Symphony No. 1 in B-flat major "Spring", Op. 38, Op. 38

Schumann's First Symphony (1841) was composed in an extraordinary burst of energy during his honeymoon year with Clara, and the exuberant joy of new love permeates every movement. The opening fanfare horn call, the singing first theme in the violins, and the finale's skipping dactylic rhythm all breathe the fresh air that Schumann associated with Adolf Bottger's spring poem. Despite later critics' reservations about his orchestration, the work has a direct emotional authenticity and a sense of structural spring-like growth that makes it deeply lovable. Schumann conducted the premiere himself with the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra in March 1841 to immediate acclaim.