Program 7: After Wagner
Song: Mirror of the World Radio Series
Program 7: After Wagner
This program illuminates a cultural world living in the shadow of Richard Wagner, and throws light on how a generation of composers responded to him. We also explore the influence of broader currents, from anti-Semitism to feminism to industrialization, and conclude in the late 1890s with riveting songs by Arnold Schoenberg and Hugo Wolf.
Listen to the full program:
Host & Artistic Director:
Thomas Hampson
Co-Produced by the Hampsong Foundation and The WFMT Radio Network
Production Team:
Executive Producers: Thomas Hampson & Steve Robinson (The WFMT Radio Network)
Audio Producer: Carolyn Paulin (The WFMT Radio Network)
Coordinating Producer: Miriam Lewin
Project Manager: Christie Finn
Writer for After Wagner: Susan Youens, University of Notre Dame
Song listings with composer / poet, performers, CD label, and CD number are listed below.
Wagner: Operatic Highlights; Strauss: Tone Poems / Klemperer
“Träume” (“Dreams”), from the Wesendonck Lieder (1857-8)
Composer: Richard Wagner (1813-1883)
Text: Mathilde Wesendonck (1828-1902)
Christa Ludwig, mezzo soprano
Philharmonia Orchestra
Otto Klemperer, conductor
Warner Classics: 484682
Liszt: The Complete Songs, Vol. 1
“Le juif errant” (“The Wandering Jew”) (1847)
Composer: Franz Liszt (1811-1886)
Text: Pierre-Jean de Béranger (1780-1857)
Adrian Eröd, baritone
Charles Spencer, piano
Marsyas: 1806
Wolf: Lieder
“Gesellenlied” (“An Apprentice’s Song”), from Drei Gedichte von Robert Reinick
Composer: Hugo Wolf (1860-1903)
Text: Robert Reinick (1805-1852)
Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, baritone
Daniel Barenboim, piano
(composed 1888, published 1897)
Deutsche Grammophon: 001408202
Hugo Wolf: Songs To The Poetry Of Goethe And Mörike
“Erstes Liebeslied eines Mädchens” (“A Maiden’s First Love Song”), from Gedichte von Eduard Mörike
Composer: Hugo Wolf (1860-1903)
Text: Eduard Mörike (1804-1875)
Arleen Auger, soprano
Irwin Gage, piano
(composed 1888, published 1889)
Hyperion: 66590
Richard Strauss: Lieder
“Der Arbeitsmann” (“The Worker”), from Fünf Lieder, Op. 39 (1898)
Composer: Richard Strauss (1864-1949)
Text: Richard Dehmel (1863-1920)
Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, baritone
Gerald Moore, piano
Warner Classics 8473823: 8473823
Mahler: Des Knaben Wunderhorn Original Piano Versions (1993)
“Das irdische Leben” (“Earthly Live”), from Des Knaben Wunderhorn (1892-3)
Composer: Gustav Mahler (1860-1911)
Text: Des Knaben Wunderhorn
Thomas Hampson, baritone
Geoffrey Parsons, piano
Teldec 174726: 174726
French Songs: Chausson / Debussy / Ravel
“Les temps des lilas” (“Lilac Time”) (1886), later part of Poème de l’amour et de la mer
Composer: Ernest Chausson (1855-1899)
Text: Maurice Bouchor (1855-1929)
Jan DeGaetani, mezzo soprano
Gilbert Kalish, piano
Arabesque: Z6673
Forgotten Songs
“C’est l’extase langoureuse” (“It is languorous ecstasy”) (1885-7), revised as part of Ariettes oubliées (1903)
Composer: Claude Debussy (1862-1918)
Text: Paul Verlaine (1844-1896)
Dawn Upshaw, soprano
James Levine, piano
Sony: 67190
Fauré: La Chanson D’ Eve and Other Songs
“Les roses d’Ispahan” (“The Roses of Ispahan”), Op. 39, No. 4 (1884)
Composer: Gabriel Fauré (1845-1924)
Text: Leconte de Lisle (1818-1894)
Dame Janet Baker, mezzo soprano
Geoffrey Parsons, piano
Hyperion: 66320
Songs of Amy Beach
“The Summer Wind,” from Four Songs, Op. 14, No. 1 (1890-1)
Composer: Amy Beach (1867-1944)
Text: Walter Learned (1847-1915)
Patrick Mason, baritone
Joanne Polk, piano
Bridge: 9182
Lied Edition Prey: Das Deutsche Lied vom Minnesang bis zur Moderne
“Auf dem Kirchhofe” (“In the Churchyard”), Op. 105, No. 4 (1888)
Composer: Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
Text: Detlev von Liliencron (1844-1909)
Hermann Prey, baritone
Gerald Moore, piano
Decca: Digital Download
Hans Hotter: Lieder & Opera Scenes, 1942-1973
“Alles endet, was entstehet” (“All that is created ends”), from Drei Gedichte von Michelangelo
Composer: Hugo Wolf (1860-1903)
Text: Michelangelo (1475-1564)
Hans Hotter, bass-baritone
Geoffrey Parsons, piano
(composed 1897, published 1898)
Deutsche Grammophon: 474006
Schoenberg: Complete Songs
“Abschied” (“Farewell”) from Zwei Gesänge, Op. 1 (1898)
Composer: Arnold Schoenberg (1874-1951)
Text: Karl von Levetzow (1871–1945)
Konrad Jarnot, baritone
Urs Liska, piano
Capriccio: 7120
