Chopin, Eliasson & Schumann: Personae

Featuring

Beth Levin
Robert Schumann
Anders Eliasson
Frédéric Chopin

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Composition History

Robert Schumann's early piano works, including Davidsbündlertänze, were greatly influenced by his relationship with Clara Wieck, who was his sole motivation for writing several pieces.

Composer Biography

Anders Eliasson, a composer featured on this album, started as a jazz trumpeter and bandleader at age 12 before studying Johann Sebastian Bach's music for many years.

Composer's Artistic Vision

For Robert Schumann, the Davidsbündlertänze was a self-portrait of his mood swings and split personality, containing 'many wedding thoughts' related to his engagement to Clara Wieck.

Composer's Artistic Vision

The title of Schumann's Davidsbündlertänze refers to his fictitious League of David, a brotherhood of artists, including his alter egos Florestan and Eusebius, who battled the 'Philistines' of contemporary music.

Performer Biography

Pianist Beth Levin made her debut with the Philadelphia Orchestra at age 12 and was praised by legendary pianist Paul Badura-Skoda as 'a pianist of rare qualities and the highest professional caliber'.

Compositional Technique

In the first edition of Davidsbündlertänze, Robert Schumann attributed specific movements to his imaginary alter egos: Eusebius (sensitive, lyrical) and Florestan (intense, rhythmic).

Critical Reception

Many of Robert Schumann's contemporaries considered the Davidsbündlertänze's sudden mood changes and unconventional approach to tonality and rhythm so original that it verged on madness.