Antonello Manacorda
Maximilian Hornung Franz Schubert
Camille Saint-Saëns
Johannes Brahms

Franz Schubert (1797–1828) composed the two movements we now know as the unfinished Symphony No. 8 in 1822. No one knows why he never continued writing, and the following year, he gifted the manuscript to a friend. It wasn’t until 1865 that audiences first heard what would become one of Schubert’s most beloved works. Expressive and dramatic, the symphony stands firmly on its own despite its incomplete form.

Camille Saint-Saëns (1835–1921) was one of the greatest pianists and organists of his time. As a composer, he also had a deep understanding of string instruments—particularly the cello, for which he wrote The Swan, one of the most famous cello pieces ever composed. In his Cello Concerto No. 2 from 1902, he challenges the soloist with dazzling technical demands while also weaving long, radiant melodic lines.

Johannes Brahms (1833–1897) wrote his Symphony No. 2 in the summer of 1877 in the lakeside town of Pörtschach am Wörthersee in southern Austria. Those who first heard the symphony in a piano arrangement remarked on its bright and summery character. “It is bubbling brooks, blue sky, sunshine, and cool green shadows everywhere,” wrote one of Brahms’ friends about the symphony.