Classical Music | Mezzo-Soprano

Recorded on 11/06/2010, uploaded on 11/06/2010

Musician's or Publisher's Notes

Frauenliebe und -leben, op. 42        Robert Schumann

Likely inspired by the events of his own courtship of Clara Wieck, Schumann's song cycle Frauenliebe und -leben (A Women's Love and Life) was composed in 1840, known as his "Year of Song" and the year of his marriage to Clara. Based on the poem cycle by the German poet Adelbert von Chamisso written in 1830, it tells the story of a woman's love for her man from their first meeting to beyond his death. Schumann selected eight poems from Chamisso's cycle to set to music.

As with many of Schumann's Lieder, the piano plays a crucial role in portraying the mood of the poem. As a result, the piano accompaniment possesses a strong independence from the voice, yet simultaneously creates a more unified, artistic whole by subtly enhancing the mood of the lyric and, in some cases, even giving expression to that which is not easily brought about in words alone.

In the first song, "Seit ich ihn gesehen" ("Since I saw him"), the narrator tells of her "blindness" to all others after her first sighting of the one she loves. Cast in a passive triple meter and simple strophic setting, Schumann's setting has a dreamy quality. The following song, "Er, der Herrlichste von allen" ("He, the most glorious of all") expresses a woman's admiration for her man. The piano begins with a repeated-chord accompaniment against the voice's majestic melody. Twice the voice departs from its opening melody, yet, never is the regal, confident tone of the song lost. The melody returns for a final statement, elegantly making its way back to the tonic key.

The third song of the set, "Ich kann's nicht fassen, nicht glauben" ("I cannot grasp or believe it"), portrays the narrator's disbelief that she has gained the love of her man and believes she is living in a dream. Moving to the key of C minor, the voice is set against a mainly chordal accompaniment at times staccato, at others legato. The third stanza brings a brief glimpse of the relative major before the first stanza and the key of C minor return. In "Du Ring an meinem Finger" ("Thou ring on my finger"), the fourth song, the narrator muses about her engagement ring. Schumann's settings is intensely lyrical and marked with the special indication "innig" ("intimate.")

In the fifth song "Helft mir, ihr Schwestern" ("Help me, my sisters"), the narrator calls on her sisters to assist her on her wedding day. The accompaniment, beginning in octaves, portrays the anxiety of the poem. In the sixth song, "Süßer Freund, du blickest mich verwundert an" ("Sweet friend, thou gazest"),  she informs her husband of her maternity. Cast in a ternary form, the outer sections are almost recitative-like with a mainly chordal accompaniment, while the middle section, being more agitated, explores the depths of the narrator's emotions.

The next to last song, "An meinem Herzen, an meinem Brust", ("At my heart, at my breast"), tells of the baby's arrival and a mother's love. Schumann's setting is dance-like and joyous, expressing the mother's joy over her newborn. It is possible this poem presented the greatest challenge for Schumann as his own firstborn would not arrive for yet another year. In the final song, "Nun hast du mir den ersten Schmerz getan" ("Now you have caused me pain for the first time"), the narrator grieves at the loss of her spouse and reflects that, with him, her entire world is gone. Schumann sets the text against a rather static piano accompaniment. Accented, dissonant chords portray the pain the narrator experiences. Following the voice's final words, Schumann returns to the theme of the first song, thus, musically bring the work to a satisfying close, but more importantly suggesting the narrator's reflection on her past happiness.         Joseph DuBose