The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1905-02-12

Schumann. not perceiving the himsiness
Of her nature fell in love with her and de-
sired to marry her. Fortunately this flame
burned itself out but II also burned
page on Sohumann's works.
We may now understand the Carnival
Schumann himself said: 1t originated
in an earnest frame OF mind and under
peculiar circumstances. Certainly no
other composition OF his II so closely
related TO actualites az Is this one
1t is an attempt to express in absolute
music the impulses, aspirations and fancles
influencing him at the period in which he
entered the battle for the new ideas and
was afame with emotions warmed by
the seductive Ernestine. Dancing through
his brain in r series Of fantastic pictures
the portraits Of his associates and his own
duality came to him rs guests at masque-
rade.
He interwove the musical delineation OF
them with piotures Of the typical characters
Of a carnival the Harlequin, Columbine.
| Pierrot Plantation. Among these glide the
! figures Of Florestan. Eusebius, Chopin,
/ Chiarna, Estrella and Paganini. We al
ready know who four Of these are. Chiara
was pet name for Clara Week. the daughter
] OF TTtutIlCh hltNhs alih o''''NN'''
mann's wife. Chiarina Is a diminutive.
Estrella WAS no other than the blooming
Frnestine. In tho -Paplllons' we have
reference to an earlier composition, OF
which tho first theme Is quoted directly
in the Florestan number The march OF
the Davidsbnndler against the Philistines,
with which the composition enda. Is now
self-explanAtory. What OF the other titles,
including tho mysterious 'Lettres Dan
santes2'
For the explanation OF these we look
first to a letter written by Sohumann to
his friend. Henrietta Voigt. the cultivated
wife Of Carl voigt, merchant of Leipsio'
Here II is:
Nv dear. ever rdichfui Henrietta Here
with an enclosure. II vexed me 10 have 10
carry on the fond fraud against the father,
under the mothers eyes. Yet ] would Ike
10 have spoken 70 Ernestinc herself What
| do you think Of my nice postscript2 Rather
pheasant that I'm coming at once before the
| letter goes to which | add the wish that
| she tRrnestinel "a well as others may some
| times like 10 play the scale in nat c. II. and
| perhaps A. for have just found ont that
Isoh IL a very musical name for city. and
that tho same letters lie In my name and arc
the only musical ones In IT, as the following
I figure SHOWS, anu NUVn moreover kIftN0
/ vou kindly RoDTRT SCHUMANS,
Then follows the postscript mentioned
In the letter and containing tho dancing
musical letters A. S. c. H.-which spell
the name of the town OF Asch, where the
delightful Ernestine dwelt These letters
must be read In the German manner. Es
il fiat in German and il natural
b fiat is called B.
The notes as set down in this postscript
by Schumann are written on n treble cIef
with the signature of two flats and read
in the second space. + fat above the A, G
and B natural descending-four eighth
notes. Under these in the bass is chord
composed Of the low F, the ( fiat in the
third space and the fiat and above It.
Schumann wrote over It in tho letter, MY
postscript doesn't please me. for 1t Is taste
less, but the chance ideas are peculiar and
pleasant" Under the theme he wrote.
That sounds very melancholy Yet 1t
was out Of those four notes that he de-
veloped the Carnival" In letter to
Ignatz Mosoheles. written Sept. %, 1887,
he said;
This ia almost written for a special
! purpose; and all but three or four move
ments are built upon the notes A. s c. H.,
which form the name Of little Bohemian
town, where I have a musical friend and
which. curiously enough, happen to be the
only musical letters in my name. ! oom-
posed the titles afterward Ia not music
self-sufllcient? Does il not speak for It.
self? Estrella is a name such rs is put
under portraits TO hold the picture fast.
Reconnaissance (recognitionl; aveu (avow
al Of love); promenade (the walk, such az
ia taken at German balls arm in arm with
! your partner Tho whole has no artistic
value; the different soul states only are
interesting to me.
In regard to Estrela. Wasielewski says:
.Schumann, when asked him at Bonn
| In 1853, told me that he meant by this name
! Ernestne. of whom he spoke at some length
And 30 there we have the entire exposi-
ton of the plan OF this captivating COM
position.
Two things are peculiarly interesting.
namely, Schumann's statement that he com
posed the titles afterward and his assertion
that the whole has no artistic value His
oueries-"Is not music self-sufficient? Does
It not speak for itself?T-may be set aside
for the present. All makers OF programme
music have from time to time disclaimed
their craft The music OF this Carnival
might have been selfsufflcient had not
the composer placed over the little pieces
the titles either before or afterward.
The titles demanded explanation, and II
Schumann composed the music without
any definite purpose he must have com
posed IL in a remarkable state Of abstrao-
ton. The sketch Of the genesis Of the COM
position, the review Of the personal ele-
ments operating in It's creation, show that
the work was intimately bound up with
Schumann's life and that 1t must have been
an expression OF fancies born Of his daily
experiences.
He could hardly have expected any one
to believe that the extraordinary repro
duotion Of the style OF Chopin contained
in the number headed with that master 3
name was accidental and that the name
was given after he himself had become
conscious Of the resemblance. II any
thing in the work IA intentional, certainly
that was. Paganini, too. had place in
Sohumann's experience and he wrote
studes on melodies by that weird genius
OF the violin.
The musical references to Clara and
Ernestine are OF the most intimate personal
sort, and the building up Of the whole work