NEW YORK, NY.- Louis K. Meisel Gallery is presenting Visualizing Schubert, an exhibition curated to complement Franz Schubert’s vocal and chamber masterpieces. Presented in conjunction with a performance by Pegasus the Orchestra on February 28th, 2024, the exhibition explores the environmental inspirations and musings of this great composer through the lens of Contemporary Realism. Featuring artists that include Ben Schonzeit, Harry Holland, Robert Neffson and Johannes Müller-Franken, the selected works evoke Schubert’s lovely melodies and the Romantic sensibilities of the era.

Conceptualized by Karén Hakobyan, the artistic director of Pegasus the Orchestra, the paired exhibition and performance celebrate Schubert’s renowned Piano Quintet “The Trout”. “The Trout” was composed during Schubert’s summer stay in the bucolic Austrian Alps in 1819, where he lived in a household filled with lovely young girls. It was the 22-year-old’s first time in the countryside. The music critic Massimo Mila describes the experience as “the fulfillment of the romantic dream – footloose, wandering artists, having been pent up in the city far too long, roaming the world at will, like boys out of school, reveling in their freedom.” A commission, Schubert wrote the work in an unusual format for the time; he composed it specifically for a piano and a string quintet, rather than for a string quartet. Reflecting this choice, Hakobyan has arranged 6 of Schubert’s well-known lieder, which were originally written for a vocalist and a piano, for a vocalist and piano quintet; thereby mirroring the traditional presentation of “The Trout”. These songs will open the performance on the 28th.

The exhibition has been carefully curated to highlight the uplifting spirit of the Trout Quintet, as well as the lyrics, which describe the plight of a trout and its reaction to being caught by a fisherman. While the warm sunlit landscapes by Yigal Ozeri and Raphaella Spence embody the overall airy, dreamlike quality of this masterpiece, works including those by Johannes Müller-Franken capture the leisurely ambiance of the Andante, as well as the Austrian riverbanks. Similarly, paintings by Ariel DeAndrea and Harry Holland, are awash with light and movement, and capture Schubert’s rippling arpeggios. As a whole, the exhibition sets the stage for Schubert’s Quintet both historically and musically.

Visualizing Schubert will be on display at Louis K. Meisel Gallery at 141 Prince Street, New York, NY from January 11th to March 2nd. Pegasus the Orchestra will perform “The Trout – Schubert’s Vocal and Chamber Works” at the gallery on February 28th from 7 to 9 pm. For more information and ticket sales, please visit our exhibition page here: Meisel Gallery | Visualizing Schubert