Schubert/Cossmann - Erlkönig for Cello Solo (Urtext Edition)

Bernhard Cossmann’s rendition of Schubert’s Erlkönig belongs to the nineteenth-century tradition of transcription as virtuoso transformation. Like Liszt’s famous piano transcription and Ernst’s legendary version for solo violin, Cossmann’s cello version pushes the instrument to its technical limits while preserving the urgency, drama, and terror of Schubert’s original song.

In this transcription, the cellist must suggest multiple layers of the original: the relentless galloping accompaniment, the narrator’s urgency, the father’s alarm, the child’s fear, and the eerie seduction of the Erlking. The result is a tour de force of Romantic cello writing, demanding extraordinary command of articulation, stamina, register, voicing, and dramatic characterization.

Unlike other editions of Cossmann’s version currently available, this edition is based solely on the manuscript. We would like to thank the Wienbibliothek im Rathaus for kindly providing the source.

Best suited for highly advanced cellists, this transcription is ideal for recitals, competitions, encores, and programs exploring nineteenth-century virtuoso transcription. It offers demanding study in rapid repeated figures, dramatic pacing, polyphonic suggestion, character contrast, endurance, and the extreme technical possibilities of the cello.

ASTA level: 6