Myrten, opus 25 & four duets

Schumann wrote 26 songs and called them “Myrten”, which means “Myrtles” as wedding gift to Clara Wieck

Schumann, who grew up between piles of books in his father’s bookstore, had developed a di-verse taste in literature, and in Myrten his choice of poetry is not only adventurous, but above all remarkable. All texts of the cycle are in German, but three of the poets are English, Scottish or Irish: Lord Byron, Robert Burns and Thomas Moore. Most English texts Schumann used for his Myrten were translated by Wilhelm Gerhard, a German salesman and poet, who lived in Leipzig and was friendly with many leading poets and composers.