Great Composers: Robert Schumann
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- čas přidán 13. 07. 2016
- A look at one of the definitive Romantic composers.
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Classical Nerd is a weekly video series covering music history, theoretical concepts, and techniques, hosted by composer, pianist, and music history aficionado Thomas Little.
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Music:
- Robert Schumann: Fantasy in C Major, Op. 17, performed by Joachim Parrow
[free recording courtesy www.pianosociety.com]
- Thomas Little: Dance! #2 in E minor, Op. 1 No. 2, performed by Rachel Fellows, Michael King, and Bruce Tippette
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Contact Information:
Questions and comments can be directed to:
nerdofclassical [at] gmail.com
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All images and audio in this video are for educational purposes only and are not intended as copyright infringement. If you have a copyright concern, please contact me using the above information. - Hudba
I enjoy your enthusiastic presentations about many composers I love and about composers I have never heard of. It is kind of you to share with all of us. Have happiness. Thank you!
One of my favourite if not my favourite composer :D
Schumann is one of my absolute favorite composers of all times. His music is so incredibly poetic and expressive, so direct and original. That is especially true for his piano works (and I am really glad you mentioned Davidsbündlertänze, a cycle that I deeply love). But I think it is superficial to say that his orchestral works are terribly crafted and orchestrated. Yes, they are far away from the genius of Berlioz, Wagner or Brahms (also one rarely mentioned master of the art of orchestration), still: I could not live without his 3rd Symphony, not to speak of his amazing Piano Concerto, probably the greatest concerto for the instrument written in the entire 19th century, only comparable to Chopin's or Brahms' Concertos, possibly Beethoven's 4th.
I recently had a really great, in-depth discussion of Schumann's orchestration over in the comment section of my Brahms video. I'll summarize here: the overriding problem in his orchestral works is a problem of balance that had to do with the wind players of his era and the poor quality of the wind section in the orchestras for which he specifically wrote. They work, but only after a _lot_ of hands-on wrangling on the part of conductors to fix the dynamic levels and get everything to a good performing level, and most orchestras just don't have enough rehearsal time to do a Schumann symphony justice. The relative dynamic levels between parts don't "lock into place," so to speak, unlike, say, Brahms, who was well aware of Schumann's deficiency in this department, in large part because he spent more time conducting than his mentor.
An interesting remark, but I would also say that (and you mentioned it in your video as far as I remember) there is a tendency in his symphonies towards using too many tuttis. His symphonies rarely have really cool effects of interlocking instruments or changing from tuttis to solo-passages, 'Durchbrochene Arbeit' (I do not know the translation of this term) is used a lot in the 1st Symphony, but in other works it is less prominent. (Perhaps this is what you tried to say with your comment all along?) The Piano Concerto has a lot of these things though, certainly a lot in the first movement. I have to think about your comment, really interesting point.
I would say that his orchestrational difficulties seem to be confined in large part to the symphonies; the concerti (or his rarely-played cantatas) aren't nearly as doubled, which means it's easier on conductors to trawl through and balance out dynamically.
@@ClassicalNerd the orchestras he wrote for had far fewer members than modern orchestras, different instruments, and also a different seating arrangement. In their contemporary era Mendelssohn was able to conduct the works well. So it's misleading to speak of conductors today needing to correct the orchestration to fit the modern orchestra as if it is something unique, because they have to do this for many works written so long ago. This is as unfair as when Bernstein said that Beethoven had bad orchestration (having a perspective involving totally different instruments).
But the main issue is not technical aspects of orchestration, it is the aesthetic success of the whole. Szell and Mahler say Schumann as symphonist needs lots of correction: Jarvi and Harding, (and arguably Rattle), not so. The few symphonic players I know actually prefer Schumann to Brahms, every time. Also..Sch #2 is musically in advance of Wagner of the same year, in my view. Schumann's weaknesses end up his strengths. Best wishes.
Great synopsis....i like the version of the pieces he didn't re-edit ......his predicament really helped his creativity......
excellent presentation thank you! :)
Great video!
Excellent!
Schumman was in fact a great composer. Unfortunately academia downplays his music. Schumann was somewhat self taugh when it came to orchestration, which often went against the norm of how composers were suppose to write music. More of the working man's composer so to speak. Anyone who I"ve let listen to Schumann"s music and doesn't usually like classical, loves his music. His symphonies are fantastic, especially the 1st and 4th. His style has a contemporary feel to it, which is what makes his output so appealing.
Schumann is a great composer. I love playing his piano suite "Fascingsschwank aus Wien" Op.26 ("Carnival-Jest in Vienna). And I completely agree with your statement on his symphonies. They are some of my faves among symphonies.
Technically Schumann was often not the most proficient of composers, particularly in his later years, but one cannot deny he had a great soul (it is nigh impossible not to be moved by a piece such as Traumerei) and in many ways (particularly in his piano music) was a revolutionary who did not adhere to the old forms inherited from the 18th century. Indeed in some ways he created a new form in collections of individual piano pieces that are bound together into a single poetically and even thematically unified work.
his 4th is my favorite symphony
It's a very nice song I like that
Say what you want about Frederick weicke , his technical studies and his book piano and song are great. Piano and song has great insights into piano playing and teaching.
true
You gave good info...but the music in the background was gnawing. I gave you a like tho' for your effort.
Please note that old videos (like this one) are not representative of my current depth of research or production quality. I encourage you to watch something more current.
The background music is distracting and unnecessary.
Wow, That’s a Horrible way to Go out..
Wanting a relationship with a child is very disgusting. A lot of men have done this shot in the past. Child marriage is still a problem today.
Robert first felt love for Clara when she was 14. Legal marriage age in Germany at the time- we may not like it- was 16 IF her parents (father) approved. This was a different society than our own and you are hasty to apply our standards in every case or not research the cultural context. In this case- the relationship evolved into a very loving if perhaps not perfect marriage. If you doubt that- read HER letters and diary. .
Acceptable sexual relationships for centuries in almost all cultures have been based on the need for a society to REPRODUCE, have healthy offspring in a stable married strong society.... something I believe you may not feel is important.... never mind..... the future is for those who reproduce and have and bring up babies....
A child is a biologically prepubescent individual.... generally 15 year olds were not prepubescent in the 1850s and are not prepubescent in 2021. People married young, and there were greater age differences between the TWO genders, male and female, because people died young. For a society to survive you need something called OFFSPRING... something that a liberal regressive society like yours is not having enough of, a society which normalises non-productive sexual relationships and sex change operations for pre-pubescent children, which doesn't care about social stability but only selfish and destructive individualism as normal... is doomed to disappear and be forgotten in the mists of time very quickly.... fortunately.