Composers › Franz Schubert › Programme note
Seven Lieder
Gerald Larner wrote 2 versions of differing length — choose one below.
Frühlingsglaube D686 (1820)
Ganymed D544 (1817)
Wandrers Nachtlied II D768 (1822)
Bei dir allein D866 (1828)
Klärchens Lied D210 (1815)
Rastlose Liebe D138 (1815)
Der Musensohn D764 (1822)
Simple harmonic concept though it is, the serene opening bar of Frühlingsglaube says it all. There is an anxious modulation as thoughts turn inwards towards the end of each stanza but faith in the restorative powers of spring is retained by the consistent presence of the initial rhythmic pattern in the piano part. Another spring-time inspiration, Ganymed begins as though it is about to convey the same message but, in fact, from from offering reassurance through repetition, it reacts in a different way to virtually every line, progessing through numerous key changes to a mystic state of ecstasy. Wandrers nachtlied (a setting of the second of two Goethe poems under the same title) represents the ultimate in tranquillity, a condition secured not by musical uniformity but by way of a central section betraying just a hint of harmonic and rhythmic unease amid the prevailing stability.
The first of the love songs in this group, Bei dir allein is driven from refrain to breathless refrain by the same rhythmic impulse throughout. As a timely contrast, Klärchens Lied - the reflective obverse of Beethoven’s dramatic setting of the same words from Goethe’s Egmont - explores the emotional import and harmonic implications of every word. Like Bei dir allein, the two remaining Goethe settings, Rastlose Liebe and Der Musensohn, are both carried on a single rhythmic impulse (in 2/4 time in the one, 6/8 in the other), physical exhilaration riding over the inward discomfort of their respective protagonists.
From Gerald Larner’s files: “Bei dir allein”
Frühlingsglaube D686 (1820)
Ganymed D544 (1817)
Wandrers Nachtlied II D768 (1822)
Bei dir allein D866 (1828)
Klärchens Lied D210 (1815)
Rastlose Liebe D138 (1815)
Der Musensohn D764 (1822)
Simple harmonic concept though it is, the serene opening bar of Frühlingsglaube says it all. There is an anxious modulation as thoughts turn inwards towards the end of each stanza but faith in the restorative powers of spring is retained by the consistent presence of the initial rhythmic pattern in the piano part. Another spring-time inspiration, Ganymed begins as though it is about to convey the same message but, in fact, from from offering reassurance through repetition, it reacts in a different way to virtually every line, progessing through numerous key changes to a mystic state of ecstasy. Wandrers nachtlied (a setting of the second of two Goethe poems under the same title) represents the ultimate in tranquillity, a condition secured not by musical uniformity but by way of a central section betraying just a hint of harmonic and rhythmic unease amid the prevailing stability.
The first of the love songs in this group, Bei dir allein is driven from refrain to breathless refrain by the same rhythmic impulse throughout. As a timely contrast, Klärchens Lied - the reflective obverse of Beethoven’s dramatic setting of the same words from Goethe’s Egmont - explores the emotional import and harmonic implications of every word. Like Bei dir allein, the two remaining Goethe settings, Rastlose Liebe and Der Musensohn, are both carried on a single rhythmic impulse (in 2/4 time in the one, 6/8 in the other), physical exhilaration riding over the inward discomfort of their respective protagonists.
Im Frühling has its moment of anguish in the fifth stanza, where the harmonies turn to the minor and the piano rhythms are anxiously syncopated, but for the most part its emotions are concealed beneath an easy-going surface. The disappointed lover’s final resignation to his loss is discreetly registered by the restoration of the major harmonies but with the syncopations persisting in the left hand of the piano part.
From Gerald Larner’s files: “Musensohn/dif”