Konzertstudie

Konzertstudie (Concert Study) belongs to Leibl's interest in musical subjects, connecting him to the long tradition of genre painting in which music-making in domestic or intimate settings served as a subject for the depiction of refined sensibility and social cohesion. Musical subjects appear throughout his career, from his Munich period through his rural work, and they allowed him to paint figures in natural, unselfconscious poses — the absorption of the musician in performance providing the quality of unaware presence he sought in all his subjects.

A musical study places emphasis on the hands holding an instrument and the figure's absorption in sound, with the face often in partial profile or downward gaze. Leibl renders the instrument with technical accuracy — its wood grain, string or key detail — while keeping the architectural background summary.