Trained to be a piano prodigy by her father Friedrich Wieck, Clara Schumann (1819-1896) was disowned after she eloped with the young composer Robert Schumann. A better pianist than her husband, she became the main performer of his music during his life. After his death, she wore mourning clothes in public for the remaining 40 years of her life, while also becoming an advocate of her husband’s protege Johannes Brahms. In addition to her performing, she also wrote a number of piano works and songs.