Pianuvo

The Wild Horseman (Album for the Young, Op. 68 No. 8)

Robert Schumann (1810–1856)

A galloping tune in A minor in a fast 6/8, with the left hand bouncing short chords on the two main beats of each bar.

Play it in Pianuvo Free in your browser. Watch the notes fall, then play along on a piano, a MIDI keyboard or the screen.

About this beginner piano piece

Composer
Robert Schumann (1810–1856)
Level
Beginner · Stage 4: Baroque Builders
Difficulty
4.8 on Pianuvo’s scale (1 is your first notes, about 9 is Debussy)
Length
about 45 seconds, 33 bars
Hands
Both hands
Time and tempo
6/8 at about 126 BPM
Range
C3 to F5

Background

Robert Schumann wrote his Album for the Young, Op. 68, in 1848, while he was living in Dresden. It began with a handful of pieces for the seventh birthday of his eldest daughter, Marie, on 1 September that year, and quickly grew into a collection of 43 short pieces in two parts: the first for younger players, the second for older ones. The Hamburg publisher Schuberth brought it out soon afterwards, and it has been a mainstay of piano teaching ever since.

Schumann gave almost every piece a title that sets a scene or a mood. The Wild Horseman (Wilder Reiter) is No. 8, in the first part, alongside neighbours such as the Soldiers' March and The Happy Farmer. It lasts well under a minute, but it tells a real story: a gallop, a change of scenery, and a gallop home.

How to practise it

The piece is in A minor and 6/8: two big beats in every bar, each split into three eighth notes. It has three sections. Bars 1 to 16 are an eight-bar tune played twice, the right hand galloping over short left-hand chords. In bars 17 to 24 the music moves to F major and the hands swap jobs: the left hand takes the tune and the right hand plays the chords. Bars 25 to 32 bring back the opening.

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Bars 1 and 2: thumb on E in bar 1, then the hand moves up so the thumb ends on A

In bar 1 the thumb sits on E; in bar 2 the hand shifts up so that the thumb finishes on A. Bar 3 uses the same fingers as bar 2, starting on B and ending with the thumb on E. Practise the shift between bars 1 and 2 until it needs no looking.

Play the tune detached and bouncy, with a little extra weight on the first note of each group of three. The left-hand chords come only on the two main beats; keep them short and light so they kick the rhythm along without covering the tune.

Now the middle section, where the gallop moves into the left hand:

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Bars 17 and 18 in the left hand: the same galloping shape as bar 1, now in F major

Give it the same bounce the right hand had, and make the right-hand chords the quiet partner. Practise this section hands separately more than any other, because it is the easiest place to lose the gallop.

A plan:

  1. Right hand, bars 1 to 8, then left hand, bars 17 to 24, each slowly.
  2. Hands together in two-bar pieces.
  3. Join the sections, keeping the swap of roles clear.

Set the metronome to the dotted-quarter beat, two clicks per bar: 48, then 60 and 72, aiming for 84 (the app shows this as 126 quarter notes a minute). A wild horseman should sound excited, not rushed: steady beats, sharp edges and a firm stop at the end.

The Happy Farmer, from the same album, also gives the tune to the left hand, so it makes a natural next piece.

Quick tips

  1. Feel two big beats in every bar, play the left-hand chords short and light, and start slowly.
  2. It stretches from C3 to F5, so look ahead for the moves across the keyboard. Both hands play: learn each hand on its own first, then put them together slowly. A minor has no sharps or flats in its key signature, though you will meet G♯ (the black key just above G).
  3. Written at about 126 BPM, but start near 76 BPM (60% speed) and speed up only when two clean plays in a row feel easy. Feel two big beats, each split in three: 1-2-3 4-5-6.

In the Academy

Not yet part of the Academy course. You can still play it any time from the song path. See the Academy course outline for what Year 1 covers.

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Edition credit. The composition is in the public domain. This version of the music uses an edition by Mutopia Project (typeset by Philippe Hézaine), licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.5 (source page). Thank you to its creators.