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The end of the journey
Inevitably, exhilaration gave way to baby blues. But very soon, at the end of
this traversal, I had the impression that I had been able to raise myself to a
higher plane, rather as a composer can. My long-term companionship with
Schumann’s output gave me a deeper conception of it. And that in turn took
me out of my frame as a simple interpreter. To allow oneself to be inhabited
by a composer in this way is almost an act of creation. Schumann has
broadened my horizons.
It’s with a pang of nostalgia that I leave this world of intimacy, tenderness,
interiority, contemplation. I might add that those are not necessarily
sentiments we easily make room for nowadays. I believe we have the
duty not to lose contact with those innermost reaches of the human soul
expressed by Schumann. We need to stop, to breathe, to reconnect with
ourselves. Schumann’s music invites us to do that. It’s shot through with
moments of gratuitous contemplation. Indeed, that’s one of the reasons
why it’s not always very highly regarded. Many of his works end in virtual
silence, allowing poetry and slowness to emerge.
SCHUMANN_LIVE COMPLETE SOLO PIANOWORKS