Robert Schumann’s Violoncello Concerto op. 129 can be regarded as the first great concerto for this instrument’s repertoire. It is thus somewhat surprising that this work had an extremely problematic reception history at the outset.Schumann wrote the score in 1850, during his Düsseldorf years, but there was neither a concrete occasion nor a soloist for a world premiere. After its publication, more years elapsed before the world premiere. It was only towards the end of the 19th century that Schum...