Cello Concerto (Schumann)
Encyclopedia
The Cello Concerto in A minor, Op
. 129, by Robert Schumann
was completed in a period of only two weeks, between 10 October and 24 October 1850, shortly after Schumann became the music director at Düsseldorf
.
The concerto was never played in Schumann's lifetime. It was premièred on 9 June 1860, four years after his death, at the Leipzig Conservatory in a concert in honour of the 50th anniversary of Schumann's birth, with Ludwig Ebert as soloist.
The length of a typical performance is about 25 minutes.
s, two oboe
s, two clarinet
s, two bassoon
s, two horn
s, two trumpet
s, timpani
, and strings
.
Like Schumann's other concertos, the first movement of the cello concerto begins with a very short orchestral introduction followed by the presentation of the main theme by solo, which in turn is followed by a short tutti
that leads into a lyrical melody.
The second movement is a very short lyrical movement in which the soloist occasionally uses double stop
s. It also features a descending fifth, a gesture used throughout the piece as a signal and homage to his wife, Clara Schumann
.
The third movement is a lively rondo which contrasts with the first two movements. At the end of the movement, there is an accompanied in-tempo cadenza
, something unprecedented in Schumann's day, that leads into the final coda. In recent years, some cellists have chosen instead to include their own unaccompanied cadenza at this point, although there is no indication that Schumann wished for one.
Schumann famously abhorred receiving applause between movements. As a result, there are no breaks between any of the movements in the concerto.
Opus number
An Opus number , pl. opera and opuses, abbreviated, sing. Op. and pl. Opp. refers to a number generally assigned by composers to an individual composition or set of compositions on publication, to help identify their works...
. 129, by Robert Schumann
Robert Schumann
Robert Schumann, sometimes known as Robert Alexander Schumann, was a German composer, aesthete and influential music critic. He is regarded as one of the greatest and most representative composers of the Romantic era....
was completed in a period of only two weeks, between 10 October and 24 October 1850, shortly after Schumann became the music director at Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf is the capital city of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and centre of the Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan region.Düsseldorf is an important international business and financial centre and renowned for its fashion and trade fairs. Located centrally within the European Megalopolis, the...
.
The concerto was never played in Schumann's lifetime. It was premièred on 9 June 1860, four years after his death, at the Leipzig Conservatory in a concert in honour of the 50th anniversary of Schumann's birth, with Ludwig Ebert as soloist.
The length of a typical performance is about 25 minutes.
Movements
The piece is in three movements, which follow on from each other without a pause:- Nicht zu schnell (A minor)
- Langsam (F major)
- Sehr lebhaft (A minor – A major)
Instrumentation
The work is scored for solo cello, two fluteFlute
The flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
s, two oboe
Oboe
The oboe is a double reed musical instrument of the woodwind family. In English, prior to 1770, the instrument was called "hautbois" , "hoboy", or "French hoboy". The spelling "oboe" was adopted into English ca...
s, two clarinet
Clarinet
The clarinet is a musical instrument of woodwind type. The name derives from adding the suffix -et to the Italian word clarino , as the first clarinets had a strident tone similar to that of a trumpet. The instrument has an approximately cylindrical bore, and uses a single reed...
s, two bassoon
Bassoon
The bassoon is a woodwind instrument in the double reed family that typically plays music written in the bass and tenor registers, and occasionally higher. Appearing in its modern form in the 19th century, the bassoon figures prominently in orchestral, concert band and chamber music literature...
s, two horn
Horn (instrument)
The horn is a brass instrument consisting of about of tubing wrapped into a coil with a flared bell. A musician who plays the horn is called a horn player ....
s, two trumpet
Trumpet
The trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air...
s, timpani
Timpani
Timpani, or kettledrums, are musical instruments in the percussion family. A type of drum, they consist of a skin called a head stretched over a large bowl traditionally made of copper. They are played by striking the head with a specialized drum stick called a timpani stick or timpani mallet...
, and strings
String section
The string section is the largest body of the standard orchestra and consists of bowed string instruments of the violin family.It normally comprises five sections: the first violins, the second violins, the violas, the cellos, and the double basses...
.
Analysis
The concerto is considered one of his more daring and adventurous works, due to the length of the exposition and the transcendental quality of the opening. On the autographed score, Schumann gave the title Konzertstück (concert piece) rather than Konzert (concerto), which suggested he intended to depart from the traditional conventions of a concerto from the very beginning.Like Schumann's other concertos, the first movement of the cello concerto begins with a very short orchestral introduction followed by the presentation of the main theme by solo, which in turn is followed by a short tutti
Tutti
Tutti is an Italian word literally meaning all or together and is used as a musical term, for the whole orchestra as opposed to the soloist...
that leads into a lyrical melody.
The second movement is a very short lyrical movement in which the soloist occasionally uses double stop
Double stop
A double stop, in music terminology, is the act of playing two notes simultaneously on a melodic percussion instrument or stringed instrument...
s. It also features a descending fifth, a gesture used throughout the piece as a signal and homage to his wife, Clara Schumann
Clara Schumann
Clara Schumann was a German musician and composer, considered one of the most distinguished pianists of the Romantic era...
.
The third movement is a lively rondo which contrasts with the first two movements. At the end of the movement, there is an accompanied in-tempo cadenza
Cadenza
In music, a cadenza is, generically, an improvised or written-out ornamental passage played or sung by a soloist or soloists, usually in a "free" rhythmic style, and often allowing for virtuosic display....
, something unprecedented in Schumann's day, that leads into the final coda. In recent years, some cellists have chosen instead to include their own unaccompanied cadenza at this point, although there is no indication that Schumann wished for one.
Schumann famously abhorred receiving applause between movements. As a result, there are no breaks between any of the movements in the concerto.