Markus Stenz with Schumann, Bartok, and more

Robert Alexander Schumann was a German composer, pianist, and influential music critic of the early Romantic era. Initially a law student at the universities of Leipzig and Heidelberg, he abandoned his legal studies to pursue a career as a virtuoso pianist under Friedrich Wieck. However, a debilitating hand injury permanently ended his performance aspirations, leading him to focus exclusively on composition and criticism. In 1834, he co-founded the influential music journal Neue Zeitschrift für Musik, which he edited for a decade. He married Wieck's daughter, the acclaimed piano prodigy Clara Wieck, in 1840 following a bitter legal battle with her father. This marriage sparked an immense creative period, beginning with a prolific "year of song" followed by major orchestral, chamber, and choral works. Widely regarded as a quintessential exponent of musical Romanticism, Schumann's compositions are celebrated for their emotional intensity, lyrical beauty, and innovative forms. Throughout his life, he struggled with severe mental health issues, which culminated in a suicide attempt in 1854 and his subsequent confinement to an asylum, where he died two years later.

Béla Bartók was a Hungarian composer, pianist, and ethnomusicologist, widely regarded as one of the most important composers of the 20th century. Alongside Zoltán Kodály, he pioneered the study of folk music, capturing indigenous Central European melodies and integrating them into his modernist classical compositions. His notable works include his six string quartets, the opera Bluebeard's Castle, and the Concerto for Orchestra. Faced with the rise of fascism in Europe, he immigrated to the United States in 1940, where he continued to compose until his death from leukemia in 1945.

Founded in Indianapolis (1930), Indiana’s largest arts group plays 200 concerts/350K yearly; 30+ classical & pops recordings; Carnegie Hall/Europe tours; with Hamelin.