Robert Schumann: Dichterliebe

Schumann's song cycle Dichterliebe is full of intense moods and feelings, a quality that helped to establish it was one of the most famous song cycles ever written. The dark subject matter of Schumann's music and Heinrich Heine's poetry would later become the inspiration behind a play by Jon Marans, titled Old, Wicked Songs after this final selection from Schumann's cycle. In the play, a young American pianist travels to Europe to overcome an artistic block that threatens his career. Through his work with a renowned Viennese musician with a chequered past, the two explore the nature of meaning and artistry through an intense and in-depth study of Dichterliebe. Old, Wicked Songs has seen several successful productions, earned several theatrical awards and was even nominated for the prestigious Pulitzer Prize in 1996.