Carnegie Hall

SCHUMANN  Märchenerzählungen, Op. 132

Schumann embodied the spirit of the Romantic era in his small-scale musical forms and lyrical utterances, his reliance on literary and other extra-musical sources of inspiration, and—above all—the value he placed on emotional freedom and spontaneity. All three factors are in play in the four “narrations” that comprise his fantasy-like Märchenerzählungen for clarinet, viola, and piano.

SCHUMANN  Fantasiestücke, Op. 73

The Fantasiestücke (Fantasy Pieces) were part of an outpouring of instrumental miniatures and other “minor” works that Schumann intended in large part for amateur music makers. The three short pieces are unified in both tempo and character, being predominantly fast-paced and charged with youthful Sturm und Drang.

JÖRG WIDMANN  Es war einmal … Fünf Stücke im Märchenton for Clarinet, Viola, and Piano

Inspired by Schumann’s fantasy-like instrumental miniatures, Jörg Widmann’s Es war einmal … uses innovative, “extended” instrumental techniques to conjure a fantastical, fairy tale atmosphere. “Fata Morgana” refers to the fairy-sorceress of medieval lore. The titles of the other four movements translate as “Once upon a time …,” “The Ice Cave,” “On Maids and Princes,” and “And they all lived happily ever after …”

SCHUMANN  Märchenbilder, Op. 113

These four, short “fairy tale pictures” for viola and piano mine a rich vein of lyricism and caprice. They were originally called Violageschichten, or “viola tales,” as if the instrument itself were the protagonist of these musical fairy tales.

MOZART  Trio for Clarinet, Viola, and Piano in E-flat Major, K. 498, “Kegelstatt”

Whether or not Mozart actually wrote this sweet-tempered piano trio between turns at bowling ninepins (hence the German nickname “Kegelstatt”), the fresh, frolicking character of the music conveys an irresistible spirit of playfulness. His decision to open the work with a slow movement was as unconventional as its instrumentation for clarinet, viola, and piano.