Mahler: Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen

Introduction

Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen ('Songs of a Wayfarer') is a song cycle by Gustav Mahler on his own texts. The cycle of four Lieder for medium voice (often performed by women as well as men) was written around 1884–85 in the wake of Mahler's unhappy love for soprano Johanna Richter, whom he met while conductor of the opera house in Kassel, Germany, and orchestrated and revised in the 1890s.

Introduction

The work's compositional history is complex and difficult to trace. Mahler appears to have begun composing the songs in December 1884 and to have completed them in 1885. He subjected the score to a great deal of revision, however, probably between 1881 and 1886, and some time in the early 1890s orchestrated the original piano accompaniments. As a result of this situation, various discrepancies exist between the different sources.

It appears to have been in the orchestral version that the cycle was first performed on 16 March 1896 by the Dutch baritone Anton Sistermans with the Berlin Philharmonic and Mahler conducting, but possible indications of an earlier voice-and-piano performance cannot be discounted. The work was published in 1897 and is one of Mahler's best-known compositions.

The lyrics are by the composer himself, though they are influenced by Des Knaben Wunderhorn, a collection of German folk poetry that was one of Mahler's favorite books, and the first song is actually based on the Wunderhorn poem "Wann [sic] mein Schatz".

There are strong connections between this work and Mahler's First Symphony, with the main theme of the second song being the main theme of the 1st Movement and the final verse of the 4th song reappearing in the 3rd Movement as a contemplative interruption of the funeral march^[2]

Contents

I - "Wenn mein Schatz Hochzeit macht" ("When My Sweetheart is Married")

The first movement is entitled "Wenn mein Schatz Hochzeit macht" ("When My Sweetheart is Married"), and the text discusses the Wayfarer's grief at losing his love to another. He remarks on the beauty of the surrounding world, but how that cannot keep him from having sad dreams. The orchestral texture is bittersweet, using double reed instruments, clarinets and strings.

Original German

II - "Ging heut Morgen übers Feld" ("I Went This Morning over the Field")

The second movement, "Ging heut Morgen übers Feld" ("I Went This Morning over the Field"), contains the happiest music of the work. Indeed, it is a song of joy and wonder at the beauty of nature in simple actions like birdsong and dew on the grass. "Is it not a lovely world?" is a refrain. However, the Wayfarer is reminded at the end that despite this beauty, his happiness will not blossom anymore now that his love is gone. This movement is orchestrated delicately, making use of high strings and flutes, as well as a fair amount of triangle. The melody of this movement, as well as much of the orchestration, is developed into the 'A' theme of the first movement of the First Symphony.

Original German

III - "Ich hab'ein glühend Messer" ("I Have a Gleaming Knife")

The third movement is a full display of despair. Entitled "Ich hab'ein glühend Messer" ("I Have a Gleaming Knife"), the Wayfarer likens his agony of lost love to having an actual metal blade piercing his heart. He obsesses to the point where everything in the environment reminds him of some aspect of his love, and he wishes he actually had the knife. The music is intense and driving, fitting to the agonized nature of the Wayfarer's obsession.

Original German

IV - "Die zwei blauen Augen von meinem Schatz" ("The Two Blue Eyes of my Beloved")

The final movement culminates in a resolution. The music, also reused in the First Symphony (in the Scherzo "Funeral March in Callot's manner"), is subdued and gentle, lyrical and often reminiscent of a chorale in its harmonies. Its title, "Die zwei blauen Augen von meinem Schatz" ("The Two Blue Eyes of my Beloved"), deals with how the image of those eyes has caused the Wayfarer so much grief that he can no longer stand to be in the environment. He describes lying down under a linden tree, finding rest for the first time and allowing the flowers to fall on him; and somehow (beyond his own comprehension) everything was well again: "Everything: love and grief, and world, and dream!"

Original German

Translation of the title

Although Songs of a Wayfarer is the title by which the cycle is generally known in English, Fritz Spiegl has observed^[where?] that German "Geselle" actually means "journeyman", i.e., one who has completed an apprenticeship with a master in a trade or craft, but is not yet a master himself; journeymen in German-speaking countries traditionally traveled from town to town to gain experience with various masters. A more accurate translation, therefore, would be Songs of a Travelling Journeyman. The title hints at an autobiographical aspect of the work; as a young, newly qualified conductor (and budding composer), Mahler was himself at this time in a stage somewhere between 'apprentice' and recognized 'master' and had been moving from town to town (Bad Hall, Laibach, Olmütz, Vienna, Kassel). All the while, he was honing his skills and learning from masters in his field.