Concert series Schumann Plus

The Robert Schumann House presents eight Sunday concerts under the title "Schumann Plus". The concert series has now been running for 15 years, having been launched during the Schumann Year 2010. 

• Schumann Plus I: Forest Romance, on 11 January 2026                            Isabel Hunter (horn), Josef Vlček (violin), Mirjam Hinrichs (piano), Programme: Clara Schumann: Romances Op. 22, Robert Schumann: Fantasiestücke Op. 12, Johannes Brahms: Horn Trio Op. 40, Camille Saint-Saëns: Morceau de Concert Op. 94 In the summer of 1865, Johannes Brahms rented an apartment in Baden-Baden—close to the forest, where he indulged in long hikes. This gave rise to his Trio for (Natural) Horn, Violin, and Piano Op. 40, which was soon rehearsed at Clara Schumann's home. Brahms also called himself "Johannes Kreisler Jr."—in reference to the character of Kapellmeister Kreisler created by E.T.A. Hoffmann in his Fantasiestücke. Robert Schumann adopted Hoffmann's title in 1838 for a collection of piano pieces. The three young musicians Isabel Hunter (horn), Josef Vlček (violin), and Mirjam Hinrichs (piano) trained in Prague, Dresden, Madrid, and Weimar and are performing together in this combination for the first time in Zwickau.

• Schumann Plus II: Sorrows of Love and Joys of Love, 01 February 2026     Jakob Ewert (baritone), Diego Mallén (piano), Programme: Robert Schumann: Heine Liederkreis Op. 24, Clara Schumann: Songs Op. 13,
  Johannes Brahms: Songs Op. 32, Variations on a Theme by Robert Schumann Op. 9 Robert Schumann's first printed song collection from 1840 is a masterpiece in the ironic musical interpretation of Heine's heartbreak poetry. Johannes Brahms's settings of Platen from 1865 also revolve around the theme of love's sorrow.
  Inspired by her husband, Clara Schumann likewise turned to song composition in 1840, setting texts by Heine, Geibel, and Rückert to music.
  The young baritone Jakob Ewert won second prize at the International Robert Schumann Competition in 2024; at the same time, Mexican pianist Diego Mallén was awarded the special prize for best song accompanist. Ewert has been an ensemble member of the Chemnitz Opera since the 2023/24 season.
  
  
• Schumann Plus III: Musical Poetry, 22 March 2026                        Trio Artaria (on period instruments): Maxime Michaluk (violin), Nika Somborac (violoncello), Tzu-Yu Yang (piano)

           Programme: E.T.A. Hoffmann: Piano Trio in E major, Robert                                                           Schumann: Fantasiestücke Op. 88, Piano Trio No. 3 Op. 110                                                       E.T.A. Hoffmann, who gained renown not only as a writer                   but also as a composer, was born 250 years ago. In the Zwickau concert,                 his Piano Trio from 1809 will be heard alongside Schumann's first                                   trio composition from 1842—which he titled Fantasiestücke after Hoffmann—                   and his final piano trio, composed in Düsseldorf in 1851.
           Trio Artaria evolved from the multinational Salzburg-based                             ensemble The Van Swietens, which released its debut CD of Beethoven piano
           concertos in 2024 under the direction of Taiwanese                               fortepiano specialist Tzu-Yu Yang. With stylistic finesse and a rich variety of tone colours,                       the trio is dedicated to rediscovering forgotten                         masterpieces of the Classical and Romantic eras.

• Schumann Plus IV: Passion, 12 April 2026

           Thomas Fritzsch (viola da gamba), Michael Schönheit (fortepiano)                
           Programme: Works by Johann Sebastian and Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, George                 Frideric Handel, Joseph Haydn, John Field, Franz Liszt, and Robert Schumann

           As a courtly instrument, the viola da gamba—once an equal                         rival to the violin—fell into obscurity after the French Revolution.                   Yet impetus for its revival was already emerging in the second half of the 19th century.                   Among the pioneers was the passionate                                           instrument collector Paul de Wit, who presented it in concert not only with Baroque repertoire,                   but also with Romantic music.
           With more than a dozen CD releases, Zwickau-born                       Thomas Fritzsch is an acknowledged specialist on the viola da gamba. He is                         accompanied by fortepiano specialist and Leipzig Gewandhaus organist                   Michael Schönheit.

• Schumann Plus V: Witty Conversation, 03 May 2026

            Joseph Haydn Quartet in C major Op. 54/2
            Robert Schumann Quartet in F major Op. 41/2
            Viktor Ullmann Quartet No. 3
             Mendelssohn Quartet: Gunnar Harms and
             Kıvanç Tire (violin), Larissa Petersen (viola),
             Susanne Raßbach (violoncello)

             In 1829, the Weimar poet Johann Wolfgang von Goethe wrote that listening to a                       string quartet was like hearing "four rational people conversing with one another". Founded in 1995,                       the Mendelssohn Quartet demonstrates this with works from the 18th, 19th, and 20th               centuries. Haydn's Quartet Op. 54/2 offers prime examples
              of musical humour with harmonic surprises in the opening movement and                        original formal experiments in the finale. Schumann dedicated the quartets he composed in 1842                              to his friend Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy.
              The Austrian composer, conductor, and pianist Viktor Ullmann composed                  his masterful final string quartet (with allusions to Beethoven) in 1943 at the                Theresienstadt concentration camp. 

• Schumann Plus VI: Keyboard Artistry, 27 September 2026

            Johann Sebastian Bach Overture BWV 831
            Claude Debussy Études
            Robert Schumann Carnaval Op. 9
            Maurice Ravel La Valse

            Luca Buratto (piano)

            Italian pianist Luca Buratto was a prize-winner at the 2012 International                  Robert Schumann Competition in Zwickau—at 19 years old, he was the                          youngest participant in the piano category at the time. He has since released five CDs,                      including one featuring music by Schumann.

• Schumann Plus VII: In Fairytale Tone, 25 October 2026

           Robert Schumann Märchenerzählungen Op. 132
           György Kurtág Hommage à R. Sch.
           Jörg Widmann Es war einmal...

           Erämaa Trio: Cédric De Bruycker (clarinet), Akiko
           Okawa (violin/viola), Quentin Meurisse (piano)

           The Erämaa Trio was founded in Brussels in 2016 and won first prize             at the International Léopold Bellan Competition in France the following year.

• Schumann Plus VIII: With 20 Fingers, 08 November 2026

            Robert Schumann Fugues on B-A-C-H from Op. 60
            Canonic Studies Op. 56
            Ignaz Moscheles Sonata Op. 121
            Johannes Brahms Schumann Variations Op. 23

             Piano Duo Soós-Haag: Adrienne Soós and Ivo Haag (piano)

             The programme of the Hungarian-Swiss piano duo Soós-Haag, which achieved                       world renown through its more than 20 CD releases, combines                           four-hand arrangements of organ and pedal piano works by Robert
             Schumann with the four-hand piano sonata by Ignaz Moscheles dedicated to               Clara Schumann, as well as the four-hand variations Brahms composed on Schumann's last musical
             thought ('Ghost Theme'). On two grand pianos, Claude Debussy's arrangements of Schumann's pedal piano                     studies will be performed.

Admission: 12 euros, concessions 9 euros
Contact: Phone: +49 375 834406, Email: schumannhaus@zwickau.de

Tickets are available at the museum ticket desk during opening hours. Advance reservations can be made by calling +49 (0)375 834406 or by emailing schumannhaus@zwickau.de.
Reserved tickets that have not been collected will be released for general sale half an hour before the performance begins!