The Life and Music of Clara Schumann

Clara Schumann, without a doubt, was one of the greatest pianists
of all time. 


Schumann’s playing didn’t just leave critics and audiences in
raptures, it also left other composers amazed that their music
could sound so beautiful. Liszt called her the Priestess of the
Piano, Chopin adored her playing, and Mendelssohn brought her
over and over again to Leipzig to play concerts with the
Gewandhaus orchestra. She toured practically her entire life
while raising a family of 8 children, and taking care of her
husband Robert, who dealt with a series of mental illnesses that
ended in his tragic and untimely death. 


Simply put, Clara Schumann was a legend in her time. She was the
first pianist to perform entire concertos and recital programs by
memory, the first pianist to devote her work to both contemporary
composers AND composers of the past, bringing Bach onto the
recital stage. And on and on and on.


But today I’m not going to focusing too much on Clara Schumann
the pianist. I won’t be mentioning Brahms or Robert Schumann all
that much either, except in biographical details. That’s because
the focus of the show today is on Clara Schumann’s compositions.
She only published 23 pieces during her life, a result of many
factors, but what we do have of her work shows a brilliant and
underrated compositional talent. 


So today I’ll tell you about Clara Schumann’s turbulent and
fascinating life story, and then take you through a few of her
most wonderful pieces, including the piano trio and the 3
romances for violin and piano. We’ll also talk about why her body
of work is so small, and why what we have of her music is so
precious. Join us!