German composer and music critic R. Schumann
One year older, practically the same age as him.
The famous German composer, Robert Schumann, was born on June 8, 1810 in Zwickau. He lived for about forty-six years. But we will not bury him prematurely, and first we will nevertheless consider how he lived his life, what we still remember about him.
Robert Schumann was born in the family of book publisher and writer August Schumann. As a child, he took lessons from a local organist and began composing music around the age of ten. Among other things, he wrote orchestral and choral music.
While studying at the gymnasium, he got acquainted with the works of Byron, which are considered to be the period of early romanticism, and fell in love with his work. The romanticism of this literature without delay began to be reflected in the musical work of Schumann.
Even during his youth, he began to work in the field of professional literature, publishing his articles and works in his father's publishing house. For some time, he could not even decide in which direction he should make his main efforts - in the field of literature or in music.
In 1828, when he was eighteen years old, he entered the University of Leipzig, the Faculty of Law. But he did this at the insistence of his mother, and not of his own free will. Therefore, music soon finally tipped the scales, and he decided to become a concert musician.
Soon he persuaded his mother to allow him to devote himself entirely to music; he found F. Wieck and G. Dorn as mentors. However, it was Vik who managed to convince Schumann's mother to give free rein to her son.
Robert studied with such tenacity that he began to look like a fanatic. More than anything, he wanted to become a virtuoso musician. But that was exactly what almost killed him: he exercised too hard with the device for developing the muscles of the arm and injured his right hand. As a result, she became permanently unable to play the piano professionally.
I had to give up the idea of becoming a professional pianist, and Robert decided to come to grips with composition. At the same time, he became a music critic (this is certainly an example of the fact that critics become those who themselves wanted to, but could not).
Finding the right henchmen, he was able to found a new musical publication, which was called the New Musical Newspaper. And for the next few years, he personally edited it and posted his articles in it. All his subsequent activities became the embodiment of the struggle against the conservatives of the musical world.
Schumann, more than any other composer, was able to embody the true nature of Romanticism. He perceived the musical structures of earlier years as too limited, and therefore made great efforts to break this circle. Due to his aesthetic preferences and intellectual depth, he managed to do this.
He appealed to spiritual humanity. As a consequence, he was hardly properly understood during his lifetime. It is now that his work is regarded as a bold and original phenomenon of its time.
Despite all its novelty, his work was closely connected with traditional German classical music.
Schumann's piano works are conceptual storylines of scenes, dances, masks and female characters. In addition, musical portraits of various composers of those times are also often found in his cycles.
Schumann implemented his ideas in vocal work. At the same time, the role of instrumental accompaniment was unusually high. But at the same time, Schumann had an extremely negative attitude towards virtuoso smartness and castigated him in every possible way in his publications.
October 1838 was marked by a move to Vienna. But his residence in Vienna did not last long, and very soon he again moved to Leipzig. The following year he received his Ph.D., and on October 12 he married his teacher's daughter, Clara Wieck, who was also a remarkable pianist.
Clara Schumann (1819-1896), wife of Robert Schumann But in 1844, when he was on a tour with his wife in Moscow and St. Petersburg, and then moved to Dresden, he began to show the first signs of a nervous breakdown. And only after a couple of years he was able to start writing music again.
In Holland, Schumann tried to commit suicide by throwing himself into the Rhine In 1850-1853, he became the city director of music in Düsseldorf, but he could not stay in his place due to constant disagreements with the leadership. Therefore, when the contract came to an end, they did not renew it, but instead Robert moved to Holland with his wife. He was very welcome there, but the next year he again showed signs of severe depression, and he tried to commit suicide by throwing himself into the Rhine.
He was rescued, but placed in a psychiatric clinic. He lived there until 1856. That is, until the year of his death.
After his death, his work was continued by other advanced musicians of those times, including Pyotr Tchaikovsky, and, as well as representatives of the "Mighty Handful".
Biography of Schumann - the great German composer - like the life of any famous person, was filled with both curious, anecdotal cases, and tragic twists of fate. Why did Schumann not become a virtuoso pianist, as he dreamed of in his youth, and why did he have to choose the composer's path? How did this affect his mental health, and where did the famous author end up?
Schumann was born on June 8, 1810 in Germany. Zwickau became his hometown. The father of the future composer was a book publisher, a non-poor man, so he sought to give his son a decent education.
From childhood, the boy showed literary abilities - when Robert studied at the gymnasium, then, in addition to composing poems, dramas and comedies, he also organized a literary circle on his own. Under the influence of Jean Paul, the young man even composed a literary novel. Given all these facts, Schumann's biography could have turned out quite differently - the boy could well follow in the footsteps of his father. But the world of music worried Robert more than literary activity.
Schumann, whose biography and work throughout his life were firmly connected with the art of music, wrote his first at the age of ten. Perhaps this was the first sign that another great composer was born.
Schumann began to show interest in playing the piano from an early age. He was very impressed by the play of the pianist Moscheles, as well as Paganini. The young man was inspired by the idea of becoming a virtuoso instrumentalist and spared no effort for this.
At first, the future composer took lessons from the organist Kunsht. Under the strict guidance of his first teacher, the boy began to create his own musical works - mostly sketches. After getting acquainted with the work of Schubert, Robert wrote several songs.
However, the parents insisted that their son had a serious education, so Robert went to Leipzig to study law. But Schumann, whose biography, it seemed, could not have turned out differently, is still drawn to music, so he continues to study piano under the guidance of a new teacher, Friedrich Wieck. The latter sincerely believed that his student could become the most virtuoso pianist in Germany.
But Robert pursued his goal too fanatically, so he overdid it with classes - he earned a sprained tendon and said goodbye to his pianist career.
As mentioned above, Schumann studied law at and then at Heidelberg. But Robert never became a lawyer, preferring music.
Robert Schumann, whose biography, after being injured, was completely devoted to composing, most likely was very worried about the fact that he would never be able to fulfill his dream and become a famous pianist. The character of the young man changed after that - he became taciturn, too vulnerable, stopped joking and playing his friends as soon as he knew how to do it. Once, while still young, Schumann went into a musical instrument store and jokingly introduced himself as the chamberlain of an English lord, who instructed him to choose a piano for playing music. Robert played all the expensive instruments in the salon, thus amusing onlookers and customers. As a result, Schumann said that in two days he would give the owner of the salon an answer about the purchase, and he, as if nothing had happened, left for another city on his own business.
But in the 30s. he had to say goodbye to his career as a pianist, and the young man devoted himself entirely to creating musical works. It was during this period that he flourished as a composer.
Schumann worked in the era of romanticism and, of course, this was reflected in his work.
Robert Schumann, whose biography was in a sense filled with personal experiences, wrote psychological music that was far from folklore motives. Schumann's works are something "personal". His music is very changeable, which reflects the fact that the composer gradually began to fall ill. Schumann himself did not hide the fact that duality is characteristic of his nature.
The harmonious language of his works is more complex than that of his contemporaries. The rhythm of Schumann's creations is quite whimsical and capricious. But this did not prevent the composer from gaining national fame during his lifetime.
Once, while walking in the park, the composer whistled under his breath a theme from Carnival. One of the passers-by made a remark to him: they say, if you have no hearing, then it’s better not to “spoil” the works of a respected composer.
Among the most famous works of the composer are the following:
Schumann, whose brief biography would not have been without literature, did not give up his hobby, and applied his literary talent in journalism. With the support of his many friends connected with the world of music, Schumann founded the New Musical Gazette in 1834. Over time, it has become a periodical and quite influential publication. The composer wrote many articles for publication with his own hand. He welcomed everything new in music, so he supported young composers. By the way, Schumann was one of the first to recognize Chopin's talent and wrote a separate article in his honor. Schumann also supported Liszt, Berlioz, Brahms and many other composers.
Often in his articles, the hero of our story had to rebuff many music critics who spoke unflatteringly about his work. Schumann also "created" not quite in the spirit of the times, so he had to defend his views on the art of music.
In 1840, closer to the age of 30, Robert Schumann married. His chosen one was the daughter of his teacher, Friedrich Wick.
Clara Wieck was a fairly well-known and virtuoso pianist. She was also related to composing and supported her husband in all endeavors.
Schumann, whose brief biography was full of musical activity by the age of 30, was never married, and it seemed that his own personal life did not bother him much. But before the wedding, he honestly warned his future wife that his character was very difficult: he often acts contrary to close and dear people, for some reason it turns out that he hurts exactly those he loves.
But these shortcomings of the composer did not frighten the bride very much. The marriage took place, and Clara Wieck and Robert Schumann lived in marriage until the end of their days, left behind eight children and were buried in the same cemetery.
Schumann's biography was full of various events; the composer left behind a rich musical and literary heritage. Such an obsession with his work and life could not pass without a trace. Around the age of 35, the composer began to show the first signs of a serious nervous breakdown. For two years he did not write anything.
And although the composer was given various honors, invited to serious positions, he could no longer return to his former life. His nerves were completely shattered.
At the age of 44, for the first time after a bout of prolonged depression, the composer tried to commit suicide by throwing himself from a bridge into the Rhine. He was saved, but there were no significant changes in his state of health. Schumann spent two years in a psychiatric hospital and died at the age of 46. During all this time, the composer did not create a single work.
Who knows how the composer's life would have turned out if he hadn't injured his fingers and nevertheless became a pianist... Perhaps Schumann, whose biography was cut off at 46, would have lived a longer life and would not have lost his mind.
By the way, there is a version that the composer injured his fingers by creating a home-made simulator for them, similar to the instruments of Henry Hertz and Tiziano Poli. The essence of the simulators is that the middle finger of the hand was tied to a string, which was attached to the ceiling. This tool was designed to train endurance and amplitude of finger opening. But with inept use, it is possible to tear the tendons in this way.
There is another version according to which Schumann had to be treated for syphilis in the then fashionable way - to inhale mercury vapor, which caused a side effect in the form of paralysis of the fingers. But Schumann's wife did not confirm any of these versions.
Schumann's biography and his work are so popular in the music world that personal competitions and awards are often organized in honor of the famous composer. Back in 1956, the first competition for performers of academic music was held in Berlin, which is called the Internationaler Robert-Schumann-Wettbewerb.
The first event was dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the composer's death, and the first winners of the competition were the representative of the GDR Annerose Schmidt in the "Piano" nomination, as well as representatives of the USSR: Alexander Vedernikov, Kira Izotova in the "Vocal" nomination. Subsequently, contestants from the USSR won prizes almost every year until 1985. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, only in 1996 the competition was won by a representative from Russia - Mikhail Mordvinov in the "Piano" nomination.
R. Schuman, whose biography and creative heritage have become the pride of world art, presented his name and prizes, which have been awarded to performers of academic music since 1964. The award was established by the administration of the composer's hometown - Zwickau. It is awarded only to those figures who promote the composer's music and bring it to the masses. In 2003, the material component of the award was equal to 10,000 euros.
Until 1989, the names of Soviet artists were often included in the list of prize winners. The representative from Russia then appeared in the list of laureates only in 2000. Olga Loseva became the laureate of the award that year, since then the prize has not been awarded to immigrants from the CIS countries even once.
Born June 8, 1810 in the German city of Zwickau in the family of a bookseller. From a very young age, young Robert showed a vivid talent for both music and literature. The boy learned to play the organ, improvised the piano, created his first work - a Psalm for the choir - at the age of thirteen, and in the gymnasium he made great strides in studying literature. Undoubtedly, if his line of life had gone in this direction, then we would have a bright and outstanding philologist and writer here too. But the music still won!
At the insistence of his mother, the young man studies law in Leipzig, then in Heidelberg, but this does not attract him at all. He dreamed of becoming a pianist, studied with Friedrich Wieck, but injured his fingers. Without thinking twice, he began to write music. Already his first published works - "Butterflies", "Variations on the theme of Abegg" - characterize him as a very original composer.
Schumann is a recognized and undoubted romanticist, thanks to whom we now fully know this direction - romanticism. The nature of the composer was completely permeated with subtlety and dreaminess, as if he always hovered above the ground and went into his fantasies. All the contradictions of the surrounding reality are aggravated to the limit in this nervous and receptive nature, which leads to withdrawal into one's inner world. Even the fantastic images in Schumann's work are not the fantasy of legends and legends, like many other romantics, but the fantasy of their own visions. Close attention to every movement of the soul determines the attraction to the piano miniature genre, and such pieces are combined into cycles (“Kreisleriana”, “Novelettes”, “Night Pieces”, “Forest Scenes”).
But at the same time, the world knows another Schumann - an energetic rebel. His literary talent also finds a "point of application" - he publishes the "New Musical Journal". His articles take on a variety of forms - dialogues, aphorisms, scenes - but they all sing of true art, which is not characterized by either blind imitation or virtuosity as an end in itself. Schumann sees such art in the works of the Viennese classics, Berlioz, Paganini. Often he writes his publications on behalf of fictional characters - Florestan and Eusebius. These are members of the "Davidsbund" ("David's Brotherhood") - a union of musicians who oppose themselves to a philistine attitude towards art. And even though this union existed only in the creator's imagination, musical portraits of its members are included in the piano cycles "Davidsbundlers" and "Carnival". Among the Davidsbundlers, Schumann includes Paganini, and, and - under the name of Chiarina - Clara Wieck, the daughter of his mentor, a pianist who began her performing career at the age of eleven.
Attachment to Clara Wick Robert felt already when she was a child. Over the years, his feeling grew with her - but Friedrich Wieck wanted a more wealthy husband for his daughter. The struggle of lovers for their happiness dragged on for years - in order to prevent their meetings, the father planned many tours for the girl, forbade her to correspond with Robert. The desperate Schumann was engaged for some time to another - Ernestine von Fricken, who also fell into the number of Davidsbundlers under the name Estrella, and the name of the city in which she lived - Ash (Asch) - is encrypted in the main theme of "Carnival" ... But he could not forget Clara , in 1839 Schumann and Clara Wieck go to court - and only in this way did they manage to get Wieck's consent to marriage.
The wedding took place in 1840. It is noteworthy that in that year Schumann wrote many songs to the verses of Heinrich Heine, Robert Burns, George Gordon Byron and other poets. It was a marriage not only happy, but also musically fruitful. The couple traveled all over the world and performed in a wonderful duet - he composed, and she played his music, becoming the first performer of many of Robert's works. Until now, the world has not known such couples and will not know, apparently, for a long time ...
The Schumanns had eight children. In 1848, for the birthday of his eldest daughter, the composer created several piano pieces. Later, other plays appeared, combined into a collection called "Album for Youth". The very idea of creating light piano pieces for children's music-making was not new, but Schumann was the first to fill such a collection with concrete images that were close and understandable to a child - "The Brave Rider", "Echoes of the Theatre", "The Merry Peasant".
From 1844 the Schumanns lived in Dresden. At the same time, the composer experienced an exacerbation of a nervous breakdown, the first signs of which appeared as early as 1833. He was able to return to composing music only in 1846.
In the 1850s Schumann creates quite a few works, among which are symphonies, chamber ensembles, program overtures, teaches at the Leipzig Conservatory, acts as a conductor, directs the choir in Dresden, and then in Düsseldorf.
Schuman treated young composers with great attention. His last publicistic work is the article "New Ways", where he predicts a great future.
In 1854, after an exacerbation of a mental disorder that led to a suicide attempt, Schumann ended up in a psychiatric hospital and died on July 29, 1856.
Music Seasons
Schumann's music is distinguished by a particularly sharp psychologism, it penetrates deeply into the state of a person's soul. He very subtly reflected the change of these states in music. He has a direct contact of a passionate impulse and immersion in the world of dreams. In many ways, he reflected the properties of his nature - duality.
An important property of Schumann's music is fantasy, but this is not a folk fantasy, but, as it were, the world of his soul, visions, dreams, very individualized. This also manifests itself in musical critical activity. He was very gifted in the field of literature. He wrote novels, short stories, as well as articles in the genre of short stories, plays, letters, dialogues and other works. The heroes of these articles were very unusual characters. He invented for himself the "David's Brotherhood" - a society. Its members are the Davidsbündlers. There he included Mozart, Paganini, Chopin, as well as Clara Wieck (his wife), as well as: Florestan and Euzebius. Florestan and Euzebius are fictitious names (they are, as it were, two halves of his personality that argued among themselves). He used them as pseudonyms. Maestro Raro reconciled dreamy Euzebius and stormy Florestan.
Schumann supported all the best in art. He was the first to talk about Chopin, supported Berlioz, wrote articles about Beethoven. His last article was an article on Brahms. In 1839, he found a Schubert symphony - C-dur and performed it, and in the 50th year he became one
from the organizers of the Beethoven Society. Schumann's work is associated with German romantic literature. His favorite poet is Jeanne Paul (real name is Richter). Impressed by the works of this writer, the play "Butterflies" was written. Loved the poet Hoffmann. Under the influence of his works, "Kreisleriana" was written. Heine had a great influence. Vocal cycles were written on his poems - "The Circle of Songs" and "The Poet's Love".
Schumann liked to use carnival in his works (because there is a change of characters). Schumann's musical language is very subtle. The connection with folk music is not the same as Schubert's. There is no clear example. Melodies are more declamatory. The harmonic language becomes more complicated. The texture is thin, melodic and polyphonic. Rhythm is capricious, whimsical.
Schumann wrote many works: about 50 collections of pieces for piano, variations on the theme of Abegg, "Butterflies", "Carnival", symphonies, etudes, "Dances of the Davidsbündlers", fantastic pieces, "Kreisleriana", "Viennese Carnival", short stories, etc. , 3 sonatas for piano, fantasy, more than 200 songs, vocal cycles: "The Love of a Poet", "Circle of Songs" on Heine, "Myrtle", "Circle of Songs" on Eichendorff's poems, "Love and Life of a Woman" on Chamisso's poems, Spanish love songs, songs from "Wilhelm Meister" (Goethe), 4 symphonies, concertos for piano, cello and violin with orchestra, Styuk concerto for piano and orchestra, Styuk concerto for 4 horns and orchestra, 3 string quartets, piano quartet, piano quintet, 3 piano trios, 2 violin sonatas, other chamber ensembles, the oratorio "Paradise and Perry", the opera "Genoveva", music for dramatic performances, about 200 critical articles - selected articles about music and musicians.
Schumann was born in the family of a book publisher. From childhood, both literary and musical abilities manifested themselves. Until the age of 16, Schumann did not know who he would be. He studied at the gymnasium, composed poetry, wrote comedies, dramas. Studied Schiller, Goethe, ancient literature. Organized a literary circle. I was very fond of Jeanne Paul. Under his influence, he wrote a novel. He has been writing music since the age of seven. As a child, the pianist Moscheles impressed me. The first teacher was the organist Kunsht. Under his leadership, Schumann achieved great success. He studied the music of Mozart, Weber. He wrote musical sketches (the image of a person in music). He fell in love with Schubert and wrote several songs.
In 1828, under the influence of his mother, he entered the Leipzig University at the Faculty of Law. In addition, he studies with Friedrich Wieck on the piano - 30 years. Schumann hears Paganini and wants to become a virtuoso. Subsequently, he wrote etudes based on the caprices of Paganini and concert etudes. Schumann formed a circle of music lovers (while studying at the university). He writes a cycle of pieces "Butterflies" for piano.
In 1829 he transferred to the University of Heidelberg. In 1830 he gave up. While studying at the university, he visited Munich, where he met Heine, as well as in Italy. During this period he wrote: Variations "Abegg", Toccata, "Butterflies", processing of Paganini's caprices. After university, he settled with Wieck in Leipzig. Damaged, outplayed hand. He began to study composition and arrangements with Dorn.
30s. The dawn of piano creativity. Wrote: symphonic studies, carnival, fantasy, fantastic plays. Publishing activity begins. 1st article about Chopin "I'll take my hat off to you gentlemen, genius!". In 1834 he founded the New Musical Newspaper. He opposed conservatism, philistinism, entertainment. Berlioz, Liszt, Brahms, composers of Poland and Scandinavia were promoted there. Schumann called for the creation of a German musical theater in the tradition of Fidelio and the Magic Shooter.
The style of all articles was very emotional. In 1839, Schumann found the score of Schubert's C major symphony, and a friend, Mendelssohn, performed it. In 1840 he married Clara Wieck. He wrote many songs: "Myrtle", "Love and Life of a Woman", "Love of a Poet".
The 40s - early 50s brought symphonies, chamber ensembles, concertos for pianoforte, violin, cello, the oratorio "Paradise and Perry", scenes from Goethe's Faust, music for Manfred Byron. In 1843, Mendelssohn opened the Leipzig Conservatory and invited Schumann there to study piano, composition and reading scores. In 1844, Schumann had to leave the music newspaper and the conservatory. Traveled to Russia as Clara Wieck's husband. Mendelssohn and Italy were fashionable in Russia. Not many understood Schumann's meaning: Anton Rubinstein, Tchaikovsky, members of the Mighty Handful. The disease developed, and the family left for Dresden. Schumann wants to get a position as the head of the musical theater, but it doesn't work out. Meeting with Wagner. Wagner's music was alien to Schumann.
1848 - there was a revolution in France and Germany. He wrote 4 republican marches, 3 men's choirs for revolutionary texts. A few years later, he reacts to the revolution in a different way. At 50 the Schumann family leaves for Düsseldorf. There he led an orchestra and choral societies.
53 - Schumann's acquaintance with Brahms. Schumann's last article on Brahms. In 1854 Schumann tries to commit suicide. He wanted to drown himself, but he was rescued. He was cured, but he went crazy and after 2 years of unsuccessful treatment in a psychiatric hospital in 1856, Schumann died.
Music is psychological. It displays different contrast states and the change of these states. Schumann was very fond of piano miniatures, as well as cycles of piano miniatures, as they can express contrast very well. Schumann turns to programming. These are program plays, often associated with literary images. They all have names that are a little strange for that time - "Flash", "From ChegoN", variations on the theme of Abegg (this is the name of his friend's girlfriend), he used the letters of her last name as notes (A, B, E, G); "Asch" is the name of the city where Schumann's former love lived (these letters, as keys, were included in "Carnival"). Schumann was very fond of the carnival of music, because of its diversity. For example: "Butterflies", "Hungarian Carnival", "Carnival". Variation method of development - "Abegg", "Symphonic etudes" - a cycle of genre-specific variations on one theme, which is transformed from a mourning march (at the beginning) into a solemn march (at the end). They are called etudes, since each variation contains new virtuoso etude techniques. They are symphonic because the sound of the piano in them resembles an orchestra (powerful tutti, emphasis on individual lines).
To shed light into the depths of the human heart - such is the vocation of the artist.
R. Schumann
P. Tchaikovsky believed that future generations would call the 19th century. Schumann's period in the history of music. Indeed, Schumann's music captured the main thing in the art of his time - its content was the "mysteriously deep processes of the spiritual life" of a person, its purpose - penetration into the "depths of the human heart."
R. Schumann was born in the provincial Saxon town of Zwickau, in the family of the publisher and bookseller August Schumann, who died early (1826), but managed to pass on to his son a reverent attitude towards art and encouraged him to study music with the local organist I. Kuntsch. From an early age, Schumann loved to improvise on the piano, at the age of 13 he wrote a Psalm for choir and orchestra, but no less than music attracted him to literature, in the study of which he made great strides during his years at the gymnasium. The romantically inclined young man was not at all interested in jurisprudence, which he studied at the universities of Leipzig and Heidelberg (1828-30).
Classes with the famous piano teacher F. Wieck, attending concerts in Leipzig, acquaintance with the works of F. Schubert contributed to the decision to devote himself to music. With difficulty overcoming the resistance of his relatives, Schumann began intensive piano lessons, but a disease in his right hand (due to mechanical training of the fingers) closed his career as a pianist for him. With all the greater enthusiasm, Schumann devotes himself to composing music, takes composition lessons from G. Dorn, studies the work of J. S. Bach and L. Beethoven. Already the first published piano works (Variations on a theme by Abegg, "Butterflies", 1830-31) showed the independence of the young author.
Since 1834, Schumann became the editor and then the publisher of the New Musical Journal, which aimed to fight against the superficial works of virtuoso composers who flooded the concert stage at that time, with handicraft imitation of the classics, for a new, deep art, illuminated by poetic inspiration . In his articles, written in an original artistic form - often in the form of scenes, dialogues, aphorisms, etc. - Schumann presents the reader with the ideal of true art, which he sees in the works of F. Schubert and F. Mendelssohn, F. Chopin and G Berlioz, in the music of the Viennese classics, in the game of N. Paganini and the young pianist Clara Wieck - the daughter of her teacher. Schumann managed to gather around him like-minded people who appeared on the pages of the magazine as Davidsbündlers - members of the "David Brotherhood" ("Davidsbund"), a kind of spiritual union of genuine musicians. Schumann himself often signed his reviews with the names of fictitious Davidsbündlers Florestan and Eusebius. Florestan is prone to violent ups and downs of fantasy, to paradoxes, the judgments of the dreamy Eusebius are softer. In the suite of characteristic plays "Carnival" (1834-35), Schumann creates musical portraits of the Davidsbündlers - Chopin, Paganini, Clara (under the name of Chiarina), Eusebius, Florestan.
The highest tension of mental strength and the highest ups of creative genius (“Fantastic plays”, “Dances of the Davidsbündlers”, Fantasia in C major, “Kreisleriana”, “Novelettes”, “Humoresque”, “Viennese Carnival”) brought Schumann the second half of the 30s. , which passed under the sign of the struggle for the right to unite with Clara Wieck (F. Wieck in every possible way prevented this marriage). In an effort to find a wider arena for his musical and journalistic activities, Schumann spends the 1838-39 season. in Vienna, but the Metternich administration and censorship prevented the journal from being published there. In Vienna, Schumann discovered the manuscript of Schubert's "great" Symphony in C major, one of the pinnacles of romantic symphonism.
1840 - the year of the long-awaited union with Clara - became for Schumann the year of songs. An extraordinary sensitivity to poetry, a deep knowledge of the work of contemporaries contributed to the realization in numerous song cycles and individual songs of a true union with poetry, the exact embodiment in music of H. Heine's individual poetic intonation (“Circle of Songs” op. 24, “The Poet's Love”), I. Eichendorff (“Circle of Songs”, op. 39), A. Chamisso (“Love and Life of a Woman”), R. Burns, F. Ruckert, J. Byron, H. X. Andersen and others. And subsequently, the field of vocal creativity continued to grow wonderful works (“Six poems by N. Lenau” and Requiem - 1850, “Songs from“ Wilhelm Meister “by I. V. Goethe” - 1849, etc.).
The life and work of Schumann in the 40-50s. flowed in an alternation of ups and downs, largely associated with bouts of mental illness, the first signs of which appeared as early as 1833. Upsurges in creative energy marked the beginning of the 40s, the end of the Dresden period (the Schumanns lived in the capital of Saxony in 1845-50. ), coinciding with the revolutionary events in Europe, and the beginning of life in Düsseldorf (1850). Schumann composes a lot, teaches at the Leipzig Conservatory, which opened in 1843, and from the same year begins to perform as a conductor. In Dresden and Düsseldorf, he also directs the choir, devoting himself to this work with enthusiasm. Of the few tours made with Clara, the longest and most impressive was a trip to Russia (1844). Since the 60-70s. Schumann's music very quickly became an integral part of Russian musical culture. She was loved by M. Balakirev and M. Mussorgsky, A. Borodin and especially Tchaikovsky, who considered Schumann the most outstanding modern composer. A. Rubinstein was a brilliant performer of Schumann's piano works.
Creativity of the 40-50s. marked by a significant expansion of the range of genres. Schumann writes symphonies (First - "Spring", 1841, Second, 1845-46; Third - "Rhine", 1850; Fourth, 1841-1st ed., 1851 - 2nd ed.), chamber ensembles (3 strings quartet - 1842, 3 trios, piano quartet and quintet, ensembles with the participation of the clarinet - including "Fabulous Narratives" for clarinet, viola and piano, 2 sonatas for violin and piano, etc.); concertos for pianoforte 1841-45), cello (1850), violin (1853); program concert overtures (“The Bride of Messina” by Schiller, 1851; “Hermann and Dorothea” by Goethe and “Julius Caesar” by Shakespeare - 1851), demonstrating mastery in handling classical forms. The Piano Concerto and the Fourth Symphony stand out for their boldness in their renewal, the Quintet in E flat major for the exceptional harmony of embodiment and the inspiration of musical thoughts. One of the culminations of the composer's entire work was the music for Byron's dramatic poem "Manfred" (1848) - the most important milestone in the development of romantic symphonism on the way from Beethoven to Liszt, Tchaikovsky, Brahms. Schumann does not betray his beloved piano either (Forest Scenes, 1848-49 and other pieces) - it is his sound that endows his chamber ensembles and vocal lyrics with special expressiveness. The search for the composer in the field of vocal and dramatic music was tireless (the oratorio "Paradise and Peri" by T. Moore - 1843; Scenes from Goethe's "Faust", 1844-53; ballads for soloists, choir and orchestra; works of sacred genres, etc.) . The staging in Leipzig of Schumann's only opera Genoveva (1847-48) based on F. Gobbel and L. Tieck, similar in plot to the German romantic "knightly" operas by K. M. Weber and R. Wagner, did not bring him success.
The great event of the last years of Schumann's life was his meeting with the twenty-year-old Brahms. The article "New Ways", in which Schumann predicted a great future for his spiritual heir (he always treated young composers with extraordinary sensitivity), completed his publicistic activity. In February 1854, a severe attack of illness led to a suicide attempt. After spending 2 years in a hospital (Endenich, near Bonn), Schumann died. Most of the manuscripts and documents are kept in his House-Museum in Zwickau (Germany), where competitions of pianists, vocalists and chamber ensembles named after the composer are regularly held.
Schumann's work marked the mature stage of musical romanticism with its heightened attention to the embodiment of the complex psychological processes of human life. Schumann's piano and vocal cycles, many of the chamber-instrumental, symphonic works opened up a new artistic world, new forms of musical expression. Schumann's music can be imagined as a series of surprisingly capacious musical moments, capturing the changing and very finely differentiated mental states of a person. These can also be musical portraits, accurately capturing both the external character and the inner essence of the depicted.
Schumann gave programmatic titles to many of his works, which were designed to excite the imagination of the listener and performer. His work is very closely connected with literature - with the work of Jean Paul (I. P. Richter), T. A. Hoffmann, G. Heine and others. Schumann miniatures can be compared with lyric poems, more detailed plays - with poems, short stories, fascinating romantic stories, where different storylines are sometimes bizarrely intertwined, the real turns into a fantastic one, lyrical digressions arise, etc. creatures. In this cycle of piano fantasy pieces, as well as in the vocal cycle on Heine's poems "The Love of a Poet", the image of a romantic artist arises, a true poet, capable of feeling infinitely sharp, "strong, fiery and tender", sometimes forced to hide his true essence under a mask irony and buffoonery, in order to later reveal it even more sincerely and cordially or plunge into deep thought ... Byron's Manfred is endowed by Schumann with sharpness and strength of feeling, the madness of a rebellious impulse, in whose image there are also philosophical and tragic features. Lyrically animated images of nature, fantastic dreams, ancient legends and traditions, images of childhood (“Children's Scenes” - 1838; piano (1848) and vocal (1849) “Albums for Youth”) complement the artistic world of the great musician, “a poet par excellence”, as V. Stasov called it.
E. Tsareva
Schuman's words "to illuminate the depths of the human heart - this is the purpose of the artist" - a direct path to the knowledge of his art. Few people can compare with Schumann in the penetration with which he conveys the finest nuances of the life of the human soul with sounds. The world of feelings is an inexhaustible spring of his musical and poetic images.
No less remarkable is another statement by Schumann: "One should not plunge too much into oneself, while it is easy to lose a sharp look at the world around." And Schumann followed his own advice. At the age of twenty he took up the struggle against inertia and philistinism. (philistine is a collective German word that personifies a tradesman, a person with backward philistine views on life, politics, art) in art. A fighting spirit, rebellious and passionate, filled his musical works and his bold, daring critical articles, which paved the way for new progressive phenomena of art.
Irreconcilability to routinism, vulgarity Schumann carried through his whole life. But the disease, which grew stronger every year, aggravated the nervousness and romantic sensitivity of his nature, often hindered the enthusiasm and energy with which he devoted himself to musical and social activities. The complexity of the ideological socio-political situation in Germany at that time also had an effect. Nevertheless, in the conditions of a semi-feudal reactionary state structure, Schumann managed to preserve the purity of moral ideals, constantly maintain in himself and arouse creative burning in others.
“Nothing real is created in art without enthusiasm,” these wonderful words of the composer reveal the essence of his creative aspirations. A sensitive and deeply thinking artist, he could not help but respond to the call of the times, to succumb to the inspiring influence of the era of revolutions and national liberation wars that shook Europe in the first half of the 19th century.
The romantic unusualness of musical images and compositions, the passion that Schumann brought to all his activities, disturbed the sleepy peace of the German philistines. It is no coincidence that Schumann's work was hushed up by the press and did not find recognition in his homeland for a long time. Schumann's life path was difficult. From the very beginning, the struggle for the right to become a musician determined the tense and sometimes nervous atmosphere of his life. The collapse of dreams was sometimes replaced by a sudden realization of hopes, moments of acute joy - deep depression. All this was imprinted in the quivering pages of Schumann's music.
To Schumann's contemporaries, his work seemed mysterious and inaccessible. A peculiar musical language, new images, new forms - all this required too deep listening and tension, unusual for the audience of concert halls.
The experience of Liszt, who tried to promote Schumann's music, ended rather sadly. In a letter to Schumann's biographer, Liszt wrote: "Many times I had such a failure with Schumann's plays both in private homes and in public concerts that I lost the courage to put them on my posters."
But even among musicians, Schumann's art made its way to understanding with difficulty. Not to mention Mendelssohn, to whom the rebellious spirit of Schumann was deeply alien, the same Liszt - one of the most insightful and sensitive artists - accepted Schumann only partially, allowing himself such liberties as performing "Carnival" with cuts.
Only since the 1950s, Schumann's music began to take root in the musical and concert life, to acquire ever wider circles of adherents and admirers. Among the first people who noted its true value were leading Russian musicians. Anton Grigorievich Rubinstein played Schumann a lot and willingly, and it was precisely with the performance of Carnival and Symphonic Etudes that he made a huge impression on the audience.
Love for Schumann was repeatedly testified by Tchaikovsky and the leaders of the Mighty Handful. Tchaikovsky spoke especially penetratingly about Schumann, noting the exciting modernity of Schumann's work, the novelty of the content, the novelty of the composer's own musical thinking. “Schumann’s music,” wrote Tchaikovsky, “organically adjoining Beethoven’s work and at the same time sharply separating from him, opens up a whole world of new musical forms to us, touches strings that his great predecessors have not yet touched. In it we find an echo of those mysterious spiritual processes of our spiritual life, those doubts, despairs and impulses towards the ideal that overwhelm the heart of modern man.
Schumann belongs to the second generation of romantic musicians who replaced Weber, Schubert. Schumann in many respects started from the late Schubert, from that line of his work, in which lyrical-dramatic and psychological elements played a decisive role.
Schumann's main creative theme is the world of a person's internal states, his psychological life. There are features in the appearance of Schumann's hero that are akin to Schubert's, there is also much that is new, inherent in an artist of a different generation, with a complicated and contradictory system of thoughts and feelings. Artistic and poetic images of Schumann, more fragile and refined, were born in the mind, acutely perceiving the ever-increasing contradictions of the time. It was this heightened acuteness of reaction to the phenomena of life that created extraordinary tension and strength of the "impact of Schumann's ardor of feelings" (Asafiev). None of Schumann's Western European contemporaries, except for Chopin, has such passion and a variety of emotional nuances.
In the nervously receptive nature of Schumann, the feeling of a gap between a thinking, deeply feeling personality and the real conditions of the surrounding reality, experienced by the leading artists of the era, is exacerbated to the extreme. He seeks to fill the incompleteness of existence with his own fantasy, to oppose an unsightly life with an ideal world, the realm of dreams and poetic fiction. Ultimately, this led to the fact that the multiplicity of life phenomena began to shrink to the limits of the personal sphere, inner life. Self-deepening, focus on one's feelings, one's experiences strengthened the growth of the psychological principle in Schumann's work.
Nature, everyday life, the entire objective world, as it were, depend on the given state of the artist, are colored in the tones of his personal mood. Nature in Schumann's work does not exist outside of his experiences; it always reflects his own emotions, takes on a color corresponding to them. The same can be said about the fabulous-fantastic images. In the work of Schumann, in comparison with the work of Weber or Mendelssohn, the connection with the fabulousness generated by folk ideas is noticeably weakening. Schumann's fantasy is rather a fantasy of his own visions, sometimes bizarre and capricious, caused by the play of artistic imagination.
The strengthening of subjectivity and psychological motives, the often autobiographical nature of creativity, does not detract from the exceptional universal value of Schumann's music, for these phenomena are deeply typical of Schumann's era. Belinsky spoke remarkably about the significance of the subjective principle in art: “In a great talent, an excess of an inner, subjective element is a sign of humanity. Do not be afraid of this direction: it will not deceive you, it will not mislead you. The great poet, speaking of himself, of his I, speaks of the general - of humanity, because in his nature lies everything that humanity lives by. And therefore, in his sadness, in his soul, everyone recognizes his own and sees in him not only poet, but human his brother in humanity. Recognizing him as a being incomparably higher than himself, everyone at the same time recognizes his kinship with him.
