Schumann, Robert (1810 - 1856)

[Nick Armstrong]

A passing exchange on another thread prompts this one.

Schumann is a composer who is coming to mean more and more to me. I started at University learning the 3rd Symphony because it was coupled (BPO/Tennstedt) with the Konzertstück for Four Horns (recommended by horn player friends) and which I loved... But it seemed sort of all-purpose romantic music.

Thirty years later and I'm finding Schumann to have an increasingly satisfying and unique voice which I need as well as enjoy - more substance than Mendelssohn but often similarly grateful on the ear... The other symphonies are becoming desert island choices for me (I've just put on No 4 - the Szell/Cleveland performance, a recent acquisition thanks to Rob Cowan... wonderful ). They have something about them that means I never tire of them, I'm always glad to hear a Schumann Symphony (rather like Dvorak in that respect). I've long had the Sawallisch box set. I've been toying with investing in a modern collection since starting this thread in January:

http://www.for3.org/forums/showthread.php?4360-Expensive-Schumann-!!!&highlight=Schumann

but haven't done so yet.

The piano music is also revealing itself to me (triggered in no small measure by Geoffrey Norris's survey for BAL a while back which was full of wisdom and illustrations, and which I've probably listened to 6 times). The chamber music with piano likewise. And the songs appeal to me more than many lieder, I'd rather hear a programme of Schumann than of Schubert - at the moment, at any rate.

Would love to hear about others' views of Schumann, how you came to appreciate his works, recommendations for unmissable performances and pieces...

And teamsaint: which one did you pick to listen to? And who was playing it? And did it do the trick this afternoon?

[teamsaint]

A passing exchange on another thread prompts this one.

Schumann is a composer who is coming to mean more and more to me. I started at University learning the 3rd Symphony because it was coupled (BPO/Tennstedt) with the Konzertstück for Four Horns (recommended by horn player friends) and which I loved... But it seemed sort of all-purpose romantic music.

Thirty years later and I'm finding Schumann to have an increasingly satisfying and unique voice which I need as well as enjoy - more substance than Mendelssohn but often similarly grateful on the ear... The other symphonies are becoming desert island choices for me (I've just put on No 4 - the Szell/Cleveland performance, a recent acquisition thanks to Rob Cowan... wonderful ). They have something about them that means I never tire of them, I'm always glad to hear a Schumann Symphony (rather like Dvorak in that respect). I've long had the Sawallisch box set. I've been toying with investing in a modern collection since starting this thread in January:

http://www.for3.org/forums/showthread.php?4360-Expensive-Schumann-!!!&highlight=Schumann

but haven't done so yet.

The piano music is also revealing itself to me (triggered in no small measure by Geoffrey Norris's survey for BAL a while back which was full of wisdom and illustrations, and which I've probably listened to 6 times). The chamber music with piano likewise. And the songs appeal to me more than many lieder, I'd rather hear a programme of Schumann than of Schubert - at the moment, at any rate.

Would love to hear about others' views of Schumann, how you came to appreciate his works, recommendations for unmissable performances and pieces...

And teamsaint: which one did you pick to listen to? And who was playing it? And did it do the trick this afternoon?

Footy this afternoon, Cali.......the Schumann was to drown out X factor tonight,thanks. I have jumped the gun, though, and cooking to #4 Muti/Philharmonia . Fabulous.
The symphonies always do the trick !!All of them.I shall return later when dinner is over !

And , in short, the "Spring"is one of the best things of all time ever !

[Pianorak]

Just off the top of my head "unmissable performances and pieces":

The Symphonies - Bernard Haitink and Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Dichterliebe: Ian/Jennifer Partridge or Olaf Baer

Horowitz:
Humoreske, Op. 20
Fantasiestuecke, Op. 111 (steer clear of the Brautigam recording of the op. 111)
Nachtstuecke, Op. 23

Richter:
Faschingsschwank aus Wien, Op. 26
Papillons, Op. 2 (Nelson Freire, excellent as well)

Arrau:
Fantasia, Op. 17 (1959 Ascona recording)

Can't really say how I came to appreciate the works - since Schumann has never been a problem.
Lots of other unmissable performances and pieces - but need more thought.

[John Shelton]

Schumann is one of my favourite composers. Don't ignore the chamber music, but for me the heart is in the solo piano music and songs.

If you can find it this http://www.amazon.co.uk/Lieder-Mende...3173565&sr=1-1 recording of Dichterliebe is essential IMV.

Werner Gura is good too http://www.amazon.co.uk/Schumann-Dic...3173688&sr=1-1

Schiff's ECM 'doubles' of piano music are very fine http://www.prestoclassical.co.uk/r/ECM/4763909

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Andras-Schiff-Concert-Robert-Schumann/dp/B000060OO3/ref=sr_1_2?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1353174038&sr=1-2

Also Alexander Lonquich playing Schumann & Holliger http://www.prestoclassical.co.uk/r/ECM/4763826

And Pollini's DG recordings.

There's a lovely C Major Fantasie played by Edna Stern on Zigzag

And Uchida's Carnaval is excellent.

Should start the ball rolling!

(I like the Hanover Band / Roy Goodman set of the symphonies).

Definitely Sviatoslav Richter, too.

[Richard Tarleton]

Cello concerto is lovely - according to Alban Gerhardt, whom I last heard play it, Schumann did not write particularly sympathetically from the cellist's point of view but it's a lovely work.

[Pianorak]

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Andras-Schif...3174038&sr=1-2

Don't know that - but am not surprised you include it. Schiff always seems to deliver the goods whatever he plays. Thanks for mentioning a few names new to me such as Gura, Lonquich and Edna Stern.

[Serial_Apologist]

The Piano Concerto - the 10" Columbia recording of Dinu Lipatti, the Philharmonia under Herbert von K, my father's first ever LP - was the first piece of classical music I learned from memory from start to finish; Like so much of Schuman's music I love it for being music which, one senses, was just bursting to come out of its composer. Right at the end of his life he asked me to obtain the CD of this recording; by some irony I never played it until recently, when I discovered the CD to be damaged. Though by no means hi fidelity, the LP cleaned up remarkably well - they sure made 'em tough in those days! - and remains in my collection.

Later, Dad obtained the HMV album of the Etudes Symphoniques - my other favourite piece of Schumann, with its Bachian main theme and gloriously uplifting finale - played by Moura Lympany, and coupled with the Franck Variations Symphoniques, with Lympany backed by the Philharmonia under Susskind.

As in Caliban's experience, Schumann has grown on me with increasing age; in some ways he was harmonically and rhythmically ahead of his main successor Brahms, if not in terms of formal ingenuity and cohesiveness, and, goodness me, I hear the influence of that Piano Concerto in so many equally if not more famous PCs that would follow - Grieg's, Tchaik's No 1, even Bartok 3!

[John Shelton]

Don't know that - but am not surprised you include it. Schiff always seems to deliver the goods whatever he plays. Thanks for mentioning a few names new to me such as Gura, Lonquich and Edna Stern.

Most welcome - Schumann is a passion of mine. The Schiff recitals are excellent.

An interesting disc I forgot is Tobias Koch playing some of the strange, visionary late pieces on a Dresden piano contemporary to them http://www.prestoclassical.co.uk/r/Genuin/GEN86062.

[Nick Armstrong]

Riches aplenty already, thanks folks And some tempting links, Hey Non!

I have the Schiff 'Geistervariationen' album (wonderful); as I love the Fantasie in C (I have Pollini as well, and Perahia I think), the Edna Stern recommendation is alluring); and also downloaded Richter's 'Papillons' performance is a recent acquisition, as I was smitten by it on G Norris's programme mentioned above.

Much to explore! As to the 'Spring', ts, which performance does it for you?

A last thought for now about a piece not yet mentioned *, the piano concerto. I went to see that film about David Helfgott, 'Shine', with a friend who is a concert pianist (known in Germany rather than here). I was struck by his comment as we left afterwards that all the talk about 'The Rach Three' being the most difficult concerto ever written was nonsense as far as he was concerned: the most difficult of all is the Schumann - fewer notes, but the patterns and structure of the music are apparently far harder to grasp, memorise and bring off. I always think about that when I hear it. (I must say, I prefer Rach 3 as a musical experience... )


* PS you slipped in your post about the PC while I was writing that, S_A !!

[jayne lee wilson]

My current favourite for the Symphonies is Harnoncourt with the COE (which includes the 1841 original 4th), supplemented with his Berlin Phil reading of the revised 4th (c/w a great Schubert 4). Hans Vonk's oft-overlooked Cologne Radio set is more mainstream but still excellent. Haven't played them for a while now, but much enjoyed Zinman/Tonhalle, Szell/Cleveland, and Paray in Detroit too - though the latter's wonderful, stereo No.1 overshadows the rest of the cycle a little. Get it anyway, the Spring really springs!

Sawallisch is always a good bet (Toshiba if you can!) but feels a bit overfamiliar for me now...

3 chamber music sets stand out:
Zehetmair Quartet in Qs 1 and 3 on ECM (Gramophone Record of the Year a few years back).
Widman/Varjon Violin Sonatas again on ECM.
Tetzlaff/Tetzlaff/Andsnes Piano Trios on EMI, G. Chamber Record of the Year 2012!

I bought all of these and played them often - highly recommended!

[Bryn]

Some years back Radio 3 broadcast a series of EIF concerts in which Sir Charles Mackerras directed the SCO in performances of the symphonies (both versions of the 4th) and concertos. fortunately I recorded the FM broadcasts to cassette and have since transferred them to CD-R. They remain my favourites, JEG et al notwithstanding.

[Serial_Apologist]

A last thought for now about a piece not yet mentioned, the piano concerto.

Err, Msg 7?

[Serial_Apologist]

An excellent thread Caliban

Has anyone thoughts on this set which is about to be released?


Or is it best to pick and choose the piano pieces individually?

I hope you have a large house, MS!

[Madame Suggia]

I hope you have a large house, MS!

..erm No

[Bryn]

An excellent thread Caliban

Has anyone thoughts on this set which is about to be released?
link deleted

Or is it best to pick and choose the piano pieces individually?

Thanks for linking to this forthcoming release of the boxed set of these highly regarded recordings. Duly ordered.