Schumann: Davidsbündlertänze, Op. 6, Fantasie in C Major, Op. 17 & Geistervariationen, WoO 24

Featuring

Cordelia Williams
Robert Schumann

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Composer's Artistic Vision

Schumann's early piano works often incorporated musical codes, such as his 'Abegg' Variations, Op. 1, which used notes derived from the name Pauline von Abegg.

Composer Biography

Schumann, as a young man, considered a career in literature and founded the music journal Neue Zeitschrift für Musik in 1834.

Performer Biography

Pianist Cordelia Williams won the BBC Young Musician competition in 2006 and has performed with orchestras like the London Mozart Players and Royal Northern Sinfonia.

Composition History

Schumann's final piano composition, the 'Geistervariationen' (Ghost Variations), was written in February 1854, on a theme he believed was dictated to him by angels, shortly before he was committed to an asylum.

Composer Biography

Robert Schumann, the composer, was born in 1810, around the same time as fellow piano masters Mendelssohn, Chopin, and Liszt.

Composition History

The Fantasie in C major, Op. 17, was written in response to an idea by Franz Liszt to raise money for a monument to Beethoven in his birthplace, Bonn.

Compositional Technique

The Fantasie in C major, Op. 17, includes subtle musical quotations, such as a theme from Beethoven's song-cycle An die ferne Geliebte, and coded references to Clara Wieck, Schumann's future wife.