Does anyone on the forum have any first-hand experience of the music of Georg Schumann (1866-1952)?
Quote from: Alan Howe on Sunday 19 December 2010, 22:20
Does anyone on the forum have any first-hand experience of the music of Georg Schumann (1866-1952)?
Just with a few scores, I think, haven't heard any yet...
I have a cassette recording of his Symphonic Humoresque, opus 74 that I haven't listened to in years. If there's some interest, I could try putting it up on YouTube...
Jerry
Jerry: Interest++!
I have radio dubs of his Handel Variations, Lebensfreude Overture, an Overture to a drama, the Vetter Michael Variations, a big oratorio Ruth and a pair of violin sonatas. All good, solid late romantic works, very well orchestrated and, especially the variations, imaginatively put together. My only criticism is that they are all melodically rather unmemorable. I'd certainly be interested in hearing more of his music, though.
Please excuse me if this has already been posted elsewhere - cpo have now issued Georg Schumann's two Piano Trios...
http://www.jpc.de/jpcng/SESSIONID/14b4acb310a945e850299f20f7bd5e58/cpo/detail/-/art/Georg-Schumann-1866-1952-Klaviertrios-Nr-1-2-opp-25-62/hnum/4919254 (http://www.jpc.de/jpcng/SESSIONID/14b4acb310a945e850299f20f7bd5e58/cpo/detail/-/art/Georg-Schumann-1866-1952-Klaviertrios-Nr-1-2-opp-25-62/hnum/4919254)
News to me. Jolly good.
I downloaded the two Piano Trios and I must say I really fell in love with them. Good melodies and yet they seem to have plenty of "substance" that makes them more than just salon pieces. If you like this genre, you'll love this one.
Jerry
Thanks for reminding me to get these, Jerry. I've just played them through and I agree 100%: delightfully warm, inventive and melodious music in the best romantic tradition. Real comfort food.
For those who may be interested, There is a CD of Georg Schumann's Violin Sonatas Op12 & Op55 available via the website georgschumanngesellschaft.de (ftp://georgschumanngesellschaft.de) If you go via the Links page to Musikantiquariat Kaiser-Schumann, you will find this available together with another CD which includes a selection of choral works (also included on the Guild/ASV CD's) BUT with the Symphonic Variations Op24!
The Piano Trios are just marvellous stuff: full-on Romantic chamber music in the great Austro-German tradition. Both are big pieces (around 35 minutes), with No.1 dating from 1899 and No.2 from 1916, the latter exhibiting more chromaticism, but going nowhere near as far as, say, Reger in this regard. A fundamentally conservative, but wonderfully gifted composer...
You may like to know that The Purcell Singers, directed by Mark Ford, made a CD in 1996 which includes Schumann's Drei Motetten (3 Motets!). It is on the Manor label #MLR0175. The duration of the Schumann is 11:35.
Is Georg Schumann any relation to Robert Schumann?
No known relation, but he was related to Camillo Schumann. There are several other Schumanns mentioned at MusicSack (http://www.musicsack.com) (e.g. Carl Schumann (1802-77), Christoph Schumann- cantor, died 1686, and some dozens of other musicians and composers. ) A triple of "easy quartets" came my way attributed only to "C. Schumann" but published too early to have been composed by Camillo, for example... (not Clara, I'm fairly sure.) Likewise a fun-looking tarantelle for piano (several-times republished, possibly rather popular) attributed just to G. Schumann, probably by Gustav Schumann (1815-89) (it fits, more or less, with the rest of his published output as recorded by Hofmeisters etc.) but the attribution isn't 100% definite. Anyways. I don't know how many Schumanns there are, but there seem to have been a lot of them making music.