Robert Schumann - "Mein schöner Stern", Op. 101, Nr. 4 (Rückert)

In so many of Robert Schumann's songs he affectionately used the poem's flowery subject to represent his wife, Clara, yet in "Mein schöner Stern!" Op. 101/4 (My Beautiful Star), he uncommonly equated her presence with that of a radiant, healing star. Without changing a word, the composer meaningfully enhanced Rückert's writing with elusive music that opens in E flat major and carefully slips through many other keys. Even though the composer used the text to plead his wife to cautiously protect herself and her light as she lifted him out of darkness, in reality his mental illness had obvious, irreversible effects on Clara and their marriage. The delicate second verse is a melodic duplication of the first; the accompaniment's lines in both stanzas are made of beamed eighth notes in the treble and low octaves in the bass. The tune was written in Kreischa, where the Schumann family fled to escape the Dresden revolution. ---All Music Guide



Mein schöner Stern

Mein schöner Stern, ich bitte dich,
O lasse du dein heitres Licht
Nicht trüben durch den Dampf in mir,
Vielmehr den Dampf in mir zu Licht,
Mein schöner Stern, verklären hilf!

Mein schöner Stern! ich bitte dich,
Nicht senk' herab zur Erde dich,
Weil du mich noch hier unten siehst,
Heb' auf vielmehr zum Himmel mich,
Mein schöner Stern, wo du schon bist!

Friedrich Rückert (1788-1866)



My lovely star, I implore you,
O let not your bright light
Be dimmed by the gloom in me,
Rather let the gloom in me,
My lovely star, be transfigured into light!

My lovely star, I implore you,
Do not lower yourself down to earth,
Because you see me here below,
Rather elevate me up to heaven,
My lovely star, where you already are!

Translation by FiDiTanzer528


Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau (baritone)
Jörg Demus (piano)

Category:

Music

Tags:

• classical
• vocal
• lieder
• Schumann
• Rückert
• Fischer-Dieskau
• German

[Song5040]

Thank You!!!

[musicalidea]

Look at how he opens the piece with a dread-laden diminished 7th chord and then quickly changes it to an ingratiating dominant 7th...this quavering between dread and endearment follows throughout the song. Rapturous, despite the trite lyrics.

[Ivan436]

Nice, but we actually learned a MUCH nicer version of this song back in grade school... same melody and all, but a little different tempo and text.

[imusiciki]

What a lovely song!!! This is the first time I have heard this & its interesting to learn that this song was actually written to represent Clara Schumann! Thanks Karen!

[riago7]

Really enjoyed this on, Karen.

Luv, L

[mutewoman]

Oh this is wonderful! Thank you for this. When the music joins the words, and the voice joins the two, and the image makes it whole... Brava!

[Alicia7777777]

Wunderschön. Dank für die Buchung dieser Schönheit !

[megansspark]

excellent, Karen! enjoyed the background info as well :)

[oakroom48]

Karen, Thanks so much for this beautiful video. I didn't know this song at all and it's just gorgeous. Especially IMHO in this performance sans pareil. I just love it - thank u so much for the wonderful gift to me & other lucky YT watchers !! -b

[ferdinandoalbeg]

Wonderful and touching! This is a lied I love too much. Thank you.