Classical Music | Bass

Recorded on 05/06/2008, uploaded on 01/19/2009

Musician's or Publisher's Notes

The songs of Schwanengesang, published in two books by Tobias Haslinger after Schubert's death, contain his final Lieder. Unlike Schubert's other song cycles, the songs of Schwanengesang are not all by the same poet, but instead Schubert draws upon the works of Ludwig Rellstab, Heinrich Heine and Johann Gabriel Seidl. Since Schubert left no indication of his intentions for these songs, it is unclear whether he intended the songs to be collected as a cycle at all, even though in the autograph manuscript the first thirteen songs were copied at a single sitting on consecutive manuscript pages. The origin of the songs as a cycle originated with the publisher, Tobias Haslinger, who gave the collection its title. Today, Haslinger's ordering of the songs of Schwanengesang is regarded as the definitive version of the work. In the song "Abschied" ("Farewell"), which is the last of those by Ludwig Rellstab, the poet bids farewell to a town in which he has been quite happy. Though he must leave, the poet recalls that never has the town "heard a sad song" and, thus, he will not give it a sad parting. Schubert's setting is boisterous and cheery. A rhythmically well-grounded bass line with a broken chord accompaniment remains hardly unchanged throughout the entire song. The vocal melody is lively with many leaps that mainly follow triadic movement.            Joseph DuBose

Abschied (Farewell)

Farewell!  You cheerful, merry town, Farewell!
Already my little horse is pawing the ground
with a merry hoof; now take my last, parting greeting!
You have probably never seen me sad,
so that cannot happen at parting either.  Farewell!

Farewell!  You trees, you gardens so green, farewell!
Now I ride along the silver river,
my song of farewell carries far;
you never heard a sad song from me,
so none will be given to you at parting either.  Farewell!

Farewell!  You friendly girls there, Farewell!
Why do you look out from your house,
surrounded with flowers and scents, with such roguish, enticing glances?
As usual I greet you and look around,
but I shall never turn my little horse around.  Farewell!

Farewell!  You stars, veil yourselves in grey!  Farewell!
The light of that little window, growing dim in the distance,
you innumerable stars cannot take the place of that for me;
if I may not linger here, if I must ride by,
what help is it if you follow me, however faithfully?  Farewell!

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Courtesy of International Music Foundation.

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