In his youth, Robert Schumann was reputed to be a tender-hearted and desperate Romantic. This is undoubtedly true. We need only recall his strong love for future wife Clara and how passionately he fought for her, how fervently he poured his feelings into numerous piano pieces and spared no effort in writing about talented young composers such as Berlioz and Chopin.
When Schumann later found family happiness and his life became more tranquil, at least to outward appearances, characteristics that had previously been hidden finally surfaced.
The Romances for Oboe and piano give an idea of what the mature Schumann was like as a person and what interested him. Nearly all of them were composed in Dresden, where he lived from 1844 to 1849. It should be mentioned that the change in Schumann’s place of residence which involved leaving Leipzig, the epicentre of musical activity, and moving to quiet, peaceful Dresden was undertaken on the advice of his doctors.
The composer suffered from bipolar affective disorder. He was overcome by bouts of terrible depression which, in the end, also led to his death.
Here is the Schumann Romance #1 for Oboe and piano:
