[Illustration: Bauernfeld. Schubert. Kupelwieser. Beethoven. Betty Fröhlich. Mayrhofer. Schwind. Spaun. Vogl. Grillparzer. Josephine Fröhlich. Kathi Fröhlich.
_Reproduced from photograph of painting which does not represent any historical scene, as Beethoven and Schubert never met amid such surroundings. This grouping of Schubert's friends is made by poetical license_.]
No subsequent year of Schubert's life witnessed so great a number of compositions as 1816. For the next year eighty-six compositions are given in Sir George Grove's list. Of these fifty-two are songs, including many of those set to Mayrhofer's words. The two songs to Schober's words, above mentioned, came in this year. Special mention should also be made of the "Gruppe aus dem Tartarus," to Schiller's words, and of "Lob der Thränen" and "Die Forelle." "The Pilgrim" and "Ganymede" also belong to this time. Of large compositions for piano there were the sonatas in E minor; B, Op. 147; A minor, Op. 164; F minor; and A flat; besides the sonata in A, Op. 162, for piano and violin. There were also the variations for piano on a theme of Hüttenbrenner's; an adagio and rondo; two scherzos, and seventeen dances for piano; a set of polonaises for violin; and a string trio. The sixth symphony, in C, was written or finished in November, 1817, and performed by the amateur orchestral company above described. There were also three overtures, of which two, written in the Italian style, remind us that 1817 was the year in which Rossini's operas, newly introduced to Vienna, were received with wild enthusiasm. Schubert was altogether too far above Rossini's plane of thought to feel such interest in his work as he felt for the masterpieces of polyphonic composition. But he appreciated highly the Italian's gift of melody, and with the assimilative power which is wont to characterize great genius, he took hints from him which are apparent not only in the two Italian overtures, but perhaps also in the sixth symphony. Or in other words, as all creative work is influenced by its environment, there was a discernible Rossini tinge in the atmosphere which Schubert was for the moment breathing, and it has left its slight traces upon a few of his compositions for that year, as upon the work of less potent creators it left many and deep impressions.