Robert Schumann: 8 Noveletten Op. 21 (1838)

8 Noveletten Op. 21 (1838) (score), by Robert Schumann (1810-1856). Dino Ciani, piano. 1. Markirt und kräftig [Marcato and strong] (00:00) 2. Äusserst rasch und mit Bravour [Extremely fast and with spirit] (5:07) 3. Leicht und mit Humor [Leggiero and with humour] (10:24) 4. Ballmässig. Sehr munter [Moderato dance/Like a ball. Very lively] (14:56) 5. Rauschend und festlich [Noisy and festive] (18:08) 6. Sehr lebhaft mit vielem Humor [Very lively with a lot of humour] (27:17) 7. Äusserst rasch [Extremely fast] (31:09) 8. Sehr lebhaft [Very lively] (34:24) Robert Schumann (8 June 1810 – 29 July 1856) was a German composer and influential music critic. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest composers of the Romantic era. Schumann left the study of law, intending to pursue a career as a virtuoso pianist. He had been assured by his teacher Friedrich Wieck that he could become the finest pianist in Europe, but a hand injury ended this dream. Schumann then focused his musical energies on composing. The Novelletten, Op. 21, is a set of 8 pieces for solo piano, written by Robert Schumann in 1838. The Novelletten were composed during February 1838, a period of great struggle for the composer. Schumann originally intended the eight pieces to be performed together as a group however they are often performed separately with great success. This set of pieces is an excellent example of Schumann’s keyboard style. There’s an earlier version I uploaded with the recording of the great Spanish pianist Alicia de Larrocha. You can visit it here: I don’t own the audios nor the scores shown in the video. -audio: Dino Ciani -score: