The same poem, one more song (XVI)

This article's poem is a part of the most well-known diptych in the repertoire, it is the one that Goethe published under the title Wandrers Nachtlied [Wanderer's Night Song]. It was accompanied, on the same page, by another poem called Ein gleiches, “one of equal”, that is, another wanderer's night song.

From the second poem in the diptych, which starts with the verse “Über allen Gipfeln ist Ruh” we heard years ago the Schubert’s version, Wandrers Nachtlied II, and over time we heard those of Schumann, Liszt and Sommer. However, we have only heard so far Schubert's version of the first poem, which begins with the verse “Der du vom den Himmel bist”, I realized not long ago. So this week, with a brief post due to an overly busy schedule, we will hear a second one, that of Carl Loewe. Yes, Carl Loewe, who is best known for his wonderful ballads but who also wrote beautiful Lieder.

As I told you when we listened to Schubert's Lied, the poem is a prayer for peace of mind, that begins with a phrase that sounds like the beginning of the German Lord's Prayer. Loewe's music also reflects this atmosphere of seclusion, and emphasizes the two final verses. As I usually say, the aim of these series is not to compare songs, but to pay attention to how the same verses inspire different composers in different ways. After all, isn't that what Lied is?

In his song Wandrers Nachtlied, Loewe conveys perfectly, in my opinion, the sweet peace that the poem speaks of, and the interpretation that we will listen, that of Konstantin Krimmel and Ammiel Bushakevitz, honours to the song.