Paul Rowe & Martha Fischer

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Harry Browne

A close up of an 1820s-style Viennese fortepiano.

A newly-built instrument commissioned by the UW School of Music in the style of an 1820s era Viennese fortepiano.

Tired of Bach and Beethoven getting all the attention? Do you think Mozart is overrated? Or do you and Schubert just vibe like that? The UW-Madison School of Music's Schubertiade is an homage to the original Schubertiades that featured the composer himself on the piano, with fellow creatives (of course they didn't call them that back in the 19th century) gathered around in a bit of a salon atmosphere. This year features two related concerts. On Jan. 27 at 7:30 p.m. Schubert's song cycle Winterreise will be performed by baritone Paul Rowe and pianist Martha Fischer. On Jan. 29 at 3 p.m., “Schubert at the Piano: The Winterreise Years” features solo piano pieces of the same era. Both concerts spotlight an 1820s-style Viennese fortepiano, newly acquired by the School of Music.

press release:  General admission: $15; students: Free (ticket required).

A recital featuring Schubert’s great song cycle Winterreise performed by baritone Paul Rowe and pianist Martha Fischer.

The audience will be able to hear the beautiful 1820’s-style Viennese fortepiano, newly acquired by the School of Music. The piano was built especially for the School of Music by Rodney Regier, who is internationally known for his modern copies of keyboard instruments from the 18th through the first decades of the 19th centuries. The sound of this instrument is perfect for Schubert, and provides opportunities to hear the kind of piano that Schubert himself would have heard and played.

Also coming up:

Schubert at the Piano: The Winterreise Years

January 29, 2023 at 3 pm, Hamel Music Center-Collins Recital Hall, 740 University Ave. 

General admission: $15; students: Free (ticket required). Tickets/more details:

Pianists: Martha Fischer, Bill Lutes, Christopher Taylor, Jessica Johnson, Will Preston, and Aubrie Jacobson

Singers:  Sarah Brailey, Mimmi Fulmer, Julia Rottmayer, Cheryl Bensman Rowe, Jerzy Gillon, Evan Richardson, Ryan Nash, and Paul Rowe

This year's Schubertiade program at the Mead Witter School of Music is the 10th annual celebration of Schubert's songs, piano and chamber works, performed in homage to the original Schubertiades that took place during the composer's lifetime: intimate evenings of friends and fellow artists, musicians, poets and admirers, with the composer himself often seated at the piano, gathering to hear Schubert's music.

The concert will be part of a special Schubert weekend that will also include a recital featuring Schubert's great song cycle Winterreise performed by baritone Paul Rowe and pianist Martha Fischer on January 27 at 7:30 pm, also in Collins Recital Hall.

In both concerts, the audience will be able to hear the beautiful 1820s-style Viennese fortepiano, newly acquired by the School of Music. The piano was built especially for the School of Music by Rodney Regier, who is internationally known for his modern copies of keyboard instruments from the 18th through the first decades of the 19th centuries. The sound of this instrument is perfect for Schubert, and provides opportunities to hear the kind of piano that Schubert himself would have heard and played.

The two concerts are also related in another way. Following the Friday evening performance of Winterreise, the Sunday Schubertiade will feature solo piano pieces, piano duets and lieder from the "Winterreise" years–not only 1827, when Schubert composed the cycle, but also the years before and after in 1826 and 1828–when we find both premonitions and echoes of Schubert's great "Winter Journey."