Editing Robert Schumann (section)

==Works==
{{see also|List of compositions by Robert Schumann}}
{{listen
| header   = [[Kreisleriana]], Op. 16 (1838)
| filename    = Robert Schumann Kreisleriana Op. 16 N3 Giorgi Latsabidze.ogg
| title       = N8. Schnell und spielend
| description = [[Giorgi Latso]], piano
| format      = [[Ogg]]
| image=none}}
''[[Baker's Biographical Dictionary of Musicians]]'' (2001) begins its entry on Schumann: "[G]reat German composer of surpassing imaginative power whose music expressed the deepest spirit of the [[Romantic music|Romantic era]]", and concludes: "As both man and musician, Schumann is recognized as the quintessential artist of the Romantic period in German music. He was a master of lyric expression and dramatic power, perhaps best revealed in his outstanding piano music and songs&nbsp;..."<ref name=baker>Slonimsky and Kuhn, p. 3234</ref><ref>Slonimsky and Kuhn, p. 3236</ref> Schumann believed the aesthetics of all the arts were identical. In his music he aimed at a conception of art in which the poetic was the main element. According to the musicologist [[Carl Dahlhaus]], for Schumann, "music was supposed to turn into a [[tone poem]], to rise above the realm of the trivial, of tonal mechanics, by means of its spirituality and soulfulness".<ref>Dahlhaus (1987), p. 214</ref>

In the late nineteenth century and most of the twentieth it was widely held that the music of Schumann's later years was less inspired than his earlier works (up to about the mid-1840s), either because of his declining health,<ref>Tibbetts, p. 413</ref> or because his increasingly orthodox approach to composition deprived his music of the Romantic spontaneity of the earlier works.<ref>Dahlhaus (1985), pp. 47–48</ref><ref>Jensen, p. 283</ref> The late-nineteenth century composer [[Felix Draeseke]] commented "Schumann started as a genius and ended as a talent".<ref>Batka, p. 77</ref> In the view of the composer and [[oboe]]ist [[Heinz Holliger]], "certain works of his early and middle period are praised to the skies, while on the other hand a pious veil of silence obscures the more sober, austere and concentrated works of the late period".<ref>Hiekel, p. 261</ref> More recently the later works have been viewed more favourably; Hall suggests that this is because they are now played more often in concert and in recording studios, and have "the beneficial effects of period performance practice as it has come to be applied to mid-19th-century music".<ref name=hall1126/>

===Solo piano===
{{listen
 | header       = [[Fantasie in C (Schumann)|Fantasie C major]], Op. 17 (1836, revised 1839)
 | filename     = Robert Schumann - Fantasie - Sempre Fantasticamente ed Appassionatamente.ogg
 | title        = 1. Sempre Fantasticamente ed Appassionatamente
 | description  =
 | format       = [[Ogg]]
 | filename2    = Robert Schumann - Fantasie - Moderato, Sempre energico.ogg
 | title2       = 2. Moderato, Sempre energico
 | description2 =
 | format2      = [[Ogg]]
 | filename3    = Robert Schumann - Fantasie - Lento sostenuto Sempre piano.ogg
 | title3       = 3. Lento sostenuto Sempre piano
 | description3 =
 | format3      = [[Ogg]]
 | image        = none
}}{{See also|List of solo piano compositions by Robert Schumann}}{{listen
| header   = [[Arabeske (Schumann)|Arabeske in C major, Op. 18 (1839)]]
| filename    = Schumann-arabeske-andrea-valori.ogg
| title       = Arabeske (Schumann)
| description = Mario Andrea Valori, piano
| format      = [[Ogg]]
| image=none}}
Schumann's works in some other musical genres – particularly orchestral and operatic works – have had a mixed critical reception, both during his lifetime and since, but there is widespread agreement about the high quality of his solo piano music.<ref name=hall1125/> In his youth the familiar Austro-German tradition of [[Bach]], Mozart and [[Beethoven]] was temporarily eclipsed by a fashion for the flamboyant showpieces of composers such as [[Ignaz Moscheles|Moscheles]]. Schumann's first published work, the [[Abegg Variations|''Abegg'' Variations]], is in the latter style.<ref name=g762>Daverio and Sams, p. 762</ref> But he revered the earlier German masters, and in his three piano sonatas (composed between 1830 and 1836) and the [[Fantasie in C (Schumann)|Fantasie in C]] (1836) he showed his respect for the earlier Austro-German tradition.<ref>Solomon, pp. 41–42</ref> [[Absolute music]] such as those works is in the minority in his piano compositions, of which many are what Hall calls "character pieces with fanciful names".<ref name=hall1126/>

Schumann's most characteristic form in his piano music is the cycle of short, interrelated pieces, often [[program music|programmatic]], though seldom explicitly so. They include {{lang|de|[[Carnaval (Schumann)|Carnaval]], [[Fantasiestücke, Op. 12|Fantasiestücke]], [[Kreisleriana]], [[Kinderszenen]]}} and {{lang|de|[[Waldszenen]]}} (Wood Scenes). The critic [[J. A. Fuller Maitland]] wrote of the first of these, "Of all the pianoforte works [''Carnaval''] is perhaps the most popular; its wonderful animation and never-ending variety ensure the production of its full effect, and its great and various difficulties make it the best possible test of a pianist's skill and versatility".<ref>Fuller Maitland, p. 52</ref> Schumann continually inserted into his piano works veiled allusions to himself and others – particularly Clara – in the form of [[ciphers]] and musical quotations.<ref name=g768>Daverio and Sams, pp. 755 and 768</ref> His self-references include both the impetuous "Florestan" and the poetic "Eusebius" elements he identified in himself.<ref>Chissell, p. 88</ref>

Although some of his music is technically challenging for the pianist Schumann also wrote simpler pieces for young players, the best-known of which are his {{lang|de|[[Album for the Young|Album für die Jugend]]}} (Album for the Young, 1848) and Three Sonatas for Young People (1853).<ref name=hall1125/> He also wrote some undemanding music with an eye to commercial sales, including the {{lang|de|[[Blumenstück (Schumann)|Blumenstück]]}} (Flower Piece) and {{lang|de|[[Arabeske (Schumann)|Arabeske]]}} (both 1839), which he privately considered "feeble and intended for the ladies".<ref>Jensen, p. 170</ref>

===Songs===
{{See also|List of vocal compositions by Robert Schumann}}
The authors of ''[[The Record Guide]]'' describe Schumann as "one of the four supreme masters of the German {{lang|de|[[Lied]]}}", alongside Schubert, Brahms and [[Hugo Wolf]].<ref name=st686>Sackville-West and Shawe-Taylor, p. 686</ref> The pianist [[Gerald Moore]] wrote that "after the unparalleled Franz Schubert", Schumann shares the second place in the hierarchy of the {{lang|de|Lied}} with Wolf.<ref>Sams, p. vii</ref> ''[[Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians]]'' classes Schumann as "the true heir of Schubert" in {{lang|de|Lieder}}.<ref>Böker-Heil, Norbert, David Fallows, John H. Baron, James Parsons, Eric Sams, Graham Johnson, and Paul Griffiths. [https://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/grovemusic/view/10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.001.0001/omo-9781561592630-e-0000016611 "Lied"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221007062201/https://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/grovemusic/view/10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.001.0001/omo-9781561592630-e-0000016611 |date=7 October 2022 }}, ''Grove Music Online'', Oxford University Press, 2001 {{subscription required}}</ref>

Schumann wrote more than 300 songs for voice and piano.<ref name=gj/> They are known for the quality of the texts he set: Hall comments that the composer's youthful appreciation of literature was constantly renewed in adult life.<ref name=hsong>Hall, pp. 1126–1127</ref> Although Schumann greatly admired [[Goethe]] and Schiller and set a few of their verses, his favoured poets for lyrics were the later Romantics such as [[Heinrich Heine|Heine]], [[Joseph Freiherr von Eichendorff|Eichendorff]] and [[Eduard Mörike|Mörike]].<ref name=st686/>

Among the best-known of the songs are those in four cycles composed in 1840 – a year Schumann called his {{lang|de|Liederjahr}} (year of song).<ref>Daverio, p. 191</ref> These are {{lang|de|[[Dichterliebe]]}} (Poet's Love) comprising sixteen songs with words by Heine; {{lang|de|[[Frauen-Liebe und Leben#Schumann's setting|Frauenliebe und Leben]]}} (Woman's Love and Life), eight songs setting poems by [[Adelbert von Chamisso]]; and two sets simply titled {{lang|de|Liederkreis}} – German for "Song Cycle" – the [[Liederkreis, Op. 24 (Schumann)|Op. 24]] set, consisting of nine Heine settings and the [[Liederkreis, Op. 39 (Schumann)|Op. 39]] set of twelve settings of poems by Eichendorff.<ref>Daverio and Sams, pp. 797 and 799</ref> Also from 1840 is the set Schumann wrote as a wedding present to Clara, {{lang|de|[[Myrthen]]}} ([[Myrtus|Myrtles]] – traditionally part of a bride's wedding bouquet),<ref>Finson (2007), p. 21</ref> which the composer called a song cycle,  although comprising twenty-six songs with lyrics from ten different writers, this set is a less unified cycle than the others. In a study of Schumann's songs [[Eric Sams]] suggests that even here there is a unifying theme, namely the composer himself.<ref>Sams, p. 50</ref> 
[[File:Du Ring an meinem Finger.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.65|Opening of "{{lang|de|Du Ring an meinem Finger|italic=no}}" from {{lang|de|[[Frauen-Liebe und Leben|Frauenliebe und Leben]]}}|alt=Musical score with line for voice and two lines below for piano accompaniment]]

Although during the twentieth century it became common practice to perform these cycles as a whole, in Schumann's time and beyond it was usual to extract individual songs for performance in recitals. The first documented public performance of a complete Schumann song cycle was not until 1861, five years after the composer's death; the [[baritone]] [[Julius Stockhausen]] sang {{lang|de|Dichterliebe}} with Brahms at the piano.<ref name=r222>Reich p. 222</ref> Stockhausen also gave the first complete performances of {{lang|de|Frauenliebe und Leben}} and the Op. 24 {{lang|de|Liederkreis}}.<ref name=r222/>

After his {{lang|de|Liederjahr}} Schumann returned in earnest to writing songs after a break of several years. Hall describes the variety of the songs as immense, and comments that some of the later songs are entirely different in mood from the composer's earlier Romantic settings. Schumann's literary sensibilities led him to create in his songs an equal partnership between words and music unprecedented in the German {{lang|de|Lied}}.<ref name=hsong/> His affinity with the piano is heard in his accompaniments to his songs, notably in their preludes and postludes, the latter often summing up what has been heard in the song.<ref name=hsong/>

===Orchestral===
[[File:Rhenish-opening-score.jpg|thumb|upright=1.35|Opening of [[Symphony No. 3 (Schumann)|Schumann's Third Symphony]], the ''Rhenish''|alt=page of full orchestral score]]
Schumann acknowledged that he found orchestration a difficult art to master, and many analysts have criticised his orchestral writing.<ref>Daverio and Sams, pp. 789 and 792; and Burnham, pp. 152–153</ref>{{refn|Aspects of Schumann's orchestration for which he has been criticised include (i) string parts that are awkward to play – showing his lack of familiarity with string technique, (ii) a frequent failure to secure a satisfactory balance between melodic and harmonic lines, and, most seriously (iii) his tendency to have string, brass and wind sections playing together most of the time, giving what the composer and musicologist [[Adam Carse]] calls a "full-bodied but monotonously rich tint" to the colouring instead of letting the sections of the orchestra be heard on their own at suitable points;<ref>Carse, p. 264</ref> the analyst Scott Burnham refers to "an indistinct, muffled quality, in which bass lines can be difficult to discern".<ref>Burnham, p. 152</ref>|group=n}} Conductors including [[Gustav Mahler]], [[Max Reger]], [[Arturo Toscanini]], [[Otto Klemperer]] and [[George Szell]] have made changes to the instrumentation before conducting his orchestral music.<ref>Frank, p. 200; Heyworth, p. 36; Kapp, p. 239; and [https://www.gramophone.co.uk/review/schumann-symphonies-manfred-overture "Schumann Symphonies; Manfred – Overture"], ''Gramophone'', February 1997 {{registration required}} {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240516112713/https://www.gramophone.co.uk/review/schumann-symphonies-manfred-overture |date=16 May 2024 }}</ref> The music scholar [[Julius Harrison]] considers such alterations fruitless: "the essence of Schumann's warmly vibrant music resides in its forthright romantic appeal with all those personal traits, lovable characteristic and faults" that make up Schumann's artistic character.<ref>Harrison, p. 249</ref> Hall comments that Schumann's orchestration has subsequently been more highly regarded because of a trend towards playing the orchestral music with smaller forces in [[historically informed performance]].<ref name=hall1127/>

After the successful premiere in 1841 of [[Symphony No. 1 (Schumann)|the first]] of his four symphonies the {{lang|de|Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung}} described it as "well and fluently written&nbsp;... also, for the most part, knowledgeably, tastefully, and often quite successfully and effectively orchestrated",<ref>Finson (1989), p. 1</ref> although a later critic called it "inflated piano music with mainly routine orchestration".<ref>[[Gerald Abraham|Abraham, Gerald]], ''quoted'' in Burnham, p. 152</ref> Later in the year a second symphony was premiered and was less enthusiastically received. Schumann revised it ten years later and published it as his [[Symphony No. 4 (Schumann)|Fourth Symphony]]. Brahms preferred the original, more lightly scored version,<ref>Harrison, p. 247</ref> which is occasionally performed and has been recorded, but the revised 1851 score is more usually played.<ref>March, ''et al'', pp. 1139–1140</ref> The work now called the [[Symphony No. 2 (Schumann)|Second Symphony]] (1846) is structurally the most [[Classical period (music)|classical]] of the four and is influenced by Beethoven and Schubert.<ref>Harrison, pp. 252–253</ref> The [[Symphony No. 3 (Schumann)|Third Symphony]] (1851), known as the ''Rhenish'', is, unusually for a symphony of its day, in five movements, and is the composer's nearest approach to pictorial symphonic music, with movements depicting a solemn religious ceremony in [[Cologne Cathedral]] and outdoor merrymaking of Rhinelanders.<ref>Harrison, p. 255</ref>

Schumann experimented with unconventional symphonic forms in 1841 in his [[Overture, Scherzo and Finale]], Op. 52, sometimes described as "a symphony without a slow movement".<ref>Burnham, p. 157; and Abraham, p. 53</ref> Its unorthodox structure may have made it less appealing and it is not often performed.<ref>Burnham, p. 158</ref> Schumann composed six overtures, three of them for theatrical performance, preceding [[Lord Byron|Byron]]'s ''[[Manfred]]'' (1852), [[Goethe]]'s [[Scenes from Goethe's Faust|''Faust'']] (1853) and his own ''Genoveva''. The other three were stand-alone concert works inspired by Schiller's ''[[The Bride of Messina]]'', Shakespeare's ''[[Julius Caesar (play)|Julius Caesar]]'' and Goethe's ''[[Hermann and Dorothea]]''.<ref>Burnham, pp. 163–164</ref>

The [[Piano Concerto (Schumann)|Piano Concerto]] (1845) quickly became and has remained one of the most popular Romantic piano concertos.<ref name=tomes/> In the mid-twentieth century, when the symphonies were less well regarded than they later became, the concerto was described in ''The Record Guide'' as "the one large-scale work of Schumann's which is by general consent an entire success".<ref>Sackville-West and Shawe-Taylor, p. 678</ref> The pianist Susan Tomes comments, "In the era of recording it has often been paired with [[Piano Concerto (Grieg)|Grieg's Piano Concerto]] (also in A minor) which clearly shows the influence of Schumann's".<ref name=tomes>Tomes, p. 126</ref> The first movement pitches against each other the forthright Florestan and dreamy Eusebius elements in Schumann's artistic nature – the vigorous opening bars succeeded by the wistful A minor theme that enters in the fourth bar.<ref name=tomes/> No other concerto or concertante work by Schumann has approached the popularity of the Piano Concerto, but the [[Konzertstück for Four Horns and Orchestra|Concert Piece for Four Horns and Orchestra]] (1849) and the [[Cello Concerto (Schumann)|Cello Concerto]] (1850) remain in the concert repertoire and are well represented on record.<ref>March ''et al'', pp. 1134, 1138 and 1140</ref> The late [[Violin Concerto (Schumann)|Violin Concerto]] (1853) is less often heard but has received several recordings.<ref>March ''et al'', p. 1137</ref>

===Chamber===
{{listen
 | header       = Andante and Variations, Op. 46 (1843)<br />
 | filename     = Robert Schumann - Andante and Variations - Introduction, Theme and Variations 01-05.ogg
 | title        = Introduction, Theme and Variations 1–5
 | format       = [[ogg]]
 | description  =
 | filename2    = Robert Schumann - Andante and Variations - Variations 06-10.ogg
 | title2       = Variations 6–10
 | format2      = [[ogg]]
 | description2 =
 | filename3    = Robert Schumann - Andante and Variations - Variations 11-15.ogg
 | title3       = Variations 11–15
 | format3      = [[ogg]]
 | description3 =Performed by Neal and Nancy O'Doan (pianos), Carter Enyeart and Toby Saks (cellos) and Christopher Leuba (horn)
 | image        = none
}}

Schumann composed a substantial quantity of chamber pieces, of which the best-known and most performed are the [[Piano Quintet (Schumann)|Piano Quintet in E{{music|flat}} major]], Op. 44, the [[Piano Quartet (Schumann)|Piano Quartet]] in the same key (both 1842) and three piano trios, the [[Piano Trio No. 1 (Schumann)|first]] and [[Piano Trio No. 2 (Schumann)|second]] from 1847 and the [[Piano Trio No. 3 (Schumann)|third]] from 1851. The Quintet was written for and dedicated to Clara Schumann. It is described by the musicologist [[Linda Correll Roesner]] as "a very 'public' and brilliant work that nonetheless manages to incorporate a private message" by quoting a theme composed by Clara.<ref name=lcr>Roesner, p. 133</ref> Schumann's writing for piano and [[string quartet]] – two violins, one viola and one cello – was in contrast with earlier piano quintets with different combinations of instruments, such as Schubert's ''[[Trout Quintet]]'' (1819). Schumann's ensemble became the template for later composers including Brahms, [[César Franck|Franck]], [[Gabriel Fauré|Fauré]], [[Dvořák]] and [[Elgar]].<ref>[https://imslp.org/wiki/List_of_Compositions_for_Piano_Quintet "List of Compositions for Piano Quintet"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240109221040/https://imslp.org/wiki/List_of_Compositions_for_Piano_Quintet |date=9 January 2024 }}, International Music Score Library Project. Retrieved 17 May 2024</ref> Roesner describes the Quartet as equally brilliant as the Quintet but also more intimate.<ref name=lcr/> Schumann composed a set of three string quartets (Op. 41, 1842). Dahlhaus comments that after this Schumann avoided writing for string quartet, finding Beethoven's achievements in that genre daunting.<ref>Dahlhaus (1989), p. 78</ref>

Among the later chamber works are the [[Violin Sonata No. 1 (Schumann)|Sonata in A minor for Piano and Violin]], Op. 105 – the first of three chamber pieces written in a two-month period of intense creativity in 1851 – followed by the Third Piano Trio and the [[Violin Sonata No. 2 (Schumann)|Sonata in D minor for Violin and Piano]], Op. 121.<ref>Roesner, p. 123</ref>

In addition to his chamber works for what were or were becoming standard combinations of instruments, Schumann wrote for some unusual groupings and was often flexible about which instruments a work called for: in his [[Adagio and Allegro for Horn and Piano|Adagio and Allegro]], Op. 70 the pianist may, according to the composer, be joined by either a horn, a violin or a cello, and in the [[Fantasiestücke, Op. 73]], the pianist may be duetting with a clarinet, violin or cello.<ref name=g794/> His Andante and Variations (1843) for two pianos, two cellos and a horn later became a piece for just the pianos.<ref name=g794>Daverio and Sams, p. 794</ref>

===Opera and choral===
[[File:Schumann-Genoveva-score.jpg|thumb|upright|Cover of ''[[Genoveva]]'' score|alt=front cover of musical score, with name of work, librettists, composer and publisher]]

''[[Genoveva]]'' was not a great success in Schumann's lifetime and has continued to be a rarity in the opera house. From its premiere onwards the work was criticised on the grounds that it is "an evening of {{lang|de|Lieder}} and nothing much else happens".<ref name=t308/> The conductor [[Nikolaus Harnoncourt]], who championed the work, blamed music critics for the low esteem in which the work is held. He maintained that they all approached the work with a preconceived idea of what an opera must be like, and finding that ''Genoveva'' did not match their preconceptions they condemned it out of hand.<ref>Cowan, Rob. [https://www.gramophone.co.uk/reviews/review?slug=schumann-genoveva "Schumann Genoveva"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240517100711/https://www.gramophone.co.uk/reviews/review?slug=schumann-genoveva |date=17 May 2024 }}, ''Gramophone'', January 1998 {{registration required}}</ref>  In Harnoncourt's view it is a mistake to look for a dramatic plot in this opera:
{{blockindent|It is a look into the soul. Schumann didn't want anything naturalistic at all. To Schumann this seemed alien to opera. He wanted to find an opera in which the music had more to say.<ref name=harn>[https://www.harnoncourt.info/schumann-genoveva-2/ "Schumann: Genoveva"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240518105600/https://www.harnoncourt.info/schumann-genoveva-2/ |date=18 May 2024 }}, Nikolaus Harnoncourt. Retrieved 18 May 2024</ref>|}}
Harnoncourt's view of the lack of drama in the opera contrasts with that of [[Victoria Bond]], who conducted the work's first professional stage production in the US in 1987. She finds the work "full of high drama and supercharged emotion. In my opinion, it's very stageworthy, too. It's not at all static".<ref name=t308>Tibbetts, p. 308</ref>

Unlike the opera, Schumann's secular oratorio {{lang|de|[[Das Paradies und die Peri]]}} was an enormous success in his lifetime, although it has since been neglected. [[Tchaikovsky]] described it as a "divine work" and said he "knew nothing higher in all of music."<ref>Жизнь Петра Ильича Чайковского, том 1 (1997), p. 229–230.</ref> The conductor [[Simon Rattle|Sir Simon Rattle]] called it "The great masterpiece you've never heard, and there aren't many of those now.&nbsp;... In Schumann's life it was the most popular piece he ever wrote, it was performed endlessly. Every composer loved it. Wagner wrote how jealous he was that Schumann had done it".<ref name=lso>[https://lsolive.lso.co.uk/products/schumann-das-paradies "Schumann: Das Paradies und die Peri"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240318131449/https://lsolive.lso.co.uk/products/schumann-das-paradies |date=18 March 2024 }}, London Symphony Orchestra. Retrieved 18 May 2024</ref> Based on an episode from [[Thomas Moore]]'s epic poem ''[[Lalla Rookh]]'' it reflects the exotic, colourful tales from Persian mythology popular in the nineteenth century. In a letter to a friend in 1843 Schumann said, "at the moment I'm involved in a large project, the largest I've yet undertaken – it's not an opera – I believe it's well-nigh a new genre for the concert hall".<ref name=lso/>

{{lang|de|[[Scenes from Goethe's Faust|Szenen aus Goethes Faust]]}} (Scenes from Goethe's Faust), composed between 1844 and 1853, is another hybrid work, operatic in manner but written for concert performance and labelled an [[oratorio]] by the composer. The work was never given complete in Schumann's lifetime, although the third section was successfully performed in Dresden, Leipzig and Weimar in 1849 to mark the centenary of Goethe's birth. Jensen comments that its good reception is surprising as Schumann made no concessions to popular taste: "The music is not particularly tuneful&nbsp;... There are no arias for Faust or Gretchen in the grand manner".<ref name=j233>Jensen, p. 233</ref> The complete work was first given in 1862 in [[Cologne]], six years after Schumann's death.<ref name=j233/> Schumann's other works for voice and orchestra include a [[Requiem Mass]], described by the critic [[Ivan March]] as "long-neglected and under-prized".<ref name=march/> Like Mozart before him, Schumann was haunted by the conviction that the Mass was his own requiem.<ref name=march>March ''et al'', p. 1150</ref>