About this Piece

The Arabeske, Op. 18, was written in early 1839, perhaps as an act of appeasement in a troubled time. Schumann’s marriage to his beloved Clara would not take place for more than a year, and the couple was busy petitioning the courts for permission to marry over Clara’s father’s objection to the union. 

During this time of courtship, Schumann’s compositions had become more experimental and complex; their overt emotionalism and unconventional structures were baffling to average audiences and even controversial to experts. The C-major Fantasy, the Third Sonata (known as the “Concerto without Orchestra”), Kreisleriana were all products of this fertile period. Clara, herself not yet 21 and already a famous virtuoso pianist, with a keen sense for what the future might hold for them should they become a couple, began suggesting simplifications and reconsiderations in his music to make them more salable.

As a result, Schumann published the Arabeske and Blumenstück (Flower Piece), as Opp. 18 and 19. Schumann was somewhat dismissive of the Arabeske and thought it “feeble,” but this sounds like the grousing of an artist obliged to work under the dictates of finances rather than imagination. There is magic in this short work. 

The title is informative: An Arabeske or arabesque is an ornament of figural, floral, or animal outlines inspired by Arab architecture and used to create intricate patterns. It is also a ballet position. In the work, a simple ambling tune makes three appearances, interrupted by two minor-key passages. The tune itself is unchanged in each occurrence, but notice how Schumann obliges us to reassess the figure, as though our view changes when seen through the differing shadows cast by the intervening passages.

—Grant Hiroshima