2010 Program note: Schumann's symphonies

Schumann’s symphonies stand out by virtue of their beauty and originality. They have made their mark, both at the time they were composed and since. Schumann’s influence on Brahms is self-evident; it may also be observed in Liszt’s symphonic poems and later in Mahler and Sibelius. However, among his contemporaries Schumann received greater acclaim as an author and periodical editor than as a composer. In more ways than one he combined elements characteristic of the Romantic period.

Robert Schumann’s father was a bookseller, publisher and author, and his passion for books strongly influenced his son’s literary development. From his father Robert also inherited a nervous disposition, which manifested itself in long, miserable periods of illness and two suicide attempts. It was principally his mother who nurtured Robert’s musical talent. While still at school he attracted attention with his imaginative piano improvisations. In his youth he wrote some minor piano pieces, but his propensity to compose in large format did not appear until later in life. First of all he had to find outlets for his thoughts on the place of music in society, and when he was 24 he and some friends published the periodical Neues Zeitschrift für Musik. He used it as a mouthpiece to attack the musical establishment, which he claimed was stuck in a rut, and to address the superficial flamboyance that was common in concert performances at the time. Over the ensuing ten years the periodical acquired an influential position in European music thanks to Schumann’s shrewd editorial insight and his incisive articles and analyses.

When his father died, Robert needed to make a living, and embarked on studies with a career in law in mind. However, he convinced his mother that the right course of action was thorough piano tuition with Friedrich Wieck as his teacher. With his musical talent and maturity, all was set for a successful career as a pianist, but his hopes were dashed when he permanently injured his right hand, probably with a device designed to strengthen the fingers.

The young Robert nurtured strong feelings for his teacher’s talented daughter, Clara. The nine-year difference in their ages was only one of the reasons for father Wieck’s opposition to the liaison. Signs of the suitor’s unstable behaviour gave him greater cause for concern. Apprehensive as he was, Wieck finally gave in and let the young couple have their way: in September 1840 Clara and Robert married and settled in Leipzig. There Schumann hoped to take over Mendelssohn’s job as the director of the conservatoire, and he was very disappointed when the position went to another applicant. In 1844 the couple moved to Dresden, where Schumann applied in vain for jobs appropriate to his qualifications. Periods of depression did not improve matters. In 1850 he was offered and accepted the post of City Musical Director in Düsseldorf. Felix Mendelssohn had formerly had a difficult time in the same job, and by comparison Robert Schumann had little experience as both administrator and conductor. Conflicts arose and he had confrontations with the board, and after a heart attack in 1853 he had to relinquish the baton for good. Then in early 1854, after a nervous breakdown, he was committed to a mental asylum where he died two years later.

Symphony No 1, ‘Spring’

Robert Schumann was 22 years old when he made his first foray into symphonic form. This youthful work in G minor was performed a few times and then forgotten; the only movement extant is a fumbling attempt at mastering the complexity of an orchestra. A second attempt in 1837 was also unsuccessful, but in four January days in 1841 he sketched out a symphony in B flat major, which he subsequently completed within two weeks. This is what is now known as Schumann’s first symphony. It was an overwhelming success in March, when Mendelssohn conducted the first performance in Leipzig. Schumann paints a fresh, appealing symphony with a clear structure using his luxuriant palette of sound colours. A poem by Adolph Böttger is said to have inspired the composer to set ‘spring’ titles to the first and last movements, though he removed them shortly afterwards. However the title ‘Spring’ remained with the symphony as a whole, an appropriate description for this music, which displays the influence of Beethoven, Mendelssohn and even of Schubert.

Symphony No 2

It is often observed that of Schumann’s symphonies his second in C major is the one in which the influence of Beethoven is most apparent. As in Beethoven’s ninth symphony, Schumann has his Scherzo as the second movement, but apart from such formal considerations there are similarities in many aspects of the contents, not least the symphony as an arena for the struggle against hostile and destructive forces. In 1845 Schumann had suffered an acute mental crisis, and he experienced deep despair. When he emerged from the tunnel, it was essential to restore his self-confidence. He succeeded in doing so through his work on this symphony. It has been referred to as a ‘statement from a tormented soul’.

Symphony No 3, ‘Rhenish’

In 1850 Robert Schumann took over as the musical director of the choir and symphony orchestra in Düsseldorf. The post of conductor involved his writing new music. At the time he was in a highly creative period, composing the Cello Concerto, the music to Goethe’s Faust, numerous songs and his third symphony, the Rhenish. The symphony was directly influenced by the impressions gained on a pleasant family day trip to Cologne. The genial landscape through which they travelled made its mark on the composer’s mind, and a spectacular highlight of the day was the mighty cathedral, where preparations for the institution of a new cardinal the following day were taking place. The symphony with its literary inspiration has a unified form and a great wealth of musical ideas. The composer himself conducted the first performance of his E flat major symphony in February 1851.

Symphony 4

The D minor symphony is actually the second composed by Schumann, but it became number four after extensive revision. The first edition was in the form of a symphonic fantasia, played without breaks. It was not particularly well received when first performed in Leipzig in 1841, so Schumann let the score alone for ten years before reworking the symphony with new instrumentation. This was a significant step towards a new kind of symphonic form.

The Piano Concerto

As is the case with many of Schumann’s works, the creation of the A minor concerto was a complex process. In its first version it was named Fantasia for Piano and Orchestra, but no publisher was interested in it. Four years passed. Schumann then wrote two new movements, and Clara Schumann was the soloist at its first performance. The composer himself was in two minds as to whether it actually was a piano concerto. In a letter to Clara he wrote, ‘The concerto is somewhere between a symphony, a concerto and a large sonata. I notice I am unable to write a concerto for virtuoso performers; I have to write something else.’ Indeed it was not a bravura concerto for the great technical wizards of the day to use to show off their skills. An example of the opinion of the day was Franz Liszt. The piano part was not brilliant enough, he thought, so he removed it from his repertoire. He later regretted doing so. The concerto was for a long time underrated and denigrated.

‘To be as dreadfully misjudged by one’s contemporaries as Schumann is often a sign of true greatness. Today we can see that the democratic fusion of the piano and orchestral parts is the greatest merit of the A minor concerto. And we are happy not to have to wade in the sump of bravura we know from older concertos. Opus 54 shows us Schumann from his gentlest and most poetic side. In its construction, its colouration, its instrumentation, its rhythmical inventiveness and its lushness he does himself proud. He has retained his youthful freshness, striking power and spontaneity,’ writes Robert H Schauffler.

Schumann – just as Beethoven does in his last two concertos – breaks the mould of presenting thematic material in the orchestral introduction before passing it on to the soloist. The piano is in the picture from the word go.

Violin Concerto

Schumann’s Violin Concerto is his last work. He was struggling with great mental troubles and was at times unbalanced. Clara Schumann, with the support of their friend Joseph Joachim, the violinist, considered the concerto unworthy of the composer, and decided that it should therefore not be printed or performed. Posterity has held a different view, but a long time elapsed before anyone dared to defy the decision of Schumann’s widow. When it was eventually brought back into the light of day and performed in 1935, there were serious protests, including those of Eugenie, Schumann’s daughter, who was still alive at the time. Since then several great virtuoso performers have had it on their repertoire.

TEXT: REIDAR STORAAS

ENGLISH VERSION: ROGER MARTIN