Franz Schubert is often described as possessing a deeply inward and introspective personality, a trait that profoundly shaped his music and personal life. Despite his prodigious talent and the emotional richness of his compositions, Schubert was known for his shyness and reticence in social settings, particularly among strangers or in large gatherings.
The Young Schubert
Friends described him as warm and loyal, yet prone to moments of withdrawal, as if retreating into a private realm of thought or creativity. To be sure, he preferred the company of a close-knit circle of friends, including poets, artists, and musicians, with whom he felt comfortable sharing his thoughts and creative ideas.
These private and informal musical gatherings in the composer’s apartment were termed “Schubertiade” by his friends. These meetings often featured poetry readings, dancing, and other sociable pastimes, with attendees numbering from a handful to over one hundred.
Franz Schubert: “Schwanengesang,” D. 975 (arr. R. Dubugnon)
Moritz von Schwind
Moritz von Schwind: Schubertiade 1868
Moritz von Schwind, an Austrian painter and illustrator, was a key figure in German Romanticism. He drew inspiration from chivalry, folklore, and the idyllic Middle Ages. However, as a close friend of Franz Schubert, he illustrated some of his songs and in 1868 fashioned his famous “Schubertiade” painting from memory.
In the centre of the drawing, we find Franz Schubert at the grand piano. Featured guests include Joseph Ritter von Spaun, an Austrian nobleman and Imperial and Royal Councillor, the composers Johann Michael Vogl and Franz Paul Lachner, the painters Leopold Kupelwieser and Wilhelm August Rieder, who painted a number of famous Schubert portraits.
Also present are the dramatists Eduard von Bauernfeld and Franz Grillparzer, the poet, librettist, lithographer and actor Franz von Schober, and Moritz von Schwind himself. An attentive company of men and women, comfortably seated on plush Biedermeier furnishings, surrounds this central core of famous personalities. The woman in the painting watching over the entire gathering is the Countess Karoline Esterházy, Franz Schubert’s unrequited love.
Franz Schubert: Trout Quintet “Schubertiade Schwarzenberg” (excerpt)
Intellectual Salon
Julius Schmid: Schubertiade
Although Schwind’s drawing depicts an idealised scene, it nevertheless becomes clear that Schubertiade gatherings were part of the intellectual salon rather than a family affair. In addition, they had distinct erotic, and often political undercurrents. In the aftermath of the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars, the Austrian police were highly suspicious of any gathering of students, youth, intellectuals and artists.
Following a Schubertiade gathering, Schubert and four of his friends were arrested on suspicion of revolutionary activities by the Austrian secret police. Johann Senn, a talented poet and writer, was imprisoned for fourteen months without charges being brought against him, and subsequently permanently exiled from Vienna. Schubert and his other friends were severely reprimanded for “inveighing against officials with insulting and opprobrious language.”
Franz Schubert: “Erlkönig,” D. 328
Bourgeois Parlours
Schubertiade Museum Hohenems
While many Schubertiade meetings originally included the composer’s participation and took place in Vienna, the increased popularity of the event, which slowly lost its political associations, saw it quickly spread throughout central Europe. After all, the bourgeois world of the parlour became a valued cultural phenomenon throughout the 19th century.
In 1976, the internationally acclaimed baritone Hermann Prey was looking to establish an annual festival dedicated to the music of Franz Schubert as far away from Vienna as possible. He settled on the small town of Hohenems, picturesquely located in Western Austria, and not surprisingly christened the festival “Schubertiade.” Since then, this summer festival has become one of the most distinguished and important musical events in the calendar, and presents 80 concerts in various venues that attract roughly 40,000 visitors a year.
Franz Schubert: Impromptu Op. 90, No. 3
Schubertiade Today
Focusing on maintaining an atmosphere of intimacy, the present-day Schubertiade invites the most prominent and established international performers, yet also endeavours to introduce promising young musicians. And of course, the chamber and lieder menu has expanded far beyond Schubert.
For over five decades, the Schubertiade has beautifully recreated the warmth and intimacy of Franz Schubert’s original Viennese gatherings. Hosted in the charming venues of Schwarzenberg and Hohenems, these concerts present Schubert’s lieder and chamber works in settings that forge a deep bond between performers and listeners.
With a conversational and unpretentious atmosphere, the Schubertiade captures the communal joy and creative spontaneity of Schubert’s time, inviting audiences to immerse themselves in the profound emotional depth of his music as if sharing an evening among friends.
Schubertiade – Events – Schubertiade 2025 – Concert Calendar – Programme 2025
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