Schumann: Too Serious

There are 13 “scenes”, and you can read about them HERE. These pieces are known as “miniatures”. When played well they sound easy, but the musical problems are very challenging. These pieces were not written for children to play. They were about children, so they are descriptive, creative and expressive. You might say these are quintessentially ROMANTIC. This one is about being “too serious.”

Almost Too Serious: from Scenes from Childhood: played by Gary Lloyd

The rest of the story:

I recorded all 13 of these separately, then joined them in one file. Today I recorded this one again, and I will probably do the same thing with all of them. I think that it’s better to present them where you can play all of them as written or pick and choose. So later I will put them all into one post but with 13 clickable recordings. For now I’m going to pick my favorites, starting with this one.

Almost too serious:

This is only about two minutes long, but it is one of the few I most enjoyed working out and playing. I’ve never taught this, so I have no idea how hard it will be for students. Just to point out why this was not written for children or relative beginners, the piece is written in G# minor, and the pedal effects are very difficult to master. I had to re-notate it to fully understand what is going on.

1 thought on “Schumann: Too Serious”

  1. The Beginning of each repeated section sounds like something I’ve heard of before, but then it shifts into something else. While yes I can see this as a bit serious, I’d not classify it as “too serious”. Just focused and precise.

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