Description:
The research project “Beethovens Werkstatt” is intended as a contribution to basic musicological research. Methods, concepts and digital components developed in this project using the example of Beethoven are meant to be transferable to other composers. In my paper, I choose Robert Schumann as an example to test this transferability.
Concepts that were developed in the course of the first module of “Beethovens Werkstatt” aim at the reconstruction and digital representation of genetic variants. They are based on research on the composer’s work processes. Fundamental aspects of this research include, for example, the temporality of the writing process; the composer’s self-critical dialogue with what he has already written; the work routines that may lie behind it (can certain compositional strategies be derived from them?).
These questions are not only specific to Beethoven. They can generally be asked in connection with other composers. However, a prerequisite for an insightful research is a good record of handwritten texts and manuscripts.
Due to the rich source material and Schumann’s habit of documenting many details in his diaries and working manuscripts, a text-genetic and digital analysis of his working methods is particularly suitable.