Schumann: Papillons & Kinderszenen & Brahms Opp. 117 & 118

Multi-award winning pianist Sarah Beth Briggs earned multiple plaudits for her previous Avie recordings- a Gramophone Critics’ Choice for her pairing of concertos by Hans Gal and Mozart, and a Gramophone Editor’s Choice for her Briggs Piano Trio’s pairing of works by Gal and Shostakovich. For her first solo recital recording for Avie, Sarah turns to some of the greatest collections of Romantic miniatures, largely inspired by one woman: Clara Schumann, wife of Robert Schumann and muse to Johannes Brahms. The twelve short dance movements of Schumann’s early and enigmatic Papillons set the scene, giving way to autumnal, late Brahms- his Op. 117 Intermezzi and Op. 118 Klavierstucke. The album ends as it begins, with youthful Schumann and his lovingly crafted Kinderszenen, written over half a century earlier.