Arts Blog

Robert and Clara first met 13 years before their marriage. When Clara was just 8 years old—and already a virtuoso on the piano herself—the teenaged Robert began taking piano lessons with Clara’s father. Over the next several years, the two musicians grew to know each other well. In time, friendship turned into love. Robert and Clara’s courtship was long and not without challenges. Clara’s father vehemently opposed the match, and only after suing him were they finally able to make things official.

As a wedding gift, Robert compiled 26 songs into a collection called “Myrtles,” named after the herb associated with the Ancient Greek goddess, Aphrodite. Myrtle was also traditionally included in German bridal bouquets.

During the summer of 1812, Ludwig van Beethoven penned a letter that would unleash decades, if not centuries, of debate. The letter’s recipient was notably referred to as “Immortal Beloved,” though no actual name was ever used. The document was never sent and only discovered after the composer’s death. We may never know who Beethoven intended to bestow such sweet words, but the mystery around this romantic gesture is tantalizing…

Did you know that Gustav Mahler was not only a composer of massive symphonic works but also a hopeless romantic? The courtship of Mahler and the promising young composer and socialite, Alma Schindler, was quick and passionate. The two met at a dinner party, and Mahler was immediately infatuated with “the most beautiful woman in Vienna.” Within weeks of meeting, the couple was married in an intimate private ceremony.

Around the same time of the couple’s marriage, Mahler was working on his fifth symphony. The fourth movement, called “Adagietto,” may be one of the most romantic pieces of orchestral music ever written. No text accompanies this piece, yet it still contains an exquisite level of poetic expression. Gustav even sent Alma the score to this movement as a love letter, for what communicates affection more completely than music, especially for a composer?

The relationship between Benjamin Britten and Peter Pears is one for the ages. The two met through a mutual friend and remained together for nearly 40 years, until Britten’s death. While they could never publicly acknowledge their romantic relationship – they managed to build a rich and fulfilling life together. Letter writing was a regular form of communication. Britten and Pears left behind hundreds of handwritten documents as part of their romantic legacy. As a professional singer, Pears also became something of a muse for Britten and inspired many of the composer’s best-known works.

Leoš Janáček was 63 years old when we first met a 25-year-old woman named Kamila Stösslová. Janáček quickly became enamored with Kamila, obsessively writing to her on a regular basis and incorporating visions of her into his music. She was reportedly flattered by the composer’s affection. The problem, however, was that both Janáček and Stösslová were already married… to other people!

Kamila remained loyal to her husband, while remaining in touch with Leoš. He, on the other hand, would use his yearning for his unattainable love interest to fuel his writing. Over the next decade, Stösslová inspired some of his most famous pieces of music.