*015 Dichterliebe: Vinogradov sings Schumann

Georgy Pavlovich Vinogradov (Георгий Павлович Виноградов) sings "The Old Fairy Tales", the fifteenth song of Robert Schumann's "Dichterliebe" (The Poet's Love), composed in 1840. The songs were originally a set of poems by Heinrich Heine, and here they are translated into Russian by G. Geyne and V. Argamakov. The recording was probably made in Moscow 1950-1951.

THIS IS SONG NO.15 OF A FAIRY STORY ABOUT A KNIGHT, TOLD IN 16 SONGS, HERE:
http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=D5D3B4067E404082
TO FOLLOW THE STORY, READ POTTED WORDAGE BELOW:

Potted wordage #15:
The prologue - not included in this song cycle - explains the situation as follows. It tells of the sorrowful knight that sits gloomily in his house all day, but by night is visited by his fairy bride, and dances with her until daylight returns him to his little poet's room. This song says: The old fairy tales tell of a magic land where great flowers shine in the golden evening light; where trees speak and sing like a choir; springs make music to dance to; and songs of love are sung such as you have never heard, till wondrous sweet longing infatuates you! Oh, could I only go there; free my heart; let go of all pain, and be blessed! Ah! I often see that land of joys in dreams; then comes the morning sun, and it vanishes like smoke.

Film commentary:
Like dreams of fairyland, the fairground gets packed away in the morning.

Music commentary:
A ballad set at first to a classical trumpet voluntary with hunting-horn tendencies, which keeps trying to escape into an emotional Romantic minor mode. At the same time it's a Nachtdanz upside down. [This Renaissance German dance tune used to start out in a steady 2/4 or 4/4 time, then would suddenly change into a faster 3/4 or 3/8 time, and would often continue to speed up. I've danced in a jigue to this type of music, where about 8 people hug each other's shoulders and dance round faster and faster; when you all jump, the circle momentarily flies round in the air. I've seen the Royal ballet do a scissor-kick as the jigue-circle goes round - it flies round in the air for many seconds.] Anyway, where was I? Oh yes: normally in the nachtdanz you get a steady 2/4 or 4/4 time then a faster 3/4 or 3/8, but here you have a fairly fast 4/4, then when the singing gets emotional you get slower triplets. Schuman makes the music (and presumably fairyland) unravel. Result: Schumann was the first and last person on earth to manage to say, ". . . and then he wakes up and it was all a dream," at the end of his story, without making it corny.

Film location:
Leeds Christmas fair 2009 in Millennium Square. Please spare a thought for your poor aged photographer on her first ever ride on a galloper, hanging onto that bouncing chicken for dear life, while trying to film.

About the galloper:
The mirror-plaque in the centre (visible in the opening credits) says it was built in 1881 by the UK company J. Crow & sons, and rebuilt in 1975. It's a European-style roundabout in that it goes clockwise, and the mounting-steps are on the left side of each horse - so you get on the horse from the outside of the roundabout. It was originally steam-driven, and the remains of the engine are still in the centre. All the fairground rides are very brightly and beautifully painted, but I had to mute the colours in the daylight photos to fit the song. All the horses on the galloper are named. Did you spot the one named George?

Please be reassured that these songs are just songs, and that they bear no relation to any living individuals.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• old
• fairy
• tales
• Aus
• alten
• Märchen
• winkt
• es
• Georgy
• Pavlovich
• Vinogradov
• Georgi
• Георгий
• Павлович
• Виноградов
• yorkshire
• german
• romanticism
• lieder
• lied
• dichterliebe
• leeds
• fair
• carousel
• merry
• go
• round
• roundabout
• galloper

[tadek195409]

beautiful

[riverhouse2007]

Thank you, tadek195409!

[Kievest]

Nothing like a carousel to make us reach back to our childhoods for twilight mem- ories of joy and sorrow and to prime the imagination to imperfectly recall dreamy visions of the past! Vinogradov's voice is as bright as morning until it fades at the end of the song when the real world invades poetic fantasy! Vinogradov sings with an intense inner light of in- sight into Schumann's romantic world not always accessible to 21st Century sensibilities! Great footage! Bravo!

[riverhouse2007]

Glad you enjoyed it, Kievest!

[anthb49]

At least you weren't chicken. Ho. Ho. Ho...