Clara Schumann

Clara Josephine Wieck Schumann (September 13, 1819 – May 20, 1896), wife of composer Robert Schumann, was one of the leading pianists of the Romantic era as well as a composer.

Biography

Clara trained from an early age with her father, the well-known piano pedagogue Friedrich Wieck. She had a brilliant career as a pianist from the age of thirteen up to her marriage; the union between Clara and Robert was initially opposed by her father. She continued to perform and compose after the marriage even as she bore and raised seven children. In the various tours on which she accompanied her husband, she extended her own reputation farther than the outskirts of Germany, and it was thanks to her efforts that his compositions became generally known in Europe. Johannes Brahms, at age twenty, met the couple in 1853 and his friendship with Clara lasted until her death. Later that year, she also met violinist Joseph Joachim who became one of her frequent performance partners. Schumann is credited with refining the tastes of audiences through her presentation of works by earlier composers including those of Bach, Mozart, and Beethoven as well as those of Robert Schumann and Brahms.

Related Topics:
Pedagogue - Friedrich Wieck - Germany - Johannes Brahms - 1853 - Violinist - Joseph Joachim

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

From the time of her husband's death she devoted herself principally to the interpretation of her husband's works. But, when she first visited England in 1856, the critics received Schumann's music with a chorus of disapprobation. She returned to London in 1865 and continued her visits annually, with the exception of four seasons, until 1882. She also appeared there each year from 1885 to 1888. In 1878 she was appointed teacher of the piano at the Hoch Conservatorium at Frankfurt am Main, a post she held until 1892, and in which she contributed greatly to the improvement of modern piano playing technique.

Related Topics:
England - 1856 - London - 1865 - 1882 - 1885 - 1888 - 1878 - Hoch Conservatorium - Frankfurt am Main - 1892

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

As an artist she will be remembered, together with Joachim, as one of the first executants who really played like composers. Besides being remembered for her eminence as a performer of nearly all kinds of pianoforte music, at a time when such technical ability was considerably rarer than in the present day, she was an impressive composer in her own right. Additionally, she was the authoritative editor of her husband's works for the publishing firm of Breitkopf and Härtel.

Related Topics:
Pianoforte - Breitkopf and Härtel

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~