WFCC

Classical Fact

In 1822, Franz Schubert began writing a B minor symphony of epic scale. Schubert was also in the throes of the debilitating effects of syphilis, forcing him to cease work for long periods. During this time he was accepted into a prestigious music society in Austria. As part of his admission, Schubert submitted two movements, and the sketch of a third, for the symphony he had been working on. The music society's director shoved the score into a desk drawer; there it remained, forgotten, by both its composer and recipient for 38 years. In 1860, a cunning Viennese conductor secured the previously unknown symphony, by the now deceased composer and on December 17, 1865 Schubert's symphony number 8, the Unfinished Symphony, was premiered.