Finishing the Unfinished
Is an unfinished piece by a long-dead composer a historical artifact to be preserved as is? Or is it ripe with possibilities, waiting for someone to come along and finish in his or her own way? Franz Schubert's 8th Symphony is nicknamed the Unfinished because Schubert wrote only two movements instead of the usual four. Over the years, other composers have tried their hand at completing it. Today we'll hear a new approach, the symphony as Schubert himself might have finished it, using his sketches and music borrowed from other works.