The Reaper's Song
The last piece of the first half - and the feeling of a long day ending.
Schumann's Album for the Young (Op. 68), composed in 1848 for his daughter Marie, divides into two halves at piece eighteen. The first half is written for younger, less experienced players; the second half demands more. Reaper's Song is the final piece of that first half - a fitting close, with the steady, repetitive motion of harvest work built into the very texture of the music.
Reaper's Song (Schnitterliedchen) is in C major and marked by a persistent rhythmic figure in the accompaniment that evokes the arc of a scythe. The melody above it is folk-like and straightforward, but the steady, tireless accompaniment gives the piece its distinctive mood - the satisfaction of physical labor, the rhythm of work repeated until the field is clear. It is a departure from the livelier character pieces before it, and the calm it projects feels earned.
Steady rhythm, sustained melody.
Establish the left-hand rhythmic figure at a metronomic tempo before adding the melody - any unevenness in the accompaniment will undermine the piece's working-song feeling. Once both hands are together, aim for a sense of forward motion that is controlled but never hurried.
MIDI based on the Mutopia Project edition , licensed CC BY-SA 2.5.
Before you practice.
01 What level is Schumann's Reaper's Song Op. 68 No. 18?
Late beginner - it is more technically demanding than the opening pieces of Op. 68 thanks to its rhythmic density and 44-measure length, but students who have mastered pieces like Soldiers' March or Wild Horseman will find it a natural next step.
02 What musical skills does The Reaper's Song develop?
Steady pulse, consistent articulation across a longer piece, and the ability to balance a melodic line against an active accompaniment - all skills that prepare students for more extended Romantic character pieces.
Keep the pulse like a heartbeat.
At 65% tempo the recurring accompaniment pattern becomes easy to monitor for evenness. Use loop mode on the middle phrase where the melody rises slightly - that is the emotional high point of a deliberately modest piece. The closing bars should fade with the feeling of a day's work completed, not petering out.
