Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Schumann's Fantasie, Op. 17 is one of the finest examples of Romantic piano music. In a rounded picture of this major keyboard work, Nicholas Marston first traces the fascinating history of its composition, drawing on many of Schumann's letters to Clara Wieck and to his publisher, and examining the few surviving sketches: To whom was the work really dedicated? Was the celebrated opening movement perhaps intended as an independent composition? Schumann's own critical writings provide vital insights into his ideas on genre and the relationship between the Fantasie and the many generic and descriptive titles that the composer gave the work before publication. Every aspect of the work is covered, providing the performer, the listener or the student with an understanding not only of the Fantasie, but of Schumann himself as a composer.

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

• Preface
• List of plates
• list of abbreviations
• 1 The compositional history of the Fantasie
• 2 What's in a name? Genre and title in the Fantasie
• 3 Allusion and quotation in the Fantasie
• 4 Form in the First Movement
• 5 Schiegel's leiser Ton and thematic unity in the Fantasie
• 6 Form in the Second and Third Movements
• 7 The subsequent history of the Fantasie
• Notes
• Bibliography.

Reviews provided by Syndetics

CHOICE Review

Marston has distilled a large amount of information about Schumann's Fantasie, Op. 17 in this small book in the "Cambridge Music Handbooks" series. He has studied many writings, letters, and sources to arrive at his conclusions. He thoroughly discusses the history of the work's creation including the many transformations of the title; the form of each movement, analyzed in Schenkerian style; and the musical allusions that seem to be present. The tables, diagrams, and plates add to the completeness and clarity of the text. Copious endnotes and a lengthy bibliography point the reader to even more information about this work. Although the writing is a bit academic and some of the conclusions hypothetical, the facts, as presented by Marston, are very valuable to anyone performing or studying this work. Strongly recommended for libraries supporting graduate-level music programs and for the bookshelves of performing artists.