Fanny and Clara, Week 3

Fanny Hensel

Das Jahr: 12 Characterstucke

No. 1 January: This piece sounds to me to be more like the works of Franz Liszt than Felix Mendelssohn. The use of a solemn and unaccompanied minor bass melody is similar to works like Vallee D’obermann. Her use of virtuosic scales as a transitional tool is also similar to the works of Franz Liszt. Her use of combining the ending of the first work with the beginning of the second seems very inventive of this type of music. Her use of Attaca is not like Beethoven’s for me, but rather something new as if the works are subdivided only by title.

No. 2 February: I wonder why February is so much more joyous than January. Considering that spring does not begin until late January I cannot assume that the mood of the piece is determinate on the the seasonal norm. Perhaps the moods are based on a year in her life, meaning that the character she draws upon is not actually based on the year itself but rather the events of one’s life spaced out within the year.

No. 3 March: Once again I am surprised that this month is so solemn when this should be a joyous time, assuming that one prefers the spring towards the end of winter. Perhaps the flowing sounds of the accompaniment symbolize the melting away of ice or the sights of barren and once frozen landscapes. The mood of this piece is not entirely sad to me. This seems to me to be more of a Schubertian beauty within sorrow. The music modulates from minor to major at the end, and I imagine this is because the official start of spring is the 20th, meaning that the month, like the music, started much differently than it ended up.

No. 4 April: The music here reminds me of the sounds of mischief. The music does not swirl as in the previous month, but this time it leaps, symbolized by the low bass notes followed with staccato scales. This would lead me to believe that the appearance of spring has caused nature to revive and become energetic. The music ends in minor. I would think that this could symbolize the harsh realities of nature, that admist the playing animals and birds and bee’s there is still death and fear. Perhaps this story was one of a hunt, whether it was in the eyes of the hunter or hunted I am not sure. Maybe the musical portrayal of April showers are present. Or maybe the music just ended in minor because it made the music sound more interesting…

No. 5 May: This sounds like a lovely dance. Now that everything is in full bloom it may be time to just sit and observe the beauties of the world. Once again the music moves from light and pretty to heavy and dark. This trait makes this solidly romantic in quality. Every emotion is presented and given time to evolve into something else. These changes cause the music to be more like the human spirit which experiences up’s and down’s. If one emotion never shifted then it would not feel human.

No. 6 June: I certainly wouldn’t expect these sad harmonies of June. This would lead me to assume that there is a story here that moves beyond the natural patterns of the year. This sounds like a sad and lamenting song. Unless Fanny Hensel despised hot weather so much to write a sad piece like this I would certainly assume that this is the story of an event in June rather than the month itself, whether it be fictional or true.

No. 7 July: This being the month of my birth I was surprised to hear her dark and ominous portrayal of July. This piece seems similar to the month of June but it sounds to me like those sad and reminiscent harmonies have now turned to dark thoughts, angry or resentful.

No. 8 August: It seems immediately that the sounds of August are happy ones. Once again the music sounds as if its dancing and leaping around. The happiness is portrayed in a more majestic tone this time. The only reason I could think of for being this happy in August would be that the Fall season is now in sight. I could also consider that a specific event in August would make musical sense, like a ball or a special gathering.

No. 9 September: It sounds as if Fall has begun within this piece. The melody is occuring beneath the accompaniment this time. I would think that this could symbolize that the narrarator of this piece is standing beneath the leaves as they change and fall to the ground. At the end the melody moves into a lower register, which would mean to me that the leaves had all met their final resting place.

No. 10 October: Another joyous month for Fanny Hensel. This music is bigger than before with roaring bass octaves and brilliant dancing melodies. Perhaps this depicts the games of fall. I’m not sure how Europians celebrate the month of October, but I know that in America this could symbolize a Fall festival or things of that nature.

No. 11 November: We are now back to another lamenting month, maybe brought on by the arrival of snow. This despair is symbolized by the descending half steps in the upper-most voice. The music moves not from sad to happy, but rather from sad to agitated. Until the very end where a major sound is seen only within the scales leading up to the powerfully minor final chord.

No. 12 December: The tremolos within this final month cause me to visualize fluries of snow and the wily spirit of Jack Frost. I could easily see this as the soundtrack to snowball fights and swift slay-rides. The end of the month is full of twinkling and joyous sounds. I imagine that the Holiday season would have meant a lot for the religiously reformed family. The end of the year is a most happy and content one.

Postlude: I’m not sure how the postlude would fit into the characteristics of the year. It is most sad all the way until the final chord. All I could think of in terms of character would be that the year, for the most part, was not as happy as it could have been. The major final chord could symbolize that even like life joy is mostly an after-thought.



Clara Schumann

Four Character Pieces Op. 5

I Impromptu, Le Sabbat (Allegro furioso)- The title of this piece translates into “the Sabbath” and I am not sure how the music evokes this character. The mischievous minor 2nds and quick rhythmic repetitions lead me to believe that this may be a dark sabbath. The dissonances here feel far more modern to me than the works of Robert Schumann of Brahms. I would say that if I had never heard it before I would probbably imagine this to be something by a Mussorgsky type composer.

II Caprice a la Bolero (Presto)- “Whim of the Bolero” is a piece that I feel is probably meant less to evoke the actual dance music of a Bolero than to portray the mood and excitement of the dance itself. This type of concept reminds me of Ravel’s Mirroirs in compositional purpose. The idea that the music is a self portrait with a personal reflection of the non-musical material.

III Romance (Andante con sentimento)- This piece is more vague in meaning than the other pieces. The romance here seems to be a sad one. I wonder if her intention was to capture the musical forms of a romance-style composition or if this was another self portrait of the difficult circumstances behind her’s and Robert’s romance.

IV Scene fantastique, Le Balle des Revenants (Allegro ma non troppo)- “Fantastic scene, The Ghost Ball”. I could not help but imagine myself in the Haunted Mansion while listening to this piece. I believe that the character of this piece gave Clara license to create a dance with unconventionall and haunting harmonies. The actual techniques used are really not that different from Le Sabbat. This would probably serve as an indicator that the sabbath from the beginning was more of a pagan idea than a holy one. I like also that she ends the set in a similar way to how she began.

Variations on a theme of Robert Schumann Op. 20

I find it interesting that Clara chose such a sad theme on which to compose variations. From a psychological perspective I would say that there are two reasons this could be true…
1) Robert’s declining mental health foreshadowed the need for a piece in the spirit of his lament.
2) It was the darker and more untameable aspects of Robert that she loved most, which would explain her infatuation with the music of his lowly state.
Reason 2 would explain why the Romance from the Op. 5 pieces takes on such a sad tone.
I like that Clara keeps most variations in the original spirit of the theme. Her use of virtuosity seems not to show off, but rather to enhance the drama of the harmonies. I find that she achieves some extremely beautiful uses of the natural colors of the piano. I like that I get to here a theme of Schumann that is spread into the wider and more dramatic registers of the piano in ways that Robert would never really dare.