Description
"Of Foreign Lands and Peoples" opens Schumann's Kinderszenen, Op. 15, and is over, quietly, in about forty seconds. The set of thirteen pieces, written in 1838, is not a collection for children: in a letter to Clara he described it as "reflections of an older person for older people," looking back on childhood. In whom it addresses, it is the exact opposite of his Album for the Young.
In G major and duple time, its eight-bar theme is repeated in ternary form. The right hand sings quietly above left-hand broken chords, and there are only some 220 notes.
Finger difficulty is not what earns it the intermediate rating; the sparseness is. In places triplets in one hand overlap with duple figures in the other, and trying to line them up by counting makes the playing stiff. Let the left hand flow evenly and the right hand sing. As the door into the set, it also establishes the manner of telling for the twelve pieces that follow.
A suite of 13 pieces Schumann composed in 1838, including "Träumerei," evoking an adult's poetic recollection of childhood.
Browse all songs in Kinderszenen Op.15 →Sheet Music
Sheet music provided by Mutopia Project
What this piece teaches
The first piece of Kinderszenen, Op. 15, "Of Foreign Lands and Peoples". G major, duple time: the right hand sings quietly above left-hand broken chords. In places triplets in one hand meet duple figures in the other - practice in playing two rhythms at once.
How to practise it
- Repeat the left hand alone until its broken chords run in an even stream.
- When the hands go together, line up only the beats and do not try to count the notes in between. At 0.5x, watch the falling notes meet on each beat.
- In the score view, find where the opening tune comes back at the end, and decide whether to play it differently the second time.
About the Composer
Robert Schumann (1810-1856)
Robert Schumann was a leading German Romantic composer born in Zwickau. His poetic style reflects his deep literary sensibility, and his wife Clara Schumann was herself a renowned pianist and composer. His pedagogical piano collection Album for the Young remains beloved for its simple yet evocative miniatures for children and families. This site includes pieces from that collection and from Kinderszenen, Op. 15.
View all works by Schumann →