Chamber Music Weekend
Penwythnos Cerddoriaeth Siambr
Robert
Schumann:
Inner Voices,
Outer Worlds
17-19 October | Hydref 2014
SUNDAY
DYDD SUL
Supported by | Noddir gan
Philip and Christine Carne and The Radcliffe Trust
Welcome to the final day of our fourth Festival of Chamber Music, this year focussing on the music
and musical world of German Romanticism’s most archetypal and enigmatic composer, Robert
Schumann (1810-56). This exploration of many of Schumann’s small- ensemble masterpieces offers a
rare opportunity to glance through a window into this complex composer’s soul, encountering the
inner voices within his extraordinary musical personality.
Perhaps more than any other great composer, Schumann’s private life and musical output were
inextricably linked. Initially, a composer of highly innovative music for solo piano, his long-delayed
marriage to Clara Wieck in 1840 inspired an outpouring of some 150 songs, to be followed a year later
with an equally prolific approach to symphonic genres. An intense interest in chamber music ensued.
In accounts of the composer’s life, 1842 is frequently referred to as the “Chamber Music Year”. Prior
to this, Schumann had completed no chamber music at all, with the exception of an early piano quartet
(1829). However, during his year-long concentration on chamber forms he wrote three string quartets,
a piano trio, the piano quartet and the ever-popular piano quintet – the first work ever to combine
the piano with the string quartet. The piano – and Clara as pianist – continued to sit at the centre of
much of Schumann’s chamber music throughout his remaining years, as we’ll hear across the
weekend.
Alongside his work as a composer, Schumann was a brilliant and original writer about music. His
eloquent words drew the attention of a fascinated public to composers of the day as well as stylistic
developments in both composition and performance. Many of his contributions to the journal Die
Neue Zeitschrift für Musik (which he founded in 1834) were under the guise of two self-styled inner
personalities “Eusebius” and “Florestan”. Eusebius, the quiet, lyrical, introspective; Florestan,
flamboyant and impetuous, the true romantic whose mood changes were quick and unpredictable.
We frequently hear these two characters, amongst many others, in the music. However, we’ll also be
encountering them through pieces of Schumann’s prose, read by actors from the College, which will
bring a fascinating, literary narrative to the programme.
The Festival’s core repertoire is centred on the Gould Piano Trio’s performances of Schumann’s three
great Piano Trios (Opp. 63, 80 & 110) each of which is placed within the context of music by leading
or lesser known contemporaries. The same theme encompasses a rich variety of contributions by
College musicians, both in larger-scale works (Spohr’s Nonet and Mendelssohn’s String Symphony
no.12) and performances reflecting the breadth and diversity of the chamber music both of Schumann
and of composers from his world.
SUNDAY at 11am
The Gould Piano Trio
Lucy Gould, violin
Alice Neary, cello
Benjamin Frith, piano
The Gould Piano Trio is Chamber Music Ensemble-in-Residence at the Royal Welsh College of Music
& Drama
Piano Trio in E flat, Op. 12
i.
ii.
iii.
Johann Nepmuk Hummel
Allegro con moto
Un poco larghetto
Allegro con brio
Johann Neopmuk Hummel (1778-1837) was famous both as a virtuoso pianist and one of the greatest
composers of his age . Aged just four, Hummel was taken to Vienna by his father to audition to study
with Mozart. At the time, Mozart was taking on day students but was too busy to take on anyone fulltime. Upon hearing the young Hummel Mozart immediately changed his mind. He insisted the child
be moved in with him so that every aspect of Hummel’s musical education could be overseen.
Hummel remained the only full-time student Mozart ever had.
However, in 1788 the point was reached where Mozart was unable to provide full-time tuition
alongside his other musical activities and he made the suggestion to Hummel’s father that the child
prodigy should go on tour in order to make a name for himself. Hummel spent the following four
years playing in Germany, England and Holland. Audiences generally considered Hummel to be the
greatest child prodigy since Mozart himself.
Following these youthful, itinerant years, Hummel spent the remainder of his musical life as Music
Director at several German courts. However, he still remained influential internationally both as a
composer and a pianist. Many of the following generations leading pianists were Hummel’s students
and his reputation and significance was frequently acknowledged by the young Schumann.
Hummel’s compositions fell out of fashion following his death, but have recently and justifiably
enjoyed something of a revival, both in the recording studio and the concert hall.
F-A-E Sonata for Violin and Piano
i.
ii.
iii.
iv.
Allegro (Dietrich)
Romanze (Schumann)
Scherzo (Brahms)
Finale (Schumann)
The F-A-E Sonata was the outcome of a collaboration between Robert Schumann, the young Johannes
Brahms and Schumann’s composition student, Albert Dietrich. It was written for the celebrated violin
virtuoso, Joseph Joachim, a close friend of all three composers.
Joachim had adopted the phrase “Frei aber einsam” as his motto, which translates as “free but lonely”.
The three composers, wanting to prove to Joachim that he was not alone, wrote the entire work based
around the musical notes of the initials of Joachim’s motto, F, A and E.
Each composer took a movement, Dietrich the first movement in conventional sonata form;
Schumann the second, a short Romanze; and Brahms the third Scherzo. Schumann added to this trio
one more movement - the finale.
The work was presented to Joachim at Schumann’s house in October 1853 with the inscription “F.A.E.:
In expectation of the arrival of their revered and beloved friend, Joseph Joachim, this sonata was
written by R.S., J.B., A.D.” Joachim performed the work that very evening with Clara Schumann
accompanying at the piano. Schumann challenged Joachim to identify which composer was
responsible for which movement, Joachim instantly guessed correctly!
Piano Trio in G Minor, Op. 110
i.
ii.
iii.
iv.
Robert Schumann
Bewegt, doch nicht zu rasch
Ziemlich langsam
Rasch
Kräftig, mit Humor
The Piano Trio in G Minor is the last of Schumann’s three great Piano Trios. The previous two were
written in 1847, within months of each other. Schumann’s mental state, which anyway had been far
from stable during this period, had severely declined by the time he came to write the G Minor Trio in
1851. Three years later, the composer attempted to take his own life by jumping into the River Rhine
- an action which led him to be admitted to a mental asylum where he spent the remainder of his
days.
Some Schumann scholars suggest that the quality of the Op.110 Trio was weakened as a result of
Schumann’s mental state. Homer Ulrich, for example, believes that the work contains moments of
“genuine Schumannesque humour and energy” whilst also incorporating “irrelevant sections that
wander aimlessly”. However, many others believe the G Minor Trio to be a masterpiece; full of
passion, character, autumnal grace and sublime invention.
SUNDAY at 6pm
The Gould Piano Trio
Lucy Gould, violin
Alice Neary, cello
Benjamin Frith, piano
The Gould Piano Trio is Chamber Music Ensemble-in-Residence at the Royal Welsh College of Music
& Drama
with
Robert Plane, clarinet,
David Adams, viola
Louise Williams, viola
Santino Smith, reader
Fantasiestücke for Clarinet and Piano, Op.73
i.
ii.
iii.
Robert Schumann
Zart und mit Ausdruck
Lebhaft, leicht
Rasch und mit Feuer
Schumann’s Fantasy Pieces for Clarinet and Piano date from 1849 and were apparently completed in
just two days. At this time, Robert and Clara had been forced to flee their home in Dresden amidst
the political uprising in the city. Schumann originally entitled the work “Night Pieces” before settling
on “Fantasy Pieces.” The latter was a title that Schumann had previously used for other compositions
and perfectly suits the romantic idea that all creative expression stems from the unlimited imagination
of the artist. From a young age Schumann was torn between pursuing literature or music and through
works such as the Fantasy Pieces, he uses composition as a medium to weave stories that vividly
portray worlds outside of his own.
The work bears some similarities to Schumann’s Song Cycles, written for a solo voice (in this case solo
instrument) accompanied by a complex piano part that is far removed from the stereotypical, often
subsidiary role of the accompanist. Although, this music was originally written for Clarinet and Piano,
Schumann noted that the cello or violin could be used as clarinet alternatives.
The sudden mood changes that characterize so many of Schumann’s compositions, and Schumann’s
own character, are prevalent in the Op.73 pieces. The first movement is thoughtful, lyrical and songlike, while the second is more fleeting and elusive. The set ends in an increasingly bold and dramatic
vein as passions run high and virtuosity comes to the fore.
Piano Trio in C Minor, Op. 66
i.
ii.
iii.
iv.
Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy
Allegro energico e con fuoco
Andante espressivo
Scherzo: Molto allegro quasi presto
Finale: Allegro appassionato
Mendelssohn wrote two Piano Trios separated by a gap of six years. The C Minor work was completed
in 1845 and certainly seems more worked out when compared to earlier (and more famous) Piano trio
in D minor. It was one of the last works that Mendelssohn saw published before his tragic early death
two years later. In the years between the composition of the two Piano Trios Mendelssohn embarked
upon a variety of projects. He established a music school in Leipzig, directed the orchestra of the
Leipzig Gewandhaus, and was prominent in the revival of the large-scale music of J S Bach across many
German cities.
Although Mendelssohn presented the Op.66 Trio to his sister Fanny as a birthday present, the work
was actually dedicated to his close friend and virtuoso violinist, Louis Spohr. Spohr and Mendelssohn
performed the work together on at least one occasion. Mendelssohn gave the last movement of the
work the tempo marking molto allegro, quasi presto. And suggested that the final movement, with its
extremely lively tempo marking “might be a trifle nasty to play”, inevitably making it thrilling to listen
too!
INTERVAL
Piano Quintet in Eb, Op. 44
i.
ii.
iii.
iv.
Robert Schumann
Allegro brillante
In modo d'una marcia. Un poco largamente
Scherzo: Molto vivace
Allegro ma non troppo
Schumann’s Piano Quintet in Eb was composed over just a few weeks in 1842 – the composer’s “Year
of Chamber Music. The work is dedicated to Clara who was duly expected to give the first
performance. Unfortunately, she fell ill and Felix Mendelssohn took her place. According to accounts
from the premiere, Mendelssohn sight-read the entire work perfectly. Following the first performance
he also had plenty of suggestions for improvements, which led to a revised score being published.
Clara was very fond of the Quintet calling it “splendid, full of vigour and freshness,” she went on to
give many performances.
The work has been linked to Schubert’s Second Piano Trio, a work (and composer) which Schumann
held in high regard. Both pieces feature a funeral march as part of the second movement, sit in the
same key of E-flat major and revisit earlier material in their complex final movements.
By combining the string quartet with the piano, Schumann created an entirely new genre of
instrumentation. The originality of the ensemble along with the animated, original and spirited
character of the work has established the Piano Quintet as one of the seminal works of 19th century
chamber music.
Programme notes compiled by Kathleen Lower.