Clara Schumann
Clara Wieck Schumann has often been misleadingly referred to as the wife of composer Robert Schumann, and as one of the leading pianists of her day, rather than as a composer in her own right. Beginning in the last quarter of the twentieth century however, her stature as a composer finally became recognized. Still, she cannot by any reasonable measure be ranked as a major composer, owing in great part to her relatively small output. She nonetheless wrote significant compositions in both the keyboard and vocal realms. Had she been able to devote more time to composition -- she was occupied by maternal matters much of the time, having given birth to eight children -- she might well have risen to the artistic heights of her husband. Some of her later works -- the Six Lieder, Op. 23, for instance -- demonstrate considerable subtlety and depth.
Clara Wieck was born on September 13, 1819, in Leipzig. She began studying the piano with her domineering and difficult father, whom her mother, a talented singer, later divorced. Mr. Wieck was a piano teacher of high repute. Clara gave her debut concert in Leipzig at the age of seven playing Kalkbrenner's duet, Variations on a March from Moses, with him.
In 1830, Robert Schumann began study with Wieck, at which time he first met Clara. At twelve Clara toured Europe with her father, achieving great success in Paris and throughout Germany. By 1837 she was recognized as one of the leading virtuosos in Europe, and her career as a composer was blossoming as well. Her first compositions date from 1830, but her 1836 Soirées musicales, Op. 6, already shows considerable sophistication. In 1837 she and Schumann became engaged, with boisterous objections from her father.
Clara seems to have broken from her father's influence when she toured Paris alone in 1839. The break was made complete the following year when she married Robert Schumann. They would have eight children, and Clara would slowly watch her sensitive husband lose his sanity. The couple at first lived in Leipzig, where both taught at the University.
Clara did not write much in the early years of her marriage, though she did complete the Six Lieder, Op. 13 (1842-1843), and some piano pieces, including the Three Preludes and Fugue (1845). In 1853, the Schumanns moved to Düsseldorf, and Clara had a very productive summer, producing several significant works, including her Op. 20 Variations on a theme of Robert Schumann and the aforementioned Op. 23. In 1854, Robert Schumann suffered a mental collapse and attempted suicide, after which he was committed to an asylum where he lived for the rest of his life. He passed away in 1856.
Johannes Brahms, who had been introduced to the Schumanns in 1853 through the violin virtuoso Joseph Joachim, became an increasingly important figure in Clara's life. To this day, their exact relationship is unclear, but it is difficult to refute claims they had an affair. Brahms was 14 years Clara's junior, and possibly felt their age difference too great an obstacle for marriage.
Clara composed little in the years following Robert's death, even after her children were grown. She lived in Berlin from 1857 to 1863, at which time she moved to Baden-Baden. After briefly returning to Berlin in 1873, she took a teaching post at the Frankfurt Hoch Conservatory (1878). She continued to concertize until 1891. She died of a stroke on May 20, 1896.
© TiVo
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Sous l'Eau Du Songe
Maria Riccarda Wesseling, Nathalie Dang
Classique - Paru chez Claves Records le 20 oct. 2008
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Schumann: Works for Violon / Viola & Piano
Musique de chambre - Paru chez Claves Records le 19 janv. 2015
4 étoiles Classica5 de Diapason24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Clara Schumann & Great Female Composers
Clara Schumann, Cécile Chaminade, Grazyna Bacewicz
Classique - Paru chez UME - Global Clearing House le 18 mai 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Songs Without Words for Piano Trio
Classique - Paru chez PHAEDRA le 11 nov. 2016
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
From Leipzig to Madrid: Piano Works by Schumann & Arzamendi
Noemí Teruel Serrano, Clara Schumann, Robert Schumann, Beatriz Arzamendi
Classique - Paru chez Novus Promusica le 2 mai 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Female Classical Composers - Great Recordings
Sofia Gubaidulina, Clara Schumann, Cécile Chaminade
Classique - Paru chez UME - Global Clearing House le 5 mars 2021
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Completely Clara: Lieder By Clara Wieck Schumann
Classique - Paru chez Arabesque Recordings le 11 août 1993
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Liebesfrühling
Liesbeth Devos, Peter Gijsbertsen, Jozef de Beenhouwer
Classique - Paru chez PHAEDRA le 10 mars 2017
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Songs by Clara Schumann, Poldowski and Amy Beach
Classique - Paru chez Albany Records le 1 mars 1994
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Clara - Robert - Johannes: Lyrical Echoes
Canada's National Arts Centre Orchestra, Adrianne Pieczonka, Liz Upchurch
Classique - Paru chez Groupe Analekta, Inc le 19 nov. 2021
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Clara Wieck Schumann: Oeuvres de Jeunesse (Youth Works)
Classique - Paru chez VDE-GALLO le 5 juil. 2013
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Clara Schumann & Johannes Brahms
Classique - Paru chez Columna Música le 15 déc. 2010
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3 Romances for Violin and Piano, Op. 22
Clara Schumann, Koji Morishita
Classique - Paru chez Stereo Arts Classics le 9 avr. 2024
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
First Loss. Piano Works by Beethoven & Schumann
Irene Cantos, Robert Schumann, Ludwig van Beethoven, Clara Schumann, Amy Beach
Classique - Paru chez Novus Promusica le 2 avr. 2024
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Quatre Pièces fugitives, Op. 15
Classique - Paru chez Classicato le 23 juil. 2022
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Quatre Pièces fugitives, Op. 15 (Nr 4 Scherzo)
Classique - Paru chez soundnotation le 19 juin 2020
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Quatre Pièces fugitives, Op. 15 (Nr 2 Un poco agitato)
Classique - Paru chez soundnotation le 19 juin 2020
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Quatre Pièces fugitives, Op. 15 (Nr 1 Larghetto)
Classique - Paru chez soundnotation le 19 juin 2020
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Drei Romanzen, Nr. 2, Allegretto
Classique - Paru chez soundnotation le 22 janv. 2020
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Drei Romanzen, Nr. 3 Leidenschaftlich schnell
Classique - Paru chez soundnotation le 22 janv. 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo