Hallam Sinfonia cellist and secretary Joy Paul introduces us to the lives of one of the great power couples in classical music history!
Robert Schumann, with his wife Clara (nee Wieck) the renowned concert pianist, and their seven children, moved to Dusseldorf in September 1850 after being appointed as the city’s Musical Director. His ‘Rhenish’ symphony was a response to the new surroundings and Schumann’s initial euphoria at the beauty of the area. The flowing second movement was originally entitled ‘Morning on the Rhine’, while the majestic fourth movement represents the glories of Cologne Cathedral, which Schumann had long wanted to visit.
It wasn’t all plain sailing however. Schumann’s longstanding mental health problems soon resurfaced (he was probably bi-polar) and he fell out with both the city fathers and his unreliable orchestral players (who may well have found his behaviour challenging). Clara was not paid for an engagement as piano soloist – it appeared to be a case of ‘buy the husband, get the wife free’. Life in the family’s city centre apartment was noisy and stressful, disrupting efforts to compose, with Schumann complaining of ‘house anger’ in his diary.
The city’s musical culture was also very different from the Schumanns’ experiences in Dresden and Leipzig. These cities were much more ‘serious’ about their music making, with a level of formality prevailing which was far from the relaxed approach in the Rhineland, where beer and sandwiches were merrily consumed in the park during the interval.
The symphony itself was a great success, but after that things gradually went downhill. Schumann’s physical and mental decline continued and in January 1854 he tried to kill himself by jumping into the Rhine. Committed to an asylum, he died two and a half years later. Such a sad end – but we can be grateful for this glorious symphony.
The concert, which also features works by Fanny Hensel and Louise Farrenc, is at High Storrs School on Saturday 1st February at 7.30pm. Click here for further information and to book tickets.
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