In 1891, composer Anton Rubinstein praised Schumann's piano works for their new style, rhythms, harmony, forms, and incomparable poetic melody, calling them "among the gems of the piano repertoire."
Composer's Artistic Vision
Schumann was not only a composer but also a combative journalist who founded the avant-garde music review, the Neue Zeitschrift für Musik, at age twenty-three.
Recording & Production
This album is the final recording in a complete set of Schumann's works for (or including) the piano, performed by Éric Le Sage.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Schumann coined the term "new poetic age" to describe the most innovative artistic creations of the 1830s, encompassing poetry, music, and other arts.
Compositional Technique
Schumann's piano music often features "inner voices" and "voices from afar," and he enjoyed incorporating secrets and enigmas, such as the Sphinxes in Carnaval, into his works.
Composer Biography
Robert Schumann, the composer, was the son of a writer, lexicographer, and bookseller, and had strong literary inclinations from his youth.
Instruments
The recording took place in April 2010 at L'Heure Bleue, Salle de musique, in La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland, a venue known for its extraordinary acoustics.
