Robert Schumann - Dichterliebe, Op. 48 Pt 4-4 Fischer-Dieskau Salzburg 1956

I received a kind request (thank you!) to upload some of this performance of "Dichterliebe" and decided that this would be a perfect presentation to honor Fischer-Dieskau's 84th birthday on May 28. This performance comes from Fischer-Dieskau's debut solo recital at the Salzburg Festival on August 13, 1956. His partner at the piano is Gerald Moore.

"Dichterliebe", 'The Poet's Love' (composed 1840), is the best-known song cycle of Robert Schumann (Op. 48). The texts for the 16 songs come from the "Lyrisches Intermezzo" of Heinrich Heine, composed 1822-1823, published as part of the poet's "Das Buch der Lieder".

The very natural, almost hyper-sensitive poetical affections of the poems are beautifully mirrored in Schumann's settings, with their miniaturist chromaticism and suspensions. The poet's love is a hothouse of nuanced responses to the delicate language of flowers, dreams and fairy-tales. Schumann adapts the words of the poems to his needs for the songs, sometimes repeating phrases and often rewording a line to supply the desired cadence.

Notes from Wikipedia.
English translations of the Heine poems by Paul Hindemith.


Dichterliebe, Op. 48
Part 4, Songs 15-16


Aus alten Märchen winkt es
Hervor mit weißer Hand,
Da singt es und da klingt es
Von einem Zauberland;

Wo bunte Blumen blühen
Im gold'nen Abendlicht,
Und lieblich duftend glühen,
Mit bräutlichem Gesicht;

Und grüne Bäume singen
Uralte Melodei'n,
Die Lüfte heimlich klingen,
Und Vögel schmettern drein;

Und Nebelbilder steigen
Wohl aus der Erd' hervor,
Und tanzen luft'gen Reigen
Im wunderlichen Chor;

Und blaue Funken brennen
An jedem Blatt und Reis,
Und rote Lichter rennen
Im irren, wirren Kreis;

Und laute Quellen brechen
Aus wildem Marmorstein.
Und seltsam in den Bächen
Strahlt fort der Widerschein.

Ach, könnt' ich dorthin kommen,
Und dort mein Herz erfreu'n,
Und aller Qual entnommen,
Und frei und selig sein!

Ach! jenes Land der Wonne,
Das seh' ich oft im Traum,
Doch kommt die Morgensonne,
Zerfließt's wie eitel Schaum.


From old fairy tales beckons
To me a white hand,
Where there is a singing and sounding
Of a magical land,

Where multicolored flowers bloom
In golden twilight,
And glow lovely and fragrant
With their bridal visage,

And where green trees sing
Primeval melodies;
Where breezes sound secretly,
And birds warble,

And mist-figures rise
From the earth
And dance airy round-dances
In an odd chorus,

And blue sparks burn
On every leaf and twig,
And red lights run
In a mad, chaotic circle,

And loud springs break
Out of wild marble stone,
And in the streams--oddly--
Shine forth the reflections.

Ah! If I could enter there
And indulge my heart
And give up my agony
And be free and holy!

Ah! This is the land of bliss
That I see so often in a dream,
But when the morning sun comes,
It melts like mere froth.


Die alten, bösen Lieder,
Die Träume bös und arg,
Die laßt uns jetzt begraben,
Holt einen großen Sarg.

Hinein leg' ich gar manches,
Doch sag' ich noch nicht, was;
Der Sarg muß sein noch größer,
Wie's Heidelberger Faß.

Und holt eine Totenbahre,
Und Bretter fest und dick;
Auch muß sie sein noch länger,
Als wie zu Mainz die Brück'.

Und holt mir auch zwölf Riesen,
Die müssen noch stärker sein
Als wie der starke Christoph
Im Dom zu Köln am Rhein.

Die sollen den Sarg forttragen,
Und senken ins Meer hinab;
Denn solchem großen Sarge
Gebührt ein großes Grab.

Wißt ihr, warum der Sarg wohl
So groß und schwer mag sein?
Ich senkt auch meine Liebe
Und meinen Schmerz hinein.


The old, angry songs,
The dreams angry and wicked--
Let us now bury them.
Fetch a large coffin.

In it will I lay many things,
But I will still not say quite what.
The coffin must be still larger
As the cask in Heidelberg.

And fetch a death bier
And planks firm and thick;
They must be still longer
Than the bridge to Mainz.

And fetch me, too, twelve giants;
They must be still stronger
Than that strong St. Christopher
In the Cathedral to Cologne on the Rhine.

They should carry the coffin away
And sink it down deep in the sea,
Since such a great coffin
Deserves a great grave.

Do you know why the coffin
Must be so large and heavy?
I sank with it my love
And my pain, deep within.


Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau (baritone)
Gerald Moore (piano)

Category:

Music

Tags:

• classical
• vocal
• Lieder
• song-cycle
• Schumann
• Dichterliebe
• Heine
• Fischer-Dieskau
• Salzburg

[konradeug]

Herzlichen Dank, liebe Karen, für diese wundervolle Dichterliebe! Wunderschön, wie Du mit Deinen Bildern diesen außergewöhnlichen Liederabend mitempfunden hast.

[FiDiTanzer528]

@konradeug

Thank you for your kind words. It was a labor of love.

[oakroom48]

I will treasure this always. The singing - the poetry - your fantastic video, beautiful and effective at every turn. It doesn't get much better than this. Thank you so much, Karen - again. xxo

[saiserieht]

Great finale to a great cycle! A conciliatory finale actually, he buries the pain! Great choice of pictures as always.

[MagicDolphinGO]

this melts my jaded heart.

[Ares121288]

i teared up a little at the end

that is all

[albertodelbuono]

Wunderbar!!!! Il più grande interprete di Lieder del XX secolo

[afried01]

one of my favorite youtube videos. the last painting is so perfect. what an ending.

[riago7]

Love them all!

Truly a Joy.

Luv, L

[ThroughMusic]

Superb!