8 Novelletten

Historical context

Robert Schumann’s Novelletten, Op. 21, were deeply personal works, with the composer stating in 1839 that they were “almost entirely inspired” by Clara Wieck. He further confided to Clara that year that the pieces contained his thoughts of her “in every possible position and circumstance and all your irresistibleness,” adding, “No one could have written the Novelletten unless he had gazed into such eyes and touched such lips as yours.” Schumann himself held these compositions in high regard, noting in 1843 that his four books of Novelletten, written in 1838, were among his best pianoforte works.

The Novelletten also found an early admirer in Franz Liszt. Schumann recalled in 1840 that Liszt’s playing of the pieces “moved me strangely” and gave him “peculiar pleasure.” While acknowledging that Liszt’s interpretation differed from his own conception, Schumann found it “genial and delicate,” especially enjoying the “great effect” of the second Novellette in D, which Liszt was scheduled to perform at his third concert. Schumann even playfully bet in 1839 that if Prume were to ask Clara to play one of the “delightful Noveletten,” she would surely declare him a splendid artist.

Drawn from Schumann, Robert, 1810-1856, The letters of Robert Schumann (1907); May Herbert, Early Letters Of Robert Schumann (1888); Schumann, Robert, 1810-1856; Storck, Karl, 1873-1920; Bryant, Hannah, The letters of Robert Schumann; (1907) — public domain, archive.org.