Fantasy Pieces

...[an] excellent book....Krebs unravels the musical subtleties that performers sense but do not always fully understand; performers have much to gain by applying Krebs's analytical approach to their interpretations of Schumann's music....This is analysis at its best: it is sensitively placed in a valid historical context, and solidly based on the real and heard elements in the score. The author supplies ample examples. Highly recommended for upper-level undergraduates through performers. * Choice *
This volume is a welcome contribution to the study of Schumann, especially for those interested in his music, but also for psychologists and others desiring to examine inferentially matters of personality through analysis of original documents. * Perceptual and Motor Skills *
...his accomplishment is no less than an imaginative reconstruction of the creative ferment of composing and theorizing in the early nineteenth century....In the course of such a wide-ranging interpretative journey, one could not ask for a more experienced and sensitive musical guide. * Music Theory Spectrum *
[This] is a very impressive piece of work. Though primarily a theoretical study, it casts its net considerably wider. Krebs is also sensitive to historical issues (precedents for Schumann's metrical style), philological matters (metrical revisions in the primary sources for Schumann's work), questions of performance practice, and even biography (possible relationships between Schumann's metrical techniques and his mental states). In addition, the book is written in an engaging and highly imaginative style. * John Daverio, School for the Arts, Boston University *