Schubert: Mayrhofer Lieder

On this CD:

1. Memnon ("Den Tag hindurch nur einmal"), song for voice & piano, D. 541 (Op. 6/1)
Composed by Franz Schubert
Performed by Robert Holl, David Lutz

2. Geheimnis ("Sag an,..."), song for voice & piano, D. 491
Composed by Franz Schubert
Performed by Robert Holl, David Lutz

3. Trost ("Hörnerklänge rufen klangend"), song for voice & piano, D. 671
Composed by Franz Schubert
Performed by Robert Holl, David Lutz

4. Nachtviolen, song for voice & piano, D. 752
Composed by Franz Schubert
Performed by Robert Holl, David Lutz

5. Am Strome ("Ist mir's doch, als sei mein Leben"), song for voice & piano, D. 539 (Op. 8/4)
Composed by Franz Schubert
Performed by Robert Holl, David Lutz

6. Auf der Donau ("Auf der Wellen Spiegel"), song for voice & piano, D. 553 (Op.21/1)
Composed by Franz Schubert
Performed by Robert Holl, David Lutz

7. Lied eines Schiffers an die Dioskuren ("Dioskuren, Zwillingssterne"), song for voice & piano, D. 360 (Op. 65/1)
Composed by Franz Schubert
Performed by Robert Holl, David Lutz

8. Aus Heliopolis I ("Im kalten, rauhen Norden"), song for voice & piano, D. 753 (Op. 65/3)
Composed by Franz Schubert
Performed by Robert Holl, David Lutz

9. Aus Heliopolis II ("Fels auf Felsen hingewälzet"), song for voice & piano (Im Hochgebirge), D. 754
Composed by Franz Schubert
Performed by Robert Holl, David Lutz

10. Nach einem Gewitter ("Auf den Blumen"), song for voice & piano, D. 561
Composed by Franz Schubert
Performed by Robert Holl, David Lutz

11. Liane ("Hast du Lianen nicht gesehen?"), song for voice & piano, D. 298
Composed by Franz Schubert
Performed by Robert Holl, David Lutz

12. Am See ("Sitz' ich im Gras"), song for voice & piano, D. 124
Composed by Franz Schubert
Performed by Robert Holl, David Lutz

13. Der Schiffer ("Im winde, im Sturme befahr' ich den Fluss"), song for voice & piano, D. 536 (Op. 21/2)
Composed by Franz Schubert
Performed by Robert Holl, David Lutz

14. Rückweg ("Zum Donaustrom"), song for voice & piano, D. 476
Composed by Franz Schubert
Performed by Robert Holl, David Lutz

15. Augenlied ("Süsse Augen"), song for voice & piano, D. 297
Composed by Franz Schubert
Performed by Robert Holl, David Lutz

16. Fahrt zum Hades ("Der Nachen dröhnt"), song for voice & piano, D. 526
Composed by Franz Schubert
Performed by Robert Holl, David Lutz

17. Freiwilliges Versinken ("Wohin?"), song for voice & piano, D. 700
Composed by Franz Schubert
Performed by Robert Holl, David Lutz

18. Fragment aus dem Aeschylus ("So wird der Mann"), song for voice & piano, D. 450
Composed by Franz Schubert
Performed by Robert Holl, David Lutz

19. Orest auf Tauris ("Ist dies Tauris"), song for voice & piano, D. 548
Composed by Franz Schubert
Performed by Robert Holl, David Lutz

20. Der entsühnte Orest ("Zu meinen Füssen brichst du dich"), song for voice & piano, D. 699
Composed by Franz Schubert
Performed by Robert Holl, David Lutz

21. Der Sieg ("O unbewölktes Leben!"), song for voice & piano, D. 805
Composed by Franz Schubert
Performed by Robert Holl, David Lutz

Tracks:

Der Sieg, D 805
Nachtviolen, D 752
Fahrt Zum Hades, D 526
An Die Freunde, D 654
Aus 'Heliopolis' I, D 753
Aus 'Heliopolis' II, D 754
Liedesend, D 473
Zum Punsche, D 492
Uber Allen Zauber Liebe, D 682
Der Alpenjager, D 524
Der Hirt, D 490
Ruckweg, D 476
Trost, D 671
Wie Ulfru Fischt, D 525
Auf Der Donau, D 553
Der Schiffer, D 536
Memnon, D 541
Fragment Aus Dem Aischylos, D 450
Freiwilliges Versinken, D 700
Der Entsuhnte Orest, D 699
Orest Auf Tauris, D 548
Philoket, D 540
Alte Liebe Rostet Nie, D 477
Lied Eines Schiffers An Die Dioskuren, D 360
Gondelfahrer, D 808

Customer Reviews:

Exploring the Schubert Songs -- Mayrhofer-Lieder vol. 1.......2004-12-27

This CD is a companion to another collection of Scubert's Mayrhofer lieder on Naxos titled simply, "Mayrhofer -Lieder volume 2" featuring Christiane Iven, Mezzo-soprano and Burkhard Kehring, Piano. That disk includes 15 Schubert songs set to poetry by Mayrhofer while this disk, "Mayrhofer volume - 1" includes 25 songs performed by bass Cornelius Hampton and pianist Stefan Laux. Together, these CDs are an excellent way to explore these songs.

Franz Schubert set 47 poems of his friend, Johann Mayrhofer (1787 --1836) to song. When Schubert turned 18, he left home and lived with Mayrhofer for two years in a shabby rooming house. Mayrhofer was a political liberal with the uncongenial job of serving as a literary censor for the Austro-Hungarian empire. His own poetry served as a means of veiling the tension between his job and himself. Mayrhofer comitted suicide in 1836.

Of the 25 Mayrhofer poems on this CD, nine involve settings of Greek myths and legends. The song I most enjoyed of this group was "Memmon" D. 541, which I hadn't heard before. This four-stanza song begins slowly and lyrically and builds to a moment of great intensity in the third stanza, as Scubert, Mayrhofer and Memmon combine to state a credo of the artist achieving transcendence of suffering through song. Many of the other songs with classical themes are declamatory in style, almost as though they were part of an operatic recitif rather than a lied. These songs include "The Fragment from Aechylus", D.450, the two songs based upon the Orestes legend, , D. 699 and D. 548, "Philoctetes", D.540, and "Voluntary Extinction" D.700. These songs will show the listener familiar only with the simple lyrics of Schubert a new side to the composer, as will the two ambitious "Heliopolis" settings, D.753 and D.754 included on this CD.

The songs on this CD include a drinking song "To Punch" D. 492 and a hunting song, "The Hunstsman of the Alps" D.524, but otherwise Mayrhofer's non-classical settings are noted for their obscurity. They are veiled autobiography tending to express either his disatisfaction with his job as a censor or, perhaps, a more personal, sexual aspect of his life that he felt compelled to repress. The most famous of these songs is "Nachtviolen" (dame violet) D. 752, set intensely to a simple repeating figure in the upper register of the piano. Many people hear this song, in Schubert's beautiful setting, as a picture of hidden and frustrated sexual needs. It is one of the deepest and most enigmatic of Schubert's lieder and has long been a favorite of mine. The performance here is good but does not plumb the depths of this song.

Other songs on this CD that will reward repeated listening include "To my friends" D. 654 with its opening walking bass figure which describes how the poet hopes to be remembered after his death; the "End of a Song", D.473, a ballad on the power of music and poetry; "The Shepherd" D. 490, full of the passion of lost love; "On the Danube" D. 553, and "The Boatman" D. 536, two water songs highly different from each other; "Old Love Never Tarnishes" D. 477, a song as melodic and lyrical as its title suggests; "The Victory" D. 805 with its choral prelude and postlude and hymnlike theme; and "The Gondolier" D. 808, one of the last Mayrhofer settings.

Bass Corneilius Hauptmann and Pianist Stefan Laux perform capably and more than well. But in some instances, as with "Nachtviolen", I didn't think they captured fully the tension and the passion that lies just beneath the surface of many of the Mayrhofer songs.

This CD is part of a complete recording of the Schubert lieder on the budget-priced Naxos label. The strongest feature of this compilation, besides the low price, is that in allows the listener to gather together and explore in two CDs most of Schubert's settings of Mayrhofer's poems. (Schubert set more of his friend's poems than he did of any other writer except for Goethe and Schiller.) Many of these settings will be unfamilar to the listener who has heard only the Schubert songs frequently performed in basic collections. Scubert's Mayrhofer settings are themselves a substantial body of song-writing of various kinds that will delight and repay frequent hearings. This CD is an outstanding way for the lover of Schubert to explore the Mayrhofer songs in depth.

bad.......2004-03-18

and oh i have forgot,its down to the second hand record store in to get rid of this thing.

bad.......2004-03-17

The selection of songs they used for this recording is good enough.The problem lies with the performers (hauptmann-a bas vocalist)and the lousy effort that has result.In othe words naxos should go and record the whole Mayrhofer volume again,only next time use two professional performers who know Schubert well,instead of lousy "art song amateurs"such as the two we have here.

Average customer rating:

Schubert: Mayrhofer Lieder

Manufacturer: Preiser Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
ASIN: B00000C3KQ
Release Date: 1995-02-07

Average customer rating:

Schubert: Mayrhofer Lieder
Pregardien , and Staier
Manufacturer: Teldec/Warner Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music
ASIN: B000059QW5
Release Date: 2002-08-12

Tracks:

Fahrt Zum Hades D 526
Freiwilliges Versinken D 700
Der Entsuhnte Orest D 699
Der Zurneeden Diana Op. 36, 1 D 707
Lied Eines Schiffers An Die Dioskren Op. 65, 1 D 360
Auf Der Donau Op. 21, 1 D 553
Der Schiffer ( Im Winde, Im Sturme Befahr Ich Den Flub ) Op. 21, 2 D 536
Die Sternennachte Op. Post 165 2, D 670
Abschied ( Uber Die Berge Zieht Ihr Fort ) D 475
Nachtstuck Op. 36, 2 D 672
Fragment Aus Dem Aeschylus D 450
Antigone Und Oedip Op. 6, D 542
Memnon Op. 6, 1 D 541
Philoktet D 540
Atys D 585
Der Sieg D 805
Wie Ulfru Fischt Op. 21, 3 D 525
Der Alpenjager ( Auf Hohem Bergesrucken ) Op. 13, 3 D 524
Nachtviolen D 752
Abendstern D 806
Nach Einem Gewitter D 561
Gondelfahrer D 808
Auflosung D 807

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Schubert's Mayrhofer Lieder

Schubert: Mayrhofer-Lieder, Vol. 2

Manufacturer: Naxos
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

4-for-3 Classical | 4-for-3 Music | Stores | Music

4-for-3 All Music | 4-for-3 Music | Stores | Music
ASIN: B00008IHVU
Release Date: 2003-04-15

Tracks:

Am See (Second Version), D124
Augenlied, D297
Liane, D298
Abendlied Der Furstin, D495
Sehnsucht, D516
Schlaflied (Schlummerlied) (First Version), D527
Am Strome, D539
Uraniens Flucht, D554
Iphigenia (Second Version), D573
Atys, D585
Erlafsee, D586
Beim Winde, D669
Die Sternennachte, D670
Abendstern, D806
Auflosung, D807

Customer Reviews:

Schubert's Mayrhofer Lieder.......2003-09-02

Franz Schubert (1797 - 1828) was the greatest composer of art song -- or of any form of song. In his short life he wrote almost 700 songs, virtually creating the form. There are many discs available that offer the listerner a sampling of Schubert's more famous lieder. But this disc is part of an compilation by Naxos which, when completed will include Schubert's entire song output on 33 CDs.

There is an earlier complete version of the Schubert songs on Hyperion, an excellent but high-price English label. Pianist Graham Johnson conceived the Hyperion project and accompanies on the piano on all the discs. Each disc features lieder by a famous and outstanding signer. The CDs are arranged by subject matter and include copious notes.

The Naxos set is budget priced. The performers are a variety of young native-speaking German singers and accompanied by several different pianists. The signers and pianists are outstanding. The Naxos CDs have full program notes and the text and translations of the songs. They are arranged by the poets who wrote the texts. This arrangement tends to place more emphasis on the texts of the songs than is frequently the case. The CDs sell at a budget price. They are an ideal way to explore the world of Schubert's songs.

The CD under review is the second in the Naxos complilation featuring the poetry of Johann Mayrhofer (1787-1836). Mayrhofer and Schubert were close friends and roomates for two years, even though the friendship cooled late in Schubert's life. Mayrhofer died by suicide in 1836. Schubert set 47 of his poems to song, more than any other poet except for Goethe and Schiller.

This disc includes fifteen Mayrhofer songs sung by mezzo-soprano Christiane Ivens accompanied by Burkhard Kehring. Ms Ivens has a golden, expressive mezzo that is equal to the emotions of Schubert's music. Kehring is a strong, muscular pianist. He makes Schubert's piano part at least as prominent as the vocal line.

The songs on this disc cover a spectrum of Schubert's compositional life beginning with "Am See" D124 (1814) and concluding with a great song "Dissolution" D. 897 of 1824. The collection becomes more and more impressive as it moves along. The earlier, youthful songs are lyrical and mostly strophic (regular form.) The song "Sehnensuch (Longing) D516 features impassioned singing together with a moving piano prelude, postlude, and trilling accompanyment.

The mid-point of the collection is a lengthy ballad "Uraniens Flucht" (Urania's Flight) D. 554 which runs over 18 minutes. There is lovely material here, but I much prefer Schubert's shorter songs.

The following songs including "Iphigenia" "Atys" and "Erlafsee" are based upon Greek myth. The music is both noble and passionated. These songs do indeed remind me of the operas of Gluck, as the program notes suggest.

The last two songs on this CD are Schubert's last set to text by Mayrhofer, "Abendstern (Evening Star)" D. 806 and "Auflasung (Dissolution)" D. 807. These songs are the highlight of this collection and are frequently recorded. "Auflasung" is striking for the richness of Ms. Iven's performance and for the passionate way she handles the octaves at the climax of the song.

I find the best way to approach these songs is to read the text and then to simply listen and be moved by Schubert's beautiful music.

This disc, and the others in the Naxos series, will allow the interested listener to approach Schubert's songs in depth.

Music Review: