Like so many of the Romantic composers, Robert Schumann (1810-1856) lead a short, tragic, and unhappy life. He still, however, managed to produce some of the most beautiful and personal music of the time. Born to a middle-class German family, Robert recieved some musical training at an early age. He seemed to excel, but his father was dtermined that the boy should become a lawyer. Dutifully following his parents instructions, Robert attended law school, but his love was music. Eventually he dropped out of school and supported himself by giving lessons and composing. A master of the Lied, Schumann soon gained notariety for compositional skills. He dabbled in all sorts of compoistional arts: the symphony, the chamber work, the piano sonata, and several concertos. His wife, Clara Schumann, a famous pianist and composer herself was for a long time Schumann's on friend and companion, though eventually he did befriend Brahams. After a long illness, he passed away with only the two people he cared for to see him off.
Written in 1851, the Märchenbuilder was the tonal center for a set of works for the viola entitled Fairytale Pictures. The work starts in D minor with questoin tinged with regret. These saddened queries are answered cherfully in the second section of the work, but this time in F major. The third set, again in D minor exhibits the potential of the instrument and the skill of the performer. The final part, in D major, eases the pain and tension of the previous three parts and in the for of a lovely, yet bitter-sweet melody.
Click Here for the Sound Byte The excerpt is from the final part of the piece, the Langsam, mit melancholischem Ausdruck. Listen for the quiet, plaintive tones of the solo instrument and the subtle use of vibrato. The interplay bewteen the piano and viola is so well conceived that one seems to drift effortlessly into the other.
The soloist is Yuri Bashment accompanied by Mikhail Muntain. The disc is an RCA Victor Red Seal. It also contains the Sonata, D.821 "Arpeggione" by Franz Schubert, the Adagio and Allegro, Op. 70 by Schumann, the Kol Nidrei, Op. 47 by Max Bruch, and the deligtful Konzertstück by Georges Enesco. The quality of these recordings are excellent and Bashment's technical brilliance shows through. This recording definately shows Bashment as the sucessor to Tertis and Primrose