Dr. Jeffrey Langford and Dr. Joanne Polk
Saturday, June 6, 2015
2:30pm
Doctorow Center for the Arts
Piano Performance Museum
7971 Main Street, Village of Hunter
Musicologist Dr. Jeffrey Langford and pianist Dr. Joanne Polk will present a lecture on the music and history of Clara and Robert Schumann. The Schumanns were married, and Clara was often the first pianist to premiere many of Robert’s works. The lecture will examine the piano music of both husband and wife in an attempt to trace mutual influences from one to the other, and to evaluate the legacy of each. The lecture will involve extensive demonstrations of the music on a mid-nineteenth century Broadwood piano of the kind that the Schumann’s might have used. This instrument is part of the collection of rare pianos in the Piano Performance Museum.
An important part of this lecture is the opportunity audiences will have to hear this music played on an instrument that is considerably different from a modern concert grand and to consider how this older instrument might have impacted the composing and performance of the Schumann’s.
This lecture/demonstration is part of the Catskill Mountain Foundation’s Piano Performance Museum Concerts & Conversations series. It is made possible with the generous support of the Jarvis and Constance Doctorow Family Foundation.