Jessica Duchen
Clara Schumann and Her Circle

Clara Schumann (1819–1896), the celebrated pianist and spouse of the composer Robert Schumann, was for many years depicted as wife, mother, and muse first and foremost, and only secondarily as the legendary musician and teacher that she actually was. Famous long before her husband and for decades more after his untimely death, Clara was arguably one of the most influential musicians of the 19th century: rival to Franz Liszt, guide and close friend of Brahms, guardian of Robert Schumann’s musical legacy, a seminal influence on generations of concert pianists, and a superb composer in her own right, besides managing all of this while raising seven children! In this illustrated talk, I hope to help put the record straight.