirely natural.” (Goerne) And yet what we hear on this
album is “pure Schubert”, Alexander Schmalcz insists. “I have added nothing. Sometimes I fill out
the voices by doubling the octave, for example. Or I write sustained chords in the orchestra in
order to simulate the sound-surfaces that are the result of the use of the sustaining pedal on the
piano. But my goal is to be as original as possible.”