german
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FRANZ VORRABER ABOUT SCHUMANN
WHAT IS MOST
FASCINATING
ABOUT SCHUMANN’S
MUSIC
IS ITS DETAILED
EXPRESSION
OF THE FINEST
DIFFERENCES IN EMOTIONAL STATES.
THE MUSICAL
POET SCHUMANN
ALLOWS HIS
LYRICAL LINES TO SING FREELY,
OFTEN ABANDONING
THE CONVENTIONS OF RHYTHMIC EMPHASIS,
AND SO OPENS
NEW DIMENSIONS OF PHRASING.
HE DIFFERENTIATES
WITH EXQUISITE FANTASY
BETWEEN THE
DIRECTION AND LENGTH OF A PHRASE,
AND SUGGESTS
THEREBY A GESTURE OR EVEN A DIALOGUE.
HE LEARNED
THE ART OF VOICE-LEADING THROUGH HIS STUDIES OF
J. S. BACH,
HIS FAVORITE COMPOSER.
SCHUMANN HIMSELF
USES POLYPHONY AS A POET WOULD,
AS A FORM
OF POETIC PUNCTUATION,
SEEMINGLY
FREE,
BUT FOLLOWING
A LOGICAL SYSTEM OF COMMUNICATION AND EXPRESSION:
“ACTUALLY,
IT IS UNUSUAL THE WAY I INVENT THINGS ALMOST CONTRAPUNTALLY,
AND WHEN I
SING THROUGH THE LINES AFTERWARDS
I DISCOVER
THE RETROGRESSIONS, REVERSED RHYTHMS, ETC..
MY MUSIC APPEARS
TO ME TO BE SO WONDERFULLY INTRICATE,
EVEN IN ITS
SIMPLICITY,
JUST AS IT
COMES FROM MY HEART...”
HE ADMIRED
THE POET JEAN PAUL
FOR HIS USE
OF LANGUAGE
THAT ACQUIRED
A LIFE OF ITS OWN,
AND AWAKENED
MUSICAL ASSOCIATIONS.
HE ALSO SHARED
THE POET’S LOVE OF TWILIGHT,
WITH ITS SENSE
OF PREMONITION AND FREE FLIGHT OF FANTASY.
IN HIS PIANO
WORKS,
SCHUMANN CREATES
THESE SENSATIONS
BY HIS EXTRAORDINARY
USE OF THE PEDAL,
HIGHLIGHTING
NUANCES OF MODULATION AND PHRASING.
AS A WHOLE,
SCHUMANN’S PIANO WORKS ARE NOT EASILY CATEGORIZED.
EACH WORK
FINDS ITS OWN VOICE,
ITS OWN PATH,
INDEPENDANT
OF THE OTHER WORKS,
WHETHER IT
BE A SONATA, A FUGUE, OR A THEME AND VARIATIONS.
“MUSIC IS
THE LANGUAGE OF THE SOUL...
THE MORE THE
INDIVIDUAL PICTURES IN THE MUSIC APPEAR TO THE LISTENER,
THE MORE IMMORTAL
THE MUSIC,
AND NEW AT
EACH LISTENING.”
I INVITE YOU
TO SHARE WITH ME
THE COMPLEXITY
AND RICHNESS OF HIS MUSIC.
FRANZ VORRABER.
Translation: William Melton
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