Robert Schumann, the composer, was a visionary literary composer who saw no boundary between words and music, finding semantic flexibility and expressive potential in both.
Composer Biography
Schumann's early piano works were inspired by the writings of Jean Paul Richter and E.T.A. Hoffmann, whose works blurred reality and fantasy.
Composer Biography
Schumann's marriage to Clara Wieck, a virtuoso pianist, was initially forbidden by her father, Friedrich Wieck, leading to an emotionally grueling court battle.
Composer Biography
Schumann's ambition to become a professional pianist was thwarted by a hand injury sustained from using a mechanical restraint.
Interpretation
The performance practice of Schumann's piano music demands a fluid, flexible approach, where the musical pulse stretches and compresses to create a whimsical, hallucinatory world.
Composition History
Schumann established a musical journal, the Neue Zeitschrift für Musik, for which he created alter egos for himself, the exuberant 'Florestan' and introvert 'Eusebius'.
Performer Biography
Stephen Hough, the pianist on this recording, was awarded a prestigious MacArthur Fellowship in 2001 and was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 2014.
