The Adagio of Chopin’s Op. 2: A “Fantastic Tableau” After All?
Posted in Chopin Symposium, Theory on Dec 13th, 2009
On December 7, 1831, the Leipzig Allgemeine Musikalische Zeitung published Schumann’s review of Chopin’s op. 2 variations on Là ci darem la mano, the famous duet from Mozart’s Don Giovanni. The review is remembered today primarily for the words spoken by Eusebius, one of four fictional characters that Schumann brings, with exquisite literary skill, to life: “Hats off, gentlemen, a genius!”