Clara Schumann at the age of nine, Clara Wieck performed at the Leipzig home of Dr. Ernst Carus, director of the mental hospital at Colditz Castle. There, she met another gifted young pianist who had been invited to the musical evening, Robert Schumann, who was nine years older. Schumann admired Clara's playing so much that he asked permission from his mother to stop studying law, which had never interested him much, and take music lessons with Clara's father. While taking lessons, he rented a room in the Wieck household, staying about a year. He would sometimes dress up as a ghost and
Friedrich Wieck the court, setting highly demanding terms: he would allow Clara to marry provided that Clara give all her seven years of concert earnings to her brothers and pay 1000 thalers in order to retrieve her piano and personal belongings from the Wieck home; he demanded that Robert set aside 8000 thalers to be invested so that the interest would compensate Clara if the marriage failed. The court rejected his highly demanding terms. Wieck asked for another conference with the court, which was set for October 2, but again Wieck failed to appear. The conference was re-scheduled for December 18. Four