Schumann and the Kinderszenen

Schumann and the Kinderszenen Robert Schumann, composer throughout the early- to mid-nineteenth century, is probably best known for his songs and piano works. Before injuring his finger most likely through the use of a chiroplast (an instrument that guides the hands while playing; highly controversial), Schumann was an avid piano player, if not a proper concert pianist and virtuoso[1]. But due to this ailing finger, Schumann had to eventually find other means to support his life. Thankfully for us, he eventually turned to composition, and furthermore, to piano composition. His affinity for piano led to some of the best character pieces for piano ever created, including the piano cycles Papillon, Carnaval, and Kreisleriana. But these pieces that he is now known for were not successful in his time. Clara Wieck, Schumann 's eventual wife, wrote in her diary in 1839, “I would play [Robert 's compositions] gladly, but the public doesn 't understand them.”[2] But in that same year, Schumann published a work that changed the public perspective on his compositions, Kinderszenen. Due to his previous anonymity, Kinderszenen appeared new and original, but in fact Schumann steals ideas from his previous works and shapes them in order to create this exciting, publicly-acclaimed piano cycle. While the most well-known compositional period of Schumann is the flurry of songs for piano and voice after marrying Clara in 1840, the period before, from 1830-1840, was devoted almost entirely to solo piano works and piano cycles. During the composing of one of these piano cycles, the Novelleten, Schumann took one month of time to compose a collection of pieces, from which he would choose the pieces for the Kinderszenen. In a letter to Clara, he wrote, Whether or not in response to some words you once wrote saying I sometimes seemed to you like a child, I took flight and amused myself with working out thirty droll little pieces, twelve of which I have selected and

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