After the Sonatas Op. 102 there seemed to be a decrease in the production of significant literature for the cello until the middle of the 19th century. The reasons for this could be associated to three fundamental aspects:

• The technical advances in the construction of pianos, transformed the relatively quiet sounding instrument into a big sound machine capable of many sonorities, but could easily drown an instruments of low and middle tessitura like the cello.
• The growth of the symphony orchestra created serious balance problems when the cello was used as a solo voice. Composers preferred to write smaller pieces for cello and orchestra rather than full-scale compositions.
• The evolution of the musical style searched for lower and heavier sonorities, ideal for a cello in the chamber and orchestral genres, but unsuited for Sonatas and Concertos.

The first major composition for cello and orchestra after the death of Beethoven was the Cello Concerto Op. 129 by Robert Schumann (1810-1856), written in 1850. The inspiration for the composition of this late work came not only from Schuman’s acquaintance with some of the major cellists of the time (like Kummer, Grutzmacher, Romberg, Wielhorsky and Bockmuhl), but also because of his love for the cello, an instrument that he had learned to play as a young man. In writing the work, however, Schumann took some technical advice from the German cellist Robert Bockmul (1820-1881).

The collaboration between Schumann and Bockmul started on good ground, but gradually deteriorated. Bockmul stated at first his rather pedantic enthusiasm about the piece:

I feel that the Concerto is entirely made up for me, for it seems to be great, daring, noble and full of pathos.[1]

However, he did express his concerns about the last movement, arguing that it was too difficult and that the cello did not have any long singing melodies. He warned Schumann to change it, otherwise a crowd of cellists would appear to him in a dream and threaten the composer with their bows. Schumann politely ignored him and Bockmul started to come out with a series of excuses, like life threatening abdomen typhus and that of his cello being broken by his children, etc, that dissipated Schumann’s interest in the performance. The first performance of the work took place in 1860, after Schuman’s death, and the cellist was the Czech Ludwig Ebert (1834-1908).

Although finally recognized as one of the major masterpieces of the cello literature, the Schumann Cello Concerto was unjustifiably neglected for a long time. Starting with the cynicism of Bockmul, the work has been highly criticized by academic and historians, who had generally consider it a work of historical interest, but of little artistic value. Performers like Pablo Casals championed this piece in the beginning of the century, and although it sometimes receives strong criticism from academics, the Concerto is now well established in the repertoire. A later version of the work appeared in 1963, in which the Russian composer Dmitry Shostakovich reorchestrated the composition. Schostakovich did not make any alterations on the music as such, but enhanced it by the addition of a piccolo, two French horns, a harp, and Timpani, as well as providing more colors with muted strings and intense trumpet parts. It is however fair to say that Schumann’s original orchestration is highly effective and balanced, unlike those of the symphonies for which he is always criticized.

The fact that Schumann never heard the work performed has led numerous performers to add a cadenza in the last movement. In my opinion the Cadenza breaks the continuity planned by the composer and adds an element of virtuosity to the composition that is not intended, nor suits the musical style.

In the last tragic years of his life, Schumann also wrote the Funf Stucke im Volkston Five pieces in Folk style, 1849), and Five Romanzas for cello and piano (1853). In spite of the high praise that Joachim, Brahms and Schumann himself had for these pieces, they never made it to the publisher. The Romanzas were burned by Clara Schumann in 1893, since they reminded her of those fatal last years in the composer’s life.

[1] Steven Isserlis: The Schumann Cello Works: Record sleeve. Steven Isserlis toca Schumann. 1997