F. Schubert | 4 impromptus op. 90,  n. 2 (1827)
 
Composed at the age of 30, one year before his untimely death, the 4 impromptus op. 90 are among Schubert’s most appreciated legacy, despite their apparent simplicity initially received a lukewarm public reception. Much more difficult to play than they seem, Schubert’s impromptus are intimate pages of romantic extemporaneous creativity, where simple musical ideas are articulated and resolved in free-standing pieces rich of imaginative power and melodic intensity. The second impromptu is a wonderful interplay of light and shadow. The gentle atmosphere of the first theme, with light ascending and descending triplet scales in Eb major, is interrupted by the darkness of the central part in B minor, which upsets the delicate mood with a marked rhythm that resembles a military march.