Liebesfrühling

The heart of this album is Liebesfrühling, a sizeable series of love poems by Friedrich Rückert. When Clara had offered Robert her first three songs, set to poems by Heinrich Heine, as a Christmas present, Robert conceived the plan to composer a volume of songs together with Clara. But the plan was changed in January, 1841. He himself composed six songs and three duets on Rückert texts, and Clara took his example and surprised him on his birthday in June with four songs. Their shared opus was published in the same year as Zwölf Gedichte aus Fr. Rückert’s Liebesfrühling für Gesang und Pianoforte von Robert und Clara Schumann. In addition, this album features duets and songs by Robert Schumann and Clara Schumann's superb Sechs Lieder, Op. 13.