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Masterclass: Schumann Five Pieces in Folk Style op.102, first piece

2025-03-07T08:44:00

Alan Lai 1

Cellist Trey Lee shares how a particular painting in London’s National Gallery provided his inspiration for this movement, which can be seen as a metaphor for life

When I first came to this piece as a student, I remember my teacher pointing out Vanitas vanitatum written at the top of the score. It’s from the Bible – I’d never seen it before and I didn’t know Latin, so it meant almost nothing to me. Is someone being vain? Does it mean pride and arrogance?…

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