Robert Schumann's Fantasiestücke in D-flat Major op. 12, composed in 1837, is a representa-tive piano work from his early period, consisting of eight pieces. After each piece was completed, a poetic title was attached by the composer himself. In the music, Schumann used two fantasy characters, namely the extroverted and arrogant Florestan and the introverted and reserved Eusebi-us. The work not only reflect Schumann’s opposite temperaments as in the two fantasy characters, but also shows a wealth of creativity and imagination.

The thesis comprises four chapters. The first chapter describes research incentives and aims. The second chapter delineates Schumann’s life and his musical achievement. The third chapter aims at comparing Schumann's piano cycle with song cycles. The fourth chapter discusses the par-ticular feature of the writing in the piano cycle, corresponding to the lyrics and similar contextual writing in the song cycles Dichterliebe, op. 48 and Frauenliebe und Leben, op. 42. Through this way, the author suggests relevant ways of performing and interpreting this piano work.