--- thomas mark montgomery <thomas8@t...> wrote: --- thomas mark montgomery <thomas8@t...> wrote: > (...)Up until the time of Schubert, composers, including > Reichardt, Zumsteeg > and Zelter, wrote very simple, strophic songs for > the consumption of > amateurs. One of Schubert's great contributions was > the elevation of the > song to something greater than the tradition of > these earlier composers. (...)
Dear Mark and co-vocalisters,
I am verry happy that Mark wrote these lines. I really don't understand how people can believe ideas about Schubert songs as songs written for amateurs. (Sorry Tako, nothing personal, appart from my indeed personal love for Schubert.) If you read some serious books about Schubert (e.g. DFD's) you find absolutely no proof for those ideas.
Lloyd W. Hanson's mail about music and text (which cannot be valued enough, like his other contributions) also makes clear i.m.o., that looking at Schubert songs as nice and simple folksongs, is about the same as considering Rembrandt's paintings as an overpriced alternative for wallpapers.
It might have to do with the popular idea (wrong, like many popular ideas) of Schubert writings songs to sing while having a good time with his friends, who knows.
But as Mark wrote: Schubert was extremeily happy when he finally succeeded in persuading Vogl to to perform his songs. Vogl was not only a very good professional singer, but also a great lover of literature, a man who had the intelligence and open mindedness to recognise Schubert's greatness.
That after Schubert's death there has been a time where his songs were often performed by amateurs, has to do with the fact Lieder did not have a high status at that time. For that reason it was very unusual to give Lieder-recitals by professional singers then; in fact Lieder recitals did not yet exist.
As Isabelle suggested a few mails ago, the bourgeois culture in those days, might have given at least some amateurs a musical education equal to that of professional musicians of nowadays. And even apart from that: performing Schubert songs by amateurs must not necessarily mean degradating them to folksongs. Just listen to the (untill recently) amateursinger Ian Bostridge, who - despite his somewhat peculiar technique - performed Schubert songs better than many professional singers. The same is true for Hans Peter Blochwitz, although his technique is much better than Bostridge's i.m.o.
Best greetings,
Dre
__________________________________________________
|
| |