An meinem Herzen, an meiner Brust, song for voice & piano (Frauenliebe und -leben), Op. 42/7

AMG AllMusic Guide to Classical Music :

An meinem Herzen, an meiner Brust, song for voice & piano (Frauenliebe und -leben), Op. 42/7

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Date: 1840
Composer: Robert Schumann
Period: Romantic (1820-1869)

Review

It is probable that sensitively setting the seventh poem of Chamisso's "Frauenliebe" to music in "An meinem Herzen, an meiner Brust," Op. 42/7 (On My Heart, On My Breast), for the cycle Frauenliebe und -leben, Op. 42 (Woman's Love and Life), posed one of the greatest challenges to Robert Schumann in his songwriting career. In the previous tune, "Süßer Freund, du blickest," Op. 42/6, the protagonist revealed her maternal expectation, but it is here that she first appears with her newborn. Schumann instinctively drew upon his personal experiences when composing, but was at a disadvantage with this subject, as it was not until a year after he completed this work that his first child was born. Even the text exemplifies the relational obstacle presented by human nature, when the woman compassionately sighs, "Oh, how sorry I feel for the man, since he cannot feel the happiness of motherhood!" Regardless, Schumann managed to effectively capture the bliss of the young mother with a merry dance and the sweeping, loving gestures in the piano. The fast 6/8 becomes presto and, like most cradle songs, the phrases are nearly duplicated in repetition. The cozy, affectionate epilogue is chromatic and more restrained, elevating the song to a high regard. The child may have indirectly reappeared in the cycle, had Schumann included Chamisso's ninth poem, which imparts the joys of grandchildren. Instead, the serenity and felicity of "An meinem Herzen, an meiner Brust" is followed by somber mourning in "Nun hast du mir den ersten Schmerz getan," Op. 42/8. ~ Meredith Gailey, Rovi