Schumann Piano trio no 3 in g minor op 110

 Day 9

Schumann Piano trio no 3 in g minor op 110

Isabelle Faust

Jean-Guihen Queyras

Alexander Melnikiov

I came to know Schumann at university where as well as learning Palestrina counterpoint and Bach chorales we also learned how to write pastiche Schumann songs. Though I don't believe that my attempts would have the slightest chance of being mistaken for the real thing it was a valuable experience in getting inside the mind of a composer and understanding exactly what make him so distinctive.  Ever since then Schumann has been one of the composers I return to time and time again.  My piano technique is not up to actually being able to play anything but the simplest of his piano music properly, but do have the ability to bash through things quite well, at least to my own satisfaction so I know most of the major piano works.  I've played all but the second symphony and a few other bits and pieces. But more than anything it is the songs which are at the heart of Schumann.  Dichterliebe would certainly be one my desert island discs.

I know most of the chamber music but in thinking of what to listen today I realised that I had never heard the third piano trio. It is generally considered to be the weakest of the three and like all of Schumann's late works it can be seen as being the product of the composer's mental decline.

I certainly didn't see it in that way. I thoroughly enjoyed listening to it and will certainly return to it. In the first place Schumann achieves what seems to be a perfect balance between the three instruments. Piano trios can see a battle of wills of two string players against an over dominant piano (Tchaikovsky anybody.....) but there was none of that here. Everything fitted beautifully into place with no strain. Then there was a greater degree of colouristic effects than one might have expected. You don't really look to Schumann for textural innovation but there was plenty here, with some very striking pizzicato effects among others.  

As for the music itself it had all of the qualities that one associates with Schumann at his best. Lyricism, harmonic invention and rhythmic subtlety. Only the last movement was perhaps a bit of a disappointment. The main theme is over fussy and causes a lack of momentum because of the need to fit in the grace notes, and at times Schumann does get rather stuck in his dotted quaver-semiquaver rhythmic figure, which can get a bit tedious.  But three out of four movements is not bad!  I don't see evidence of decline in this music - but then I love the violin concerto, which Clara Schumann and Joachim suppressed after the composer's death because they felt it was lacking in inspiration. 

There's more Schumann to explore. Although I know all of the main song cycles there are plenty of small sets and individual songs which I have yet to get to grips with and there is a whole collection of choral music of which I know very little.  I'm sure I will explore some of this later this year.