Soireestucke (Opus 73)

These three pieces for Clarinet and Piano are already well known under the title Phantasiestucke Op.73. What is not generally known is that numerous important differences exist between the original manuscript and the first published version (the further model for all later editions). For the first time ever, the pieces are being published exactly as they appear in Schumann’s manuscript entitled Soireestucke. All points of difference between the manuscript and the first edition are outlined in a full commentary by Richard Platt and the significance of these differences emphasized by Alan Hacker in his foreword where he comments on the superior strength of the original: ‘greater asymmetry, slightly varied harmony and many other touches all intensify passionate and impulsive instability, the main expression of the work.’