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It is not fair to say that artists are crazy. It’s a romantic idea, but while many artists, poets and composers straddled the line between genius and insanity, there were a few who were certified and in fact were confined to a sanitarium. Robert Schumann was one of these composers. After a suicide attempt in 1854, he was admitted at his own request, and out of concern for Clara’s safety, to a mental asylum in Endenich. Diagnosed with “psychotic melancholia,” a term used then to describe bi-polar disease, Schumann never recovered and eventually died of pneumonia in 1856. It must be noted that other members of his family suffered from mental illness, with his sister committing suicide. While his music might have been an outlet for his underlying emotional psyche, and he also suffered from alcoholism and syphilis, his mental illness was most likely hereditary.

But can his music tell us something about this mental Illness? Schumann gave us clues. He called his manic, extroverted phase: Florestan, the wild. And his depressed, introverted personality was called : Eusebius, the mild. When he composed this symphony, it was during a very productive year in 1841 and the music recounted his triumphant marriage to Clara the year prior. By the time he revised it in 1851, he had already been suffering from continued episodes of manic-depression and his outlook was dark and grave.

Dr. Richard Kogan believes Schumann ‘s music was indelibly influenced by his bi-polar condition. Taking this cue, it was therefore a fascinating musicological discovery to perform and record with the Bucharest Symphony Orchestra the two versions of Schumann’s d minor symphony, opus 120, known as Symphony 4, and to realize that the structural, harmonic and compositional changes between the two were not only influenced by the German romanticism that darkened the orchestral timbre and instrumentation. But they were also affected by Schumann’s own psychosis.

The original version is full of light and imagination. With Italian tempo markings, this dramaturgical musical narrative of a victorious love story is an expression of a late classical, early romantic idiom, in the style of Mendelssohn, one of Schumann’s champions. When his protégé, Johannes Brahms, received from Clara the draft of the original 1841 score, he preferred it to the revision and pushed for its publication 50 years after it was completed, against Clara’s wishes. She protested that the revised version, now musically different, slower, deeper and longer, with German tempo indications, was the definitive version and the original Italianate was “unfinished.”

You can decide yourself listening to this unique and deeply interesting recording. Not only the musical differences are evident, but you’re also able to hear the actors of this story in the private 2nd and 3rd movements, with the solo oboe and cello representing the voices of Clara and Robert, and the solo violin playing the promenades that sealed their love. The scherzo is the combative father and the trio is the comforting mother. The transition to the finale evolves from the lover’s elopement and victorious escape in 1841 into the sad nostalgia for a love he was destined to lose.

This is the first time in discography to hear both versions on one disc. Why? Because under the microscope of mental illness, it is finally possible to hear both of these psychological portraits of a composer who achieved what can be considered a divinely inspired work, and a man who reminds us all of the vulnerability it can sometimes mean to be human.

An enlightening look at the world of high-end violins and their conservation for posterity. “Big Notes” by John Axelrod, published by Clink Street Publishing, is the ultimate ‘how to’ book for buying, selling, collecting, and insuring a Stradivarius. Written as a guide for investors, the benefits of being part of history are explored and go far beyond the financial returns. Anecdotes, history, and violin esoterica make for a fun read for anyone with an interest in classical music.
—Kathy Geisler, mozartslist.com

Personally autographed by the Author with special gift wrap, these special collectors edition paperback and hardback covers offer a personalized autograph from myself as the author with special gift wrap. Please specify what you would like written.

After you've heard the promotional video or seen a concert, collect your own Brahms Beloved double CD, personally autographed and gift wrapped.  Brahms Beloved 1 features Symphonies 2 & 4 and lieder by Clara Schumann, sung by Nicole Cabell and Indra Thomas. 

After you've heard the promotional video or seen a concert, collect your own Brahms Beloved double CD, personally autographed and gift wrapped.  Brahms Beloved 2 features Symphonies 1 & 3 and lieder by Clara Schumann, sung by Dame Felicity Lott and  art song specialist Wolfgang Holzmair. 

"Lenny and Me, On Conducting Bernstein" by John Axelrod, contains analytical commentary about Bernstein’s 3 symphonies and provides publisher information to rent or purchase scores with CD/DVD/YouTube references.  

ClassicalRock is both Classical and Rock. The Best Hits of Classical Music combined with the Best Hits of Classic Rock.Wagner's Ride of the Valkyries bangs heads with Black Sabbath's Iron Man. Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody, with members of the Choir Accentus and featuring star Baritone Nmon Ford, begins as an old vinyl recording, opens into a modern oratorio and dissolves into Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2. Led Zeppelin's Kashmir evokes the exotic and erotic as does Rimsky Korsakov's Sheherezade. Stairway to Heaven, with Patsy Blackstone on vocals, follows the sunrise from Strauss' Also Sprach Zarathrustra. And the Who's Pinball Wizard scores with Dukas' The Sorcerer's Apprentice.

AND THIS IS JUST THE BEGINNING...