YOUNG ARTIST WORLD PIANO FESTIVAL

Transcription

1 823 First Street South St. Cloud, MN (320) YOUNG ARTIST WORLD PIANO FESTIVAL Robert and Clara Schumann Quiz 1. What are Robert Schumann s birth and death dates? 2. During what musical style period did Schumann live? 3. Where was Robert Schumann born? (City and Country) 4. Who was his father and what was his occupation? 5. How did his father s occupation influence Schumann s later life? 6. Describe Schumann s general education. 7. Did he have good musical training in his early years? 8. Describe some of his music activities as a child. 9. Did his family support his musical interests? 10. Why did Schumann study law at Leipzig University when he was most interested in literature and music? 11. Briefly describe the cultural life in early 18 th century Leipzig, Germany. 12. What were Friedrich Wieck s professions? 13. What was his first association with Robert Schumann? 14. What were some of the unusual things in Wieck s approach to piano teaching? 15. For a short period of time Wieck advocated the use of a Chiroplast or Dactylion for students studying piano. What was this? 16. How did Wieck convince Schumann s mother that he should pursue a music career? 17. How were Schumann s hopes for a career as a concert pianist ruined?

2 18. Who was Heinrich Dorn and what was his relationship to Schumann? 19. Who was Clara Wieck s mother? 20. What does the name Clara mean? 21. Why did Clara live with her father after her parents divorced? 22. Describe Clara s early education. 23. When and where did Clara Wieck begin playing public concerts? 24. Friedrich Wieck encouraged Clara to compose and hired theory and composition teachers for her. What was unusual about this for the time, and why do you think he did it? 25. Name some famous people Clara met on her first international concert tour. 26. How did Clara and Robert get to know one another? 27. In 1831, writing for the music journal, Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung, Schumann reviewed a work by an unknown young composer in what has become a very famous quotation. Who was the composer, and what did Schumann say about him? 28. During this time, Schumann was composing some of his earliest works for piano solo. Name some of them. 29. What was the Davidsbündlerschaft? 30. What was the Die Neue Leipziger Zeitschrift fur Müsik? 31. How important was Schumann in the Zeitschrift? 32. Who was Eusebius? 33. Who was Florestan? 34. Who were Vult and Walt? 35. Who was Ernestine von Fricken? 36. Why is she remembered today in studies of Schumann s music? 37. How did Friedrich Wieck react when he first heard that Robert and Clara were becoming involved romantically?

3 38. How did the couple communicate with each other? 39. Did Clara ever develop a relationship with her mother? 40. How did the couple receive permission to marry? 41. Mr. Wieck still did not give his blessing to their marriage. What did he do to show his displeasure? 42. How were concert tours arranged at this time? Were concert mangers common? 43. Why do you think Wieck did not want Clara to marry Robert? 44. Who was Marie Wieck and how did she contribute to Frederick Wieck s legacy? 45. Robert lived for a time in Vienna, thinking they might settle there. He discovered unknown and unpublished works by a well-known composer. Who was the composer and one important work discovered? 46. Where and when was this work performed for the first time and who made this happen? 47. Prior to the marriage of Robert and Clara, give a general description of Robert s compositions. About how many were there? 48. What composers did Schumann consider to be the greatest at this time of his life? 49. How did Schumann s compositions change after they were married? 50. What is a lied? 51. Schumann built upon the German lieder tradition of Franz Schubert. How did he do this and also expand it? 52. Schumann is known for creating the piano cycle. What is this? 53. Robert and Clara seem to have been happy together, but there were problems, even in their early years. What were some of these? 54. What were some of the positive things in their relationship? 55. Clara strongly encouraged Robert to compose symphonies and sonatas, and other larger-form works. Why do you think she did this?

4 56. After their marriage, they settled in Leipzig. Who was the other very famous musician living in that city? 57. Who was Fanny Mendelssohn Hensel? 58. Was her musical training similar to Clara Schumann s? 59. How were the careers of Clara Schumann and Fanny Hensel different? Why do you think it was this way? 60. In their first year of marriage Clara premiered Robert s Fantasie in A Minor, a one-movement work for piano and orchestra. This was later expanded and became known as what work? 61. Almost one year after their marriage, their first child was born. What was the name, and how many children did they have? 62. How did Clara manage her performing career with motherhood? 63. How did she deal with the custom that women were not to travel alone at that time? 64. Who were some of her rivals at the piano other famous concert pianists at the time? 65. Clara traveled to Copenhagen, Denmark without Robert for concerts, and later he accompanied her to St. Petersburg and Moscow, Russia. Who were some of the people she met and played for there? 66. In 1843, the Leipzig Music Conservatory was founded. Edvard Grieg was one of the early students there. Who was the Director and some of the faculty? 67. In 1844, the Schumanns moved to Dresden with their three daughters. There they purchased a pedal piano and Robert composed some works for it. Describe this instrument. Why would anyone want one? 68. Another very famous composer was living in Dresden at this time. Who was this and what was he doing in Dresden? 69. Schumann composed his Album for the Young, Op. 68, at this time. Why did he write this? 70. Robert also wrote Kinderszenen (Scenes from Childhood), Op. 15. What is the difference in the Robert s intent in these collections? 71. What is your favorite of Robert Schumann s Rules for Young Musicians? 72. Northern Song, Op. 68, No. 41 has a tribute to another composer of the time hidden within it. Who was the composer and how is he honored in this work?

5 73. Schumann Fantasy in C Major, Op. 17 was dedicated to another famous composer of the time, and yet another composer s music was quoted in it. Who are these two composers? 74. Robert Schumann was not very verbal with small talk throughout his life best expressing himself through the written word. An encounter with Richard Wagner illustrates this, and his opinion of Wagner personally. Describe this. 75. How did the titles of Schumann s compositions come about and what did Schumann say they meant? 76. Schumann wanted to write an opera based on a German legend. Did he achieve this? 77. In several tragic things happened that contributed to Robert s sadness and depression. What were these incidents? 78. Why did the Schumanns move to Dusseldorf in 1849? 79. Was this a successful position for Robert, and why or why not? 80. In 1853 another young gifted composer entered their lives. Who was this? 81. How did Robert help him to become better known? 82. Robert developed the symptom of tinnitus. What is this? 83. What were some of the other physical symptoms of illness he had during his lifetime? 84. The final stages of his illness began around 1853 with hallucinations. Describe some of these incidents. 85. Robert had a suicide attempt. What happened? 86. What happened after this? 87. Briefly describe his final two and a half years of life. 88. Did Clara visit him frequently during this time? 89. What did Clara do during the final few years of Robert s life and after his death? 90. How did Clara s life change after Robert s death? 91. How were their children cared for after Robert s death?

6 92. How did Clara help Robert s music to become better known? 93. Which child wrote about their family and what was the title of the book? 94. What was Clara s practice routine? 95. Clara taught privately throughout her life and had two positions at music schools. Name the schools. 96. What were some of the things she stressed in her piano teaching? 97. Her name is linked with Brahms because of their deep friendship that lasted more than 40 years. How did he help her during Robert s final illness? 98. When was Clara s last public performance? 99. What was her dying request? 100. Where are museums dedicated to the Schumann s their lives and music?