Schumann Fantasiestücke, Op. 12

Schumann's Fantasiestücke, Op. 12, is a set of eight pieces for piano, written in 1837. The title was inspired by the collection of novellas Fantasiestücke in Callots Manier by E. T. A. Hoffmann. Schumann dedicated the pieces to Fräulein Anna Robena Laidlaw (1819–1901), an accomplished and attractive 18-year old Scottish pianist with whom Schumann had carried on a brief flirtation. Schumann composed the pieces with the characters Florestan and Eusebius in mind, representing the duality of his personality. Eusebius depicts the dreamer in Schumann while Florestan represents his passionate side. These two characters parlay with one another throughout the collection, ending self-reflectively with Eusebius in "Ende vom Lied".  Intended to be played as an intact group, the set retains enough typical dance forms to be regarded as a sort of dance suite, though the pieces are longer and more complex than those of "true" dance suites like Carnaval, Op. 9 (1833-1835), and Davidsbündlertanze, Op. 6 (1837).