Poor Orphan Child, Op. 68 No. 6
Poor Orphan Child (Armes Waisenkind), No. 6 of Schumann's Album for the Young, Op. 68, is a slow piece in A minor and 2/4, Octotune grade 3 of 8. A sad tune on top, with a second voice under it in each hand: a lesson in playing one note louder than another.
At a glance
| Composer | Robert Schumann (1810–1856) |
|---|---|
| Difficulty | Beginner: grade 3 of 8 |
| Key | Key signature: no sharps or flats |
| Time | 2/4 |
| Tempo | 40 quarter-note beats a minute, as the app starts it (it can go slower) |
| Length | 32 measures, about 1:39 |
| Hands | both hands |
| Right hand | E4 to G5 |
| Left hand | E3 to C5 |
It reaches past the staff: see ledger lines explained.
Levels in the app
| Version | Grade | Levels |
|---|---|---|
| Poor Orphan Child (Album for the Young), Op. 68 No. 6 | 3 of 8 | Melody, Melody and bass, Full |
Practice notes
Armes Waisenkind, "Poor Orphan Child", is No. 6 of Schumann's Album for the Young, Op. 68 (1848). It is one of the book's small sad pieces: slow, quiet and in A minor, with no key signature.
How it is built. The tune is on top, in the right hand, moving in eighth notes with a few dotted rhythms. Under it, often in the same hand, a second voice moves more slowly. The left hand also plays two parts much of the time. The piece starts on a short pick-up, two sixteenths before the first full measure.
The tricky parts
- Voicing. When one hand plays two notes, the tune (the top note in the right hand) should be heard above the other. Press the finger that plays it a little more firmly.
- G sharp. A minor's leading note is written in each time, and there are many.
- 2/4 time. Two beats in a measure: count "1 and 2 and", and keep the slow tempo steady.
- The pick-up. Count the last beat of an empty measure in your head before you start.
Practice plan
- The tune alone with the Melody level, until you can sing it.
- Each hand alone at the Full level in Wait for me, listening for the top voice.
- Both hands slowly, at 50% speed, then Play along. Let the tempo breathe at the ends of phrases.
Before you start: Octotune's path through Unit 9. The G sharps go a step beyond it, and the left hand climbs higher than the bass notes the path teaches.
Questions
Is Poor Orphan Child hard?
It is a Beginner piece, Octotune grade 3 of 8. It is slow, but each hand often plays two notes at once, and the tune on top must sing over the others.
Credits and license
- Music: Robert Schumann (1810–1856)
- Typeset by Philippe Hézaine for the Mutopia Project
- License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.5
- Source and printable sheet music: the Mutopia Project’s page for this piece