Schumann had a deep connection to the cello, which he played during his youth. When, at the age of twenty-two, a hand injury forced him to abandon his dream of becoming a piano virtuoso, he considered returning to the cello. "I would like to take up the cello again (it only requires the left hand), and it will be very useful to me when composing symphonies," he wrote to his mother. His affection for the instrument is clearly reflected in the cello parts of his four symphonies, as well as in the concertos for piano and violin, and, of course, in all his chamber music.
Unfortunately, Schumann left behind few original works for solo cello: his concerto from 1850, the five Romances of 1853 (which were destroyed by his widow Clara some forty years after their composition), and the pieces in folk style. Fortunately, Schumann allowed cellists to perform his Fantasy Pieces, Op. 73, for clarinet and the Adagio and Allegro, Op. 100, for cello. 70, originally for horn, to be performed on the cello. He certainly wouldn't have objected if the Romances for Oboe, Op. 94, were played an octave lower.
Four of the works date from 1849, when Germany was shaken by revolutionary unrest and Schumann and his family found themselves in dire straits. During this turbulent time, Schumann felt driven by external upheavals that compelled him to look inward. He sought solace in his dreams against the threatening outside world. It seemed as if external circumstances were forcing people to retreat into their inner selves—an experience deeply familiar to Schumann and one that is reflected in his compositions.