Mendelssohn vs. Clara

It is interesting to compare the lives of Felix Mendelssohn and Clara Schumann since they had such different life styles. One grew up in a wealthy family without having to worry about making enough money to survive. The other had to raise seven children while caring for her husband. They both had specific circumstances that would overcome their successfulness as musicians, yet their hardships were on complete different sides of the spectrum.
Mendelssohn lived from 1809 to 1847 into a wealthy family. As a child his talent was comparable to Mozart. He, on the other hand, never got better. This was probably attributed to the fact that he didn’t have to work as hard for his money. He was used to getting what he wanted and never fully dedicated himself to music. His high point as a musician was probably when he was as young as 15, and composed an octet. Mendelssohn was also a jew, which would also hinder his success in the field of music.
Clara Schumann, on the other hand, had much different circumstances. She was making quite a name for herself before she married Robert Schumann. She was a well-known performer and was also composing. Once she was married though, she became the primary bread barer. Because of this she was unable to continue much composing. Clara also had the duty of raising seven children and taking care of Robert, who needed a lot of support. She succeeded him by 42 years when he died in 1854. After this she had to raise the family entirely on her own. This responsibility obviously would hinder her musical achievement. Another obvious set back that she had to deal with was the fact that she was a woman.
Both Mendelssohn and Clara had completely different issues that would hold them back from being the musicians they could have been. This makes me wonder what they could have been if they had lived more similar lives to that of other composers. What is Mendelssohn had had a similar upbringing to that of Mozart? Would he have accomplished more than Mozart even did? Or what if Clara had the same opportunities that her husband Robert, a man, had had? Would she have outdone him?

Schumann: Fantasy

Throughout Schumann’s music he makes very obvious references to people and influences he has had in his life, more so than many other composers do. To understand his music it is important to understand his life, and the relationships he had. The most influential person on Schumann’s music was undoubtedly Clara Wieck. She was the daughter of his first piano teacher. Schumann was in contact with Clara a lot since he had lived in the same household with her as he studied with her father. In 1835 Schumann came to the realization that he was in love with Clara. When her father discovered this he forced Clara and Robert to be separated. The next few years to come would be some of Robert’s most successful years of composing music. During this time he wrote arguably one of the most moving works he ever wrote, the Fantasy in C. It was written in 1838 when he was separated from Clara. This would explain where the intense emotion from this piece came from. It uses a repeated descending 5-note pattern that references to Clara. He even writes that there is a secret song in the second movement, which again, is intended for Clara. In order to capture the correct character of this piece it is important to realize what was happening in Schumann’s life at the time and the longing and desire he was feeling.

Schumann: Symphonic Etude's

Schumann’s Symphonic etudes are very fascinating for the fact that they are etudes. He also had referred to them as “Etudes in the Form of Variations.” This is more accurate in describing this collection since it is based off of the theme from Ernest Von Fricken’s flute theme and variations. I find the set of pieces particularly interesting since they are etudes, yet they do not contain many musical elements that a standard etude has. There are no long scale passages or arpeggiated patterns. In many etudes, like those of Chopin or Liszt, there is a clear aspect to piano technique that is being focused on. These pieces are not as clear in what the study is actually about. This forms a work that is much more diverse, with an abundance of different characters that Schumann is so good at creating.

Papillons vs. Carnaval

Papillons and Carnaval are two of Schumann’s most widely known pieces. This could be because of their similar structure, which are composed of many small pieces strung together to create a larger work. Each small piece exemplifies a different emotion which may be why they are enjoyed so much by both audiences and performers. At least this is what I find so fascinating in these two pieces. Schumann was very in tune with his different emotions, so much that he had analyzed his different personalities to the point of giving them specific names. The most famous are Eusebius, who was the more reserved side, and Florestan, the more outgoing and daring side. I think it is this self-awareness that Schumann had that helped him to create such successful music. He was able to create these different personalities that he was mindful of, giving the music a wide range of emotion. Both Papillons and Carnaval illustrate his amazing ability of capturing his feelings and pouring them into his compositions. There is one major difference between the two, however. Papillons was composed based of the literal work of someone else, where as Carnaval was composed from Schumann’s own personal experiences.

Papillons, composed before Carnaval in 1832, was based off of Jean-Paul Richter’s novel Flegejahre. It is based off a scene at a masked ball. Each small piece is a scene from the ball, such as a boot carrying itself in the third piece, a couple gazing at each other from a distance in the fifth piece, or Walt (a character from the novel) gently touching his love, Wina. Unlike in Carnaval, Schumann did not make up these characters and instead based them off someone else’s imagination. This is not a surprise since Schumann had such a passionate interest in literature. His father was an editor, publisher, author, and librarian, which could have sparked his interest. Later on in life Schumann became an editor for Die Neue Zeitschrift fur Musik. He constantly was fusing his love for writing and literature with music.

Carnaval, on the other hand, was not based on one literary work and was instead written based on specific people in his life. Because of this one could claim that is it a more imaginable composition. Furthermore it is more connected to Schumann’s own life. This piece was also written later than Papillons, in 1834, when he was a more mature composer. Carnaval is based on the four notes: A, E flat, C, and B, which mean ASCH in German. Asch was the town where his fiance Ernestine von Fricken was born. He then personalizes the piece even more by separating it into smaller pieces that represent people that were important in his life such as Chopin, Clara, Eusebius, Florestan, Paganini etc. Schumann composed his own story taking the listener on a journey through Carnaval, an annual celebrattion in Germany. The Carnaval, however, is composed of people from his own life.

I think the fact that Carnaval is composed from Schumann’s own experiences and perceptions of people in his life makes it a much more impressive work. Although it does quote things from other sources, it is not based off of someone else’s creation as Papillons is. By familiarizing yourself with this work you are able to learn a lot about Schumann, his life, and his personal feelings.