Perhaps Schumann's greatest large-scale piano work, the Fantasie was written between 1836 and 1838 and dedicated to Franz Liszt. Intensely personal, it contains many melodic references to Schumann's then fiancée, Clara Wieck. This edition, based on the first edition by Breitkopf and Härtel and the Clara Schumann edition, contains editorial material in parentheses. The background of this masterpiece and guidelines for analysis and performance form the introduction.