Robert Alexander Schumann was born in the small river town of Zwickau, Saxony, in 1810. The youngest of five children, Robert Schumann was raised in comfortable middle-class respectability. As a child, he apparently showed no notable abilities. At the age of six, Robert was sent to the local preparatory school, run by Archdeacon Dohner. In fact, he had already begun his training, with the young tutor who gave lessons in exchange for room and board at the Schumann house. At the age of seven Robert received his first piano lessons, from Johann Gottfried Kuntzsch, organist of St. Mary's Church, and schoolmaster at Zwickau Lyceum. Kuntzsch was a gentle, conservative musician of limited ability; his knowledge came from studying in his free time. However, Robert soon began to improvise and even compose a number of dances for the piano. Robert's musical talent was recognized by his father. He bought an expensive Streicher grand piano for his son, and soon four-hand arrangements of classics were heard in the Schumann household. With a friend named Friedrich Piltzing, another student of Kuntzch, Robert began to explore Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven. As a child, Schumann took part in several concerts at the ZwickauLyceum. He once played Moscheles' Alexander March variations, which required considerable dexterity. At the public Lyceum Robert was active both as a pianist and as a public speaker. At the age of fourteen, Kuntzsch decided that his pupil had progressed beyond the point where he could give him further help, and refused to teach him any more. Shortly before leaving high school, Schumann collaborated with his brother Karl in preparing a new edition of Forcellini's Latin dictionary. ,Lexicon Totius Latinatinis. Although he was now very busy as a composer, Robert longed for affection. He soon fell in love with seventeen-year-old Ernestine von Fricken, who came to Leipzig in April 1834 to live with the Wiecks and to study with Clara Sr. She had grown up in the small town of Asch with her father, Baron von Fricken, and was the illegitimate daughter of Countess Zedtwitz. At the beginning of September...... middle of the paper ......itary note beating in Robert's ears, giving him no peace. On February 26, 1854, Robert begged Clara to admit him to an asylum, but was eventually persuaded by the doctor to go to bed. Clara later discovered that Robert had thrown himself into the Rhine River and that a fisherman had saved him. On March 4 Robert was taken to Dr. Richarz's private mental asylum in Endenich, near Bonn. At intervals his mind cleared a little. On June 8, 1856, Robert's birthday, Brahams found him thin, unaware of everything outside, busy choosing names from an atlas and putting them in alphabetical order. On Thursday 29 July Robert was finally released from his suffering. At four in the afternoon he fell asleep. He died without anyone knowing. Clara saw him only half an hour later. Schumann was buried at seven in the morning on July 31, 1856 in Bonn. Brahms and Joachin walked in front of the coffin carried by some members of the Dusseldorf choir. Clara asked for some friends to be present. This was the life and death of Robert Schumann.