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LUDWIG
SCHUNCKE PIANO MUSIC
Tatiana Larionova
A man, a friend, an artist without equals Leipzig, December 4th, 1833. Robert Schumann sits at the table of Krause’s pub on the Katharinenstraße with some friends. Suddenly the door opens and in with the frost comes a young man. Dreamy eyes, noble nose, an ironic mouth, flowing curls, a skinny chest; he looks like St. John, or maybe a Roman emperor, or a statue representing Thorwaldsen1. Even before the stranger could whisper his name and provenance, Schumann hears an innere Stimme telling him: “This is the one we’re looking for”. In his eyes he sees “something similar”. Ludwig Schuncke was born in Cassel on the 21st December 1810 from a family of musicians. Both the father Gottfried and the uncle Michael were two of the most famous horn players of the period, and Ludwig, first of ten brothers, was immediately addressed to the study of piano. When he was eleven years old he already played Mozart’s and Steibelt’s concertos in public and the following year the first tournées took off: Cassel, Darmstadt, Hannover, Leipzig. Meanwhile the Schuncke family had moved to Stuttgart, and in the fall of 1827 Ludwig was sent to Paris to study composition with Anton Reicha. There he sustained himself by working as a piano demonstrator for the constructor Duport, he met Franz Liszt and Friedrich Kalkbrenner and came in contact with the stylistic taste that from the French capital was now imposing itself across all Europe. Only in July 1830 he returned to Stuttgart where, in the fall of the following year, he met, though fleetingly, Chopin, until, in the spring of 1832, he left for Augsburg as tutor of the Baroness Caroline von Hoesslin’s children. In November he moved to Vienna, where however he had many difficulties entering the musical environment: even though he met Thalberg and Diabelli, who published some of his piano compositions, he suffered so much integration problems that at the end of 1833 he decided to try his luck in the capital of the German musical editorial industry. The plan was to stop in Leipzig only three weeks to sell his works to some editors, before leaving for Berlin and St. Petersburg. Instead he stopped a whole year, his last one. 2
The meeting at Krause’s was a real enlistment in Schumann’s Bund. Schumann was at the time just looking for a virtuoso pianist who could give credibility to his project of criticism to musical philistinism and to Biedermeier virtuosity, which raged all over Europe. After that meeting Ludwig had the Gewandhaus’ theatre hall for the 1834 New Year’s concert, which opened for him the doors of the city. A few days later he introduced to Robert the one lady that probably had been the maker of that concert: Henriette Voigt, pupil of the Berliner pianist Ludwig Berger and wife of one of the wealthiest dealers in Leipzig. Miss Voigt, whom Schumann had, until then, avoided fearing she was an unbearable Beethoverin, gathered around his living room the most important musical personalities of the city. From then on, her house would have hosted the Davidsbündler’s meetings as an alternative to the Kaffeebaum: Robert, Ludwig and Henriette became inseparable. In March, Ludwig went to live in the apartment in Burgstrasse 21 with Robert, taking the student Carl Günther’s place. The 26th of the same month Schumann, Schuncke, Friedrich Wieck and Julius Knorr stipulated with the bookseller Christian Hartmann the publishing contract of the Neue Leipziger Zeitschrift für Musik, whose first issue was released on the 3rd of April. Schuncke, whose journalistic pseudonym was 3 (for the publishing contract he was in fact the third editor), wrote between the 21st of April to the 20th of October only six reviews, moreover revised and corrected by Schumann, who repeatedly complained of the friend’s literary inability. By the time summer arrived, Schuncke’s health conditions worsened quickly. Tuberculosis that had begun to appear a few months earlier was now leaving him without hope. Ludwig had to give up the concert activity and later, in October, the neurologist Clarus forbade him to practice too, arguing that a too intense practice of that art could harm the tabes nervosa which he had diagnosed. Facing his friend’s illness, Schumann, who recently had got secretly engaged to Ernestine von Fricken, assumed a rather unique attitude. Although in his letters he showed all his desperation, to the extent of asking Henriette not to advise him even when Ludwig would have expired, in terms of behavior he 3
devised an accurate escape strategy from the disease, which brought him first to visit his mother in Zwickau, then to Ernestine in Asch, both quite far from Leipzig. On December the 7th, Ludwig died despite the Voigts loving care, before he could turn twenty-four; the artist Emil Kirchner painted him on his deathbed leaving us his only portrait. Robert, despite Henriette’s heartfelt appeal, didn’t attend the funeral2. These are the events of that formidable 1834 (“the most important year of my life” as Schumann wrote in 1838 in his Viennese Rückblick) announced in December, a year before the appearance of Ludwig Schuncke “as a star”.
Grande Sonate in G minor Op.3 Composed before June 1832 in Augsburg, it’s certainly Schuncke’s most ambitious work, the only one to be republished in modern age. A few days after the meeting with Schumann, it was sold to the editor Wunder who published it in March 1834 with the dedication à son ami Robert Schumann and from then on it enjoyed several reprints until the mid-40’s. Schumann returned the dedication a few months later, with the final version of a super-virtuosic composition, at which he had started to work on since the end of 1828 and in the meantime he had changed its name, form, key, dedicatee (from Johann Georg Friedrich Wilhelm von Schlegel, amateur pianist and Master in Zwickau, to the brother Julius Schumann): the Toccata Op.7. The post-Beethovenian dimension is apparent in the organic nature of the material. Even though he wasn’t thinking of a cyclical sonata, Schuncke however has the ambition to generate all four movements from a single rhythmic-motivic cell: the three repeated notes (four if we consider the arrival note) in sequence which remind the so-called Beethovenian “theme of destiny”. The tight identity of the organic material, actually well masked by formulas that absorb the variations of that same material, is therefore what ties thematically the four movements; moreover that same material in itself is absolutely Beethovenian (the references to Symphony No.5 and especially to Sonata Op.57 are both too obvious). 4
The first movement expresses the idea in an elegiac atmosphere which leaves it without any percussive gesture, at the beginning at least, and the second sweet theme in B flat, the relative tone, is also clearly generated from the initial thematic cell, in contrast with it only for density and register, rather than for character. A new element is introduced in the exposition’s codas, later used to prepare the re-exposition, which will be then quoted by Schumann in his Concerto Op.54. After the reappearance of the second theme, in E flat, then again in B flat, Schuncke introduces a four-part fugue, using as subject the first theme3; the polyphonic tissue gradually increases and becomes dramatic with dense chords and sudden changes of register. The Scherzo, in C minor, is a movement with strong personality, it is also generated by the three initial notes, this time varied with an octave interval and inserted in a rhythmic and staccato context. In this movement we can find a little of Schubert’s gestures, for example, after the first twelve bars of the first period, where the modulation (a third above) from C minor to E flat major takes place without any connection, only thanks to the caesura of the pause. Instead of the usual Trio, there is an Alternativo (term which also Schumann had used for the central parts of his Intermezzi Op.4), which, on the opposite, emphasizes the infernal aspects of the Scherzo, contrasting only in texture, which here is daringly low. In the third movement, in G major, the thematic motive is varied by the appearance of the lower turning note. The melody, in an intimate and colloquial mood, is accompanied with thirds, sixths, or with sections of contrary motion in quite an open position writing. The Finale, on an incessant movement of sextuplets, is the movement where virtuosity is of the highest order. After the three tolls, engine of the whole Sonata, the melody seems to arise from the, initially minimum, twisting around to the opening D. The form is clearly bi-thematic, the second theme, lyric and expressive, appears in B flat major and then in G major, preparing the modal uncertainty that closes the Sonata. Besides Schumann’s famous review, where actually little was said about the Sonata, soon after the death of the author, Ludwig Rellstab wrote: “In the Sonata the 5
composer has chosen the highest artistic expression, in which the demand for virtuosity must take a step back, so that in the composition, in full right, the highest organic law of the form would be introduced […] We can assure both the real musicians and the amateurs that they will take much pleasure from it, because there is a spirit that hovers over this composition, which should obviously be placed in relation with what first Beethoven, then Weber and many others did with the sonata-form.”
Second Caprice in C minor Op.10
Played by Schuncke at Gewandhaus in January 1834, Divertissement was published immediately after the summer of the same year and dedicated to baroness Caroline von Hoesslin, who was his patroness during the Augsburg’s months, and then again in 1838. The piece is a kind of pot-pourri of German folk songs (starting with the song Du liegst mir am Herzen) developed as opera themes. Introduction, four main themes, each one liberally variated, and coda; the harmonic relations based on the third interval (F-sharp - B-flat) are typical of the Biedermeier’s brilliant piece, not that much interested in the formal questions. Gottfried Fink reviewing it from the columns of the Allgemeine Musikalisches Zeitung wrote: “It’s an elegant and brilliant piece for very accomplished artists, who conquer through it the public’s approval for their self and for the composer; the approval, which we also heartily wish him to earn”
Renamed by Schumann, even though he abhorred the French titles, Beethoven: scène dramatique, but then published posthumous in 1835 under the title Caprice, that according to Schumann himself didn’t please Schuncke, the Op.10 was dedicated to Chopin, met fleetingly in Stuttgart in the autumn of 1831. Exactly Beethoven and Chopin seem here to be the main, but not the only, inspiration sources. The first, for example, through the insistence on the diminished fourth interval which reminds the fugato subject of the Sonata Op.111 in the same key, or because of the representation of the initial sentence a whole tone lower like in the Sonata Op.53, or for the pattern in rising broken chords which reminds the last movement of the Sonata Op.27 No.2; of the latter, patterns that seem derived from the Study Op.10 No.12 in the same key come to light. The central part, in B minor, presents a counterpoint in two voices which alludes to the subject of the Fugue No.4 from the first volume of the Welltempered Clavier. Despite these multiple inspirations, the Caprice mustn’t have been too much appreciated by Schumann, who reviewing it wrote: “Here the composer didn’t reach the summit of the virtuoso. It is also sure that, once you have listening to his Second Caprice, one felt sure a glorious and prolific future lay in store for him. There is much of him in it: his eccentricity, the nobility, something that placidly sparkles”.
Premier Caprice in C major Op.9
Rondeau Brillant in E flat major Op.11
Published in January 1834 and dedicated to Clara Wieck, it was reviewed by Schumann a year and a half after the author’s death and described as “colder than the other, just substantially mundane”, more acceptable only if played by the author himself. The first theme (influenced by Hummel) is followed by a short chordal episode. A secondary theme, which moves towards A flat major-F minor, appears while the second theme, in G major, introduces a double note mechanism which resembles the Schumann Toccata Op.7.
Dedicated to Gottfied Fink’s daughter, Charlotte, at the time fourteen years old, this work was considered by Fétis a sort of third Caprice. The Rondeau belongs to the “salon music” category of pieces, not much for the real destination (the salon, indeed, place of disengaged amateurism), being instead a piece that requires a virtuosity highly developed, so much that Ludwig played it at Gewandhaus on January the 27th 1834, but rather for the lack of that real formal commitment and of those dramatic ambitions that we have seen in the Sonata and in the two Caprices. From
Divertissement brilliant sur des motifs allemands, in B flat Op.12
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a formal point of view, it appears composed by two main thematic elements, the second of which is subjected to four variations. Although the explored tonal areas are rather predictable (between E flat and B flat major) and also the formulas are rather common to the Biedermeier’s lexicon, Fink, writing from the columns of the Allgemeine Musikalische Zeitung, just appreciated some of its formal wits: “It’s rich of good taste and embellishments, very attractive, and the varied reappearance of the introduction is really unusual, such a cantabile introduction which makes even more fascinating the virtuoso passages. This new form, that consists in mixing in an unusual manner the two different elements, might at first seem a cause of fragmentation, but we, of the opposite opinion, find in this structure something that attracts us and that convinces us that we are facing a extraordinary composition”.
Variationen über ein Schweitzer Lied), the variations are dedicated aux jeune élèves. Therefore it is a piece that shares the same destination of Rondeau Op.15. A simple theme that imitates the jodel with sixths and sevenths ascending intervals followed by five ornamental variations, each of which presents a different technical formula and a Finale. © Renato Principe Translation: Adele Posani
Rondeau in D major Op.15 Published posthumous in 1847, it’s the last opus number from Schuncke’s catalogue, but up to today it isn’t possible to determine the year in which he composed it. A piece neither virtuosic nor particularly ambitious, probably addressed to the students’ or amateurs’ flourishing market, it presents the usual slow introduction followed by a not particularly inspired theme, all built on the notes of the D major triad; in this substantial lack of inventiveness, it should be noticed, however, a clear use of concatenations for thirds (D major- F sharp minor- A major- C major) instead of the more common ones. Shortly after its publication the Neue Zeitschrift für Musik, passed in Franz Brendel’s hands, described the piece as “composed in an old and prosaic style”. The reviewer, writing for the magazine co-funded by Schuncke himself, was wondering if the composer was still among the living.
Air suisse varié in G major The catalogue number missing, even though published by Clementi already in 1830, and then many other times until 1864 with different titles (Swiss air, The switzer boy, 8
The description is to be found in Schumann’s “review” of the Sonata Op.3 of Schuncke, in Neue Zeitschrift für Musik 2/36 (5th May 1835), pp 145-146. 1
Schuncke was buried in Leipzig’s Johannisfriedhof, and an iron cross bearing three verses of Karl Förster was planted on the grave. On August the 25th 2010 a new gravestone has been placed, wanted by Michael Schuncke (Ludwig’s great-great-grandson and founder of the Schuncke-Archiv of Baden-Baden) and by the superintendence of Gewandhaus. 2
For an investigation on the mysterious outcomes of this theme within Schumann’s production we refer you to Ludwig Schuncke, l’alter ego di Schumann, LoGisma, Florence 2011, of the same author of these poor notes. 3
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Born in 1979 in Primorskij Krai (URSS) Tatiana Larionova began studying the piano at the age of five. In 1991, she entered the Central Music School in Moscow, where she studied under Professor Yuri Slesarev. After graduating in 1997 with highest rating, Tatiana attended the Moscow State Conservatory where she studied until 2004 under Professor Victor Merzhanov, taking, again with best votes, her doctorate. In 2005 she got a full-scholarship of the International Center for Music, Park University, Missouri where she studied with Professor Stanislav Ioudenitch and attended masterclasses of D. Bashkirov and Fou Ts’ong. Tatiana Larionova is top prize winner of several international piano competitions, including: Web Concert Hall International Competition (USA, 2007); first prize Domenico Cimarosa International Piano Prize (Italy, 2009), first prize, “Palma d’oro” International Piano Competition (Italy, 2010). Tatiana participated in International Piano Festivals, including “Bodensee-Festival” (Germany) and the International European Piano Forum (Berlin, 2001), and she is artist is residence of Col Legno Festival, Lucca, and Tiroler Festspiele Erl. She has performed recitals and concerts in the most important halls in Europe (Russia, Byelorussia, Germany, Poland, France, Austria, Suisse and Italy) and US. In 2001, Tatiana made her orchestral debut performing Mozart Piano Concerto 10
#23 in the Bolshoi Hall of the Moscow Conservatory with the orchestra of the conservatory conducted by A. Kaluzhnyi with incredible success of public and critic. After this date she performed with many orchestras around the globe. In 2009, Tatiana recorded her debut CD/DVD for Limen Music featuring works by Haydn, Liszt and Rachmaninov. Tatiana is currently living in Italy where she regularly performs for the most important societies (as Società dei Concerti in Milano), and she is also passionately dedicated to chamber music (Tatiana plays in several different ensembles, from duo to quintet), and teaching. Since 2008 she is playing regularly in duo with Davide Cabassi, and together they are artistic directors of the festival “Primavera di Baggio” in Milan. In 2009, Tatiana won “Milano Donna” prize. This award is dedicated to the women who with their professional activity represents the name of this city in the world.
Special thanks to: Renato Principe, Luca Chierici, Alberto Chines, Adele Posani, Davide Cabassi
Recording: 12-14 December 2014, Bartokstudio, Bernareggio, Italy Engineer: Raffaele Cacciola Editing: Biagio Laponte Mastering: Raffaele Cacciola Artistic Production: Davide Cabassi Cover image: Caspar David Friedrich, Moonrise over the Sea, 1822 Alte Nationalgalerie, Berlin p & © 2015 Brilliant Classics
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