Showed this video to the Diction 2 class after we agonized over two stanzas of the German text (took us the better part of two hours, but hey! it WAS our first REAL class)
I thought it would be a good reminder, so that we could keep sight of "the forest" even after going through "the trees" in great detail :)
I just love the way all the characters got together, and sang altogether, towards the end. *sigh*
A rough English translation:
ReplyDeleteBy the fountain, near the gate,
There stands a linden tree;
I have dreamt in its shadows
So many sweet dreams.
I carved on its bark
So many loving words;
I was always drawn to it,
Whether in joy or in sorrow.
Today, too, I had to pass it
In the dead of night.
And even in the darkness
I had to close my eyes.
And its branches rustled
As if calling to me:
"Come here, to me, friend,
Here you will find your peace!"
The frigid wind blew
Straight in my face,
My hat flew from my head,
I did not turn back.
Now I am many hours
Away from that spot,
And still I hear the rustling:
There you would have found peace!
The complete German text:
ReplyDeleteAm Brunnen vor dem Tore
Da steht ein Lindenbaum;
Ich träumt in seinem Schatten
So manchen süßen Traum.
Ich schnitt in seine Rinde
So manches liebe Wort;
Es zog in Freud' und Leide
Zu ihm mich immer fort.
Ich mußt' auch heute wandern
Vorbei in tiefer Nacht,
Da hab' ich noch im Dunkel
Die Augen zugemacht.
Und seine Zweige rauschten,
Als riefen sie mir zu:
Komm her zu mir, Geselle,
Hier find'st du deine Ruh'!
Die kalten Winde bliesen
Mir grad ins Angesicht;
Der Hut flog mir vom Kopfe,
Ich wendete mich nicht.
Nun bin ich manche Stunde
Entfernt von jenem Ort,
Und immer hör' ich's rauschen:
Du fändest Ruhe dort!
may I suggest that you also find the film called 'notturno:' it is one German film that will give you an idea of Schubert's milieu and imagination. I found it very well done. I think parts of it are in YouTube
ReplyDeleteDer Lindenbaum is part of the song cycle Die Winterreise. The whole cycle is soooo sad... they were about to get married, and then suddenly the whole thing just broke up, and the guy is walking, walking away... that's the tempo and the piano part of the first song of Winterreise.
ReplyDeleteThe Linden Tree was another reminder of his love for her, and he has carved his life on its bark. In the song he says that he passes it "in the dead of night", as he goes on his "flight" from everything that meant so much to him. And it hurt so much that even in the darkness, "I had to close my eyes". Aray ko!
Thank you for the suggestion, Sir! Will do :)
ReplyDeleteAray! Aray! Waaaaa no wonder WINTERREISE is so popular amongst tenors in CMu ... as popular as FRAUENLIEBE is among sopranos :)
ReplyDeleteThank you for that, Sir Jojo!
I read somewhere that "Der Lindenbaum" is sometimes sung during funerals. Kaya pala. The last stanza made it clear.
'Der Lindenbaum' is one of the most famous song of the Winterreise. It was one of the few art songs that was almost transformed as a folksong, as almost every austrian (or even perhaps germans) knows and can sing this song.
ReplyDeletetamang tama, this winter semester i was assigned to dissect the whole Winterreise as part of one of my class. The text is wonderful specially when you know what it means... :) And i get to picture out clearly what is happening throughout the cycle, more or likely its on the austrian countryside as schubert wrote it here
lindenbaums are very famous here, usually they are located on top of hills overlooking small villages. Its not common to see lovers under those trees anymore, but it used to be where they meet, exchange promises and do 'other' stuffs. :)
oh, and i think Winterreise is supposedly for Baritones, as the dark and rich texture of the music needs the baritone range and quality.My personal favorite in the cycle is the last one 'Der Leiermann'. if you have time, try to listen to Quasthoff's Der Leiermann. you can find it in youtube i guess..
haha.. Gulasch and beer! so typical austrian! makes me hungry.....
ReplyDeleteecht? Zwiebelkuchen mit Weisswein schmecht viel mals besser!
ReplyDeletegrabe, ang sakit ng lyrics!
ReplyDeleteyou know, i think i'm growing more and more interested in schubert's lieder. i haven't heard a lot of them though. could you recommend me a few of his songs? :)
Haha and the Schubert vs. Schumann debate is on! :) I personally haven't decided which of the two is my lieder composer of choice, they both wrote exquisite songs!
ReplyDeleteHmmm off the top of my head are Schubert's DU BIST DIE RUH (*wink*), AVE MARIA, AUF DEM WASSER ZU SINGEN, GRETCHEN AM SPINNRADE, ERLKONIG, and STANDCHEN aka "Serenade." But there are lots more.
I seem to remember that I did my FORMS AND ANALYSIS paper on Schumann's "DIE LOTOSBLUME." *waves to Sir Baes*
Hehe yes, same thing with FRAUENLIEBE... it is more suited to a mezzo-soprano, but sopranos sing it (there are only a handful of german song cycles to choose from, in the CMu lib.kasi)
ReplyDeletewow this is going to be a heavy debate if ever! but how do you choose between one "sex maniac" and another? (he-he); Seriously, they were both great people responding to a world that was beginning to lose its soul at the dawn of the industrial revolution, where the worth of individuals were to be translated in terms of their material value, further resulting into a society that is to be alienated from itself! This indeed would be a difficult debate, but I'd like to read comments from you Gabby [over coffee?], Mika, Miracle, Beryl, or the others
ReplyDeletethanks, i will listen to those songs!
ReplyDeletethis is interesting! you mean to say that the idea of a person's worth being derived from material value only began during the dawn of the industrial revolution?
ReplyDeleteThis is according to Marxist thought, when manpower or labor became a commodity and the accumulation of wealth became the primary goal of human beings... which led to the materialistic, consumer-driven and "soul-less" society that we have today.
ReplyDeleteI like to think that we musicians contribute, in some way, to keeping the soul alive... that we remind people, through our efforts, of what it means to be truly human. :)
Kuya Ferdie, thank you for your insights! I don't know what a linden tree looks like, so your description was most helpful :) and it made me appreciate the song better.
ReplyDeletehere is a typical lindenbaum:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.medienwerkstatt-online.de/lws_wissen/bilder/4090-2.jpg
look at my videos, theres a small clip 'on the outskirts of Villach'. Somewhere near here is a small kapelle with 2 lindenbaums infront. Thats how lindenbaum looks like in winter :)
Joa! Leider hob ma kan (haben wir kein) Zwiebelkuchen hier in Österreich. Ich glaub das ist eine spezialität irgendwo von West Deutschland. Doch, Gulasch ist ganz überall, aber das ist original von Ungarn. Die Österreicher macht da immer mit bier und erdärfel (kartoffel) dazu.
ReplyDeletewatch these Quasthoff rehearsal videos with D.Barenboim. Hope you'll get some insight on how they work on this particular cycle.
ReplyDeletePart 1 : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ic3zCFmuaVg&feature=channel
Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nWlJi1IDRJg&feature=related
Part 3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mYfHbd0nUo4&feature=related
Der Lindembaum is the first song on Part 2 clip.
so marxist was against materialism?
ReplyDeletei agree. this reminded me of the mued100 lesson we had yesterday. mam told us that, in 2010, arts classes in elementary and high school will cease to be taught (except in a single section), and that only english, science, and math classes will be given. i think this reveals the underlying assumption many people have: that the purpose of education is to aid the student in getting a job (what could be more helpful in today's world than learning english, math, and science?). of course, that's one aim of education, but i think education is also about developing and nurturing one's soul or inner life. perhaps society today is focused too much on externals. ok, i'll stop na. hahaha
I completely agree with you, Mika!
ReplyDeleteThis is the subject of one of my MA classes this term... "Foundations of Education." I'm taking it in Ateneo, so the emphasis is on a Catholic/Christian philosophy of education. Will blog about my rants sometime.
Yes, I daresay Marx was against it. He was actually opposing the abuse of the laborers by the elite classes, who happened to own the "means of production" and the capital.
ReplyDeleteLet's say that this factory owner makes t-shirts for a living. Now, say that the actual cost of making a t-shirt is P100 for materials, and P50 for one hour of a worker's time. The factory owner can actually do nicely selling his shirts for P200 apiece, but instead he charges exorbitantly... (think Lacoste t-shirt prices). Marx was protesting the unfairness of the laborer receiving only P50 for his effort, and the factory owner getting thousands of pesos in return for labor that he paid someone else to do.
Marx's theory is also known as "dialectic materialism" because it is a way of looking at history (and society at large) by focusing on the relationship between people and material things.
ooooh, i'll look forward to that! haha.
ReplyDeletewow, that's interesting! thanks for the informative illustration (nax, teacher!). btw, how do you learn about all these things?
ReplyDeletefrom lindenbaum trees to marxism... haha
ReplyDeleteWell I had the misfortune of enrolling under a "tibak" prof. under English 12. He connected every play, every novel to Communism. Hehe we fondly called that class "Communism 101." Haha! I'm sure you'll come across one of these profs one day... besides, you're in U.P. It's INEVITABLE.
ReplyDeleteAlso... I teach Asian Civilization to high school sophomores. I had to brush up on my communism when we tackled Mao Tsetung and communist China hehehe
Oo nga, ang layo na ng narating ng usapan. :)
ReplyDeleteHahaha Kuya Ferdie talaga... papapuntahin mo pa kami sa Babelfish to translate your comments ;)
ReplyDeleteWaaaaaa these are incredibly inspiring, in more ways than one. Kuya Ferdie, thank you so much for pointing me to their direction!!
ReplyDeleteto add to that, dear Gabby, is the Marxist notion that history results from conflict, therefore, to him, the only road to his utopic "communism" is armed revolution. I was one of those "tibak" people in my student days, but grew tired of it because I learned that in thier model, BASIC structural OPPRESSIVE systems are NEITHER addressed. the marginalized remain marginalized, and at worst, newer marginalities are created in the process; I'd challenge any late-day Marxist to discuss with me...! had I the time; but instaed of argument, I just do my work; that is my argument; that is my praxis
ReplyDeleteso only those 'inside' society will benefit from marx's utopia? hmmm, never thought of that.
ReplyDeletehaha, i've had one of these profs, but he wasnt a marxist. i dont know what you'd call his belief system. he seemed like a pantheist, though a lot of his teaching i found to be wise. anyway, it was a stimulating experience to encounter one of these U.P. profs. i wish i had more of them, even if i don't agree with them.
ReplyDelete