Last year, we listened to Alexander Zemlinsky for the first time here on Liederabend. I told you back then that the composer’s work had been largely forgotten after his death in 1942; fortunately, his name has reappeared in recent years, and his music is once again being recorded and performed (we’re speaking of a composer who was once highly regarded).
The first song we heard was Blaues Sternlein, No. 5 from the Walzer-Gesänge, Op. 6, composed in 1898, and today we’ll hear Und hat der Tag sein Qual [And once all the miseries of the day], the second song from Op. 8, Turmwächterlied und andere Gesänge, composed the following year. Both songs are nocturnes, but while the former sets a simple, folk-inspired poem, the latter is based on a complex and sophisticated text (by Danish poet Jens Peter Jacobsen, translated into German by Robert Franz Arnold). Where the first song had a charming waltz rhythm, this one features marked chromaticism and unexpected harmonies; where that one evoked Brahms, this one brings Wolf to mind. In other words, even within these early works, Zemlinsky’s style had evolved significantly in the short time between the two cycles.
At the Schubertíada, there are always works and composers that come as a surprise —or a revelation (call it what you will)— and Turmwächterlied und andere Gesänge [The tower watchman's song and other songs] could well be one of them this summer. In Vilabertran, it will be performed by Andrè Schuen and Daniel Heide, while our performers here will be Anne Sophie von Otter and Cord Garben. I hope you enjoy it!
As always, after the song you’ll find a summary of three more recitals from the Schubertíada.
Tautränend ausgeweint,
Dann öffnet Nacht den Himmelssaal
In ewigen Trübsinns stiller Qual.
Und eins und eins
Und zwei und zwei
Zieht fremder Welten Genienchor
Aus dunklem Himmelsgrund hervor,
Und über irdischen Lüsten und Schmerzen,
In Händen hoch die Sternenkerzen,
Schreiten sie langsam über den Himmel hin.
Tieftraurig gehen sie,
Treu dem Gebot...
Verwunderlich wehen,
Von des Weltraums kalten Winden bedroht,
Der Sternenkerzen flackernde Flammen.
have been wept away in dewy tears,
then Night opens the hall of Heaven
in the eternal gloom's quiet misery.
And one by one
and two by two
spirit-choirs of distant worlds
rise up from the dark floor of the sky,
and over earthly joys and sorrows,
holding star-candles high in their hands,
they slowly stride across the sky.
Deep in sorrow do they go,
true to their orders;
and with astonishment,
threatened by the cold winds of the world,
the flickering flames of the star-candles sigh.
(translation by Emily Ezust)
Tuesday 19 August: Sara Blanch & Julius Drake
Wednesday 20 August: Christiane Karg & Wolfram Rieger
Thursday 21 August: Andrè Schuen & Daniel Heide
Also, remember that on Wednesday the 20th we’ll have this year’s first Lied the Future concert, featuring the duos formed by Tobias Lusser and Maximilian Kromer, and by Noëlle Drost and Jorian van Nee, with a programme that, understandably, is not yet known.
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