Theodor Kirchner

Präludien op. 9

The Preludes for Piano op. 9 were first published in 1859 in two booklets by Rieter-Biedermann in Winterthur and are dedicated to Clara Schumann, with whom Kirchner had been in correspondence since the end of 1857. Clara Schumann recorded her impressions of the pieces in a detailed letter to Kirchner dated July 27, 1859, in which she praised some of them but also criticized a few "harmonic hardships". It speaks for the quality of the pieces that she still included individual preludes in her repertoire after breaking off her relationship with Kirchner in the summer of 1864. In terms of density and virtuosity, Opus 9 is probably Kirchner's most ambitious piano work. His numerous later piano pieces are mostly smaller in scale and largely dispense with the virtuoso element. (Jürg Löffler)