During the last weeks of his life, Schubert was able to complete works we now know to be among his greatest masterpieces. These include the String Quintet in C and the final three piano sonatas which include the D960.
It is sad to know that none of Schubert’s piano sonatas ever received a public performance during the composer’s lifetime. It may have been inconceivable to him that this last, most inward-looking creation could be anything more than an act of private conversation.
We have an opportunity to listen to this composition as played by one of the great Schubert interpreters, Sir Andras Schiff:
