Brahms' Five Songs Op 104

Johannes Brahms
(1833-1897)

Johannes Brahms composed his Fünf Gesänge Op 104 in 1888, as a 55-year old bachelor. At this age in his composing career, the themes for his music were reflective and nostalgic. For this five-song cycle for mixed chorus a cappella, Brahms chose texts that centre on lost youth, summer turning into fall and, ultimately, man's mortality. The sombre nature of the texts coupled with intense soaring melodies and complex harmonies make it quite a demanding work for any choir.

1. Nachtwache I (poetry by Friedrich Rückert)

The musical writing reflects the frail beatings of a heart awakened by the breath of love about which the text speaks. Listen for how the dynamics alter swiftly from the soft to the very strong, which emulate the actual breathing of the narrator who seeks an answer to his love.

Gentle sounds of the soul,
inspired by the breath of love,
blow tremblingly forth,
if you open an ear,
open a loving heart,
and if none opens to you,
let the night wind carry you sighing back to me.

Leise Töne der Brust,
geweckt vom Odem der Liebe,
Hauchet zitternd hinaus,
ob sich euch [öffn']1 ein Ohr,
Öffn' ein liebendes Herz,
und wenn sich keines euch öffnet, 
Trag' ein Nachtwind euch seufzend in meines zurück.
 

2. Nachtwache II (poetry by Friedrich Rückert)

Listen for a more confident and reassuring tone in the music as well as in the text. The repeated calls of "Ruhn sie?" in all six voices is an imitation of the horns of the night watchmen, telling their listeners to confidently put out their lamps and let themselves be enveloped by the peaceful night.

Are they resting? the horn of the watchman calls from the west,
and from the east the horn calls a reply:
they rest.
Do you hear, apprehensive heart,
the whispering voices of angels?
Extinguish the lamp confidently,
and cover yourself in peace.

Ruh'n sie? rufet das Horn des Wächters drüben aus Westen, 
Und aus Osten das Horn rufet entgegen:
Sie ruh'n!
Hörst du, zagendes Herz,
die flüsternden Stimmen der Engel? 
Lösche die Lampe getrost,
hülle in Frieden dich ein.

3. Letztes Glück (poetry by Max Kalbeck)

Winter is coming; dead leaves from the trees are falling on each other—a picture wonderfully recreated in the music with its swiftly changing chords. These are followed by long and sad melodies in all parts. The piece temporarily switches to the major mode as the narrator experiences a feeling of hope that spring will swiftly come again, but this is quickly crushed by the image of the "late wild rose". But what -- or who -- is the "late wild rose"?

Leaf upon leaf floats lifelessly,
quietly and sadly from the trees;
its hopes never satisfied,
the heart dwells in dreams of spring.

Yet a sunny glance still lingers
in the late-blooming rose bush,
like one last bit of happiness -
a sweet hopelessness.

Letztes Glück
Leblos gleitet Blatt um Blatt
Still und traurig von den Bäumen;
Seines Hoffens nimmer satt,
Lebt das Herz in Frühlingsträumen. 

Noch verweilt ein Sonnenblick
Bei den späten Hagerosen,
Wie bei einem letzten Glück,
Einem süßen, hoffnungslosen.

4. Verlorene Jugend (Slovak folksong, translated into German by Josef Wenzig)

This is the most lively and boisterous song in the series. Listen for how the song has two verses, both of which can be divided into a fast and slow part. Once more, the aging of man is contrasted with nature, particularly in the end.

The mountains all bluster,
the woods murmur all about,
my days of youth,
where have you so soon gone?

Youth, precious youth,
you have flown from me;
o lovely youth,
so heedless was my mind!

I lost you regrettably,
as when one takes a stone
and flings it away
into a stream.

Sometimes a stone can be reversed in its course and return from the deep flood -
but I know that youth
will never do the same thing.

Brausten alle Berge, 
Sauste rings der Wald, 
Meine jungen Tage, 
Wo sind sie so bald? 

Jugend, teure Jugend,
Flohest mir dahin;
O du holde Jugend,
Achtlos war mein Sinn! 

Ich verlor dich leider,
Wie wenn einen Stein
Jemand von sich schleudert
In die Flut hinein. 

Wendet sich der Stein auch
Um in tiefer Flut,
Weiss ich, dass die Jugend
Doch kein Gleiches tut.

5. Im Herbst (poetry by Klaus Groth)

This is where the mixed emotions of the previous songs come together to form an impressive climax to the song cycle. The parts are repeatedly intertwined and small intervals apart, which creates an image of the inevitability of man's own autumn that heralds death. Listen for the pitch and dynamic contrast for the third verse, and the quiet, meditative way Brahms ends the cycle.

Somber is the autumn,
and when the leaves fall,
so does the heart sink
into dreary woe.
Silent is the meadow
and to the south have flown
silently all the songbirds,
as if to the grave.

Pale is the day,
and wan clouds veil
the sun as they veil the heart.
Night comes early:
for all work comes to a halt
and existence itself rests in profound secrecy.

Man becomes kindly.
He sees the sun sinking,
he realizes that life is
like the end of a year.
His eye grows moist,
yet in the midst of his tears shines
streaming from the heart
a blissful effusion.

Ernst ist der Herbst. 
Und wenn die Blätter fallen,
sinkt auch das Herz
zu trübem Weh herab.
Still ist die Flur, 
und nach dem Süden wallen
die Sänger, stumm,
wie nach dem Grab.

Bleich ist der Tag,
und blasse Nebel schleiern
die Sonne wie die Herzen, ein.
Früh kommt die Nacht: 
denn alle Kräfte feiern, 
und tief verschlossen ruht das Sein.

Sanft wird der Mensch.
Er sieht die Sonne sinken,
er ahnt des Lebens
wie des Jahres Schluß.
Feucht wird das Aug',
doch in der Träne Blinken,
entströmt des Herzens
seligster Erguß.

Listen to the world-famous Monteverdi Choir, conducted by John Eliot Gardiner, perform this marvellous song cycle.

A few of Tim's favourite things

“This concert could be titled “Some of my favourite choral music”.”

— Tim Shantz

When you're as experienced a musician as Timothy Shantz, there's a lot of music you can put into a concert. So why did he choose these four pieces specifically -- works by Johannes Brahms, Frank Martin, Arvo Pärt and Tarik O'Regan -- to open Luminous Voices' fifth-anniversary season?

Tickets -- http://berlinermesse.bpt.me
Season subscriptions -- http://luminousvoices1718.bpt.me

Enlightenment on a sacred Brahms motet

One of the a cappella works we will feature at our season-opening concert on Sunday 15 October is the sacred Johannes Brahms motet "Warum ist Licht gegeben dem Muhseligen", from his Opus 74. The motet, which translates as "Why is light given to him that is in misery", uses Biblical texts with added text from Martin Luther. If you are familiar with and enjoy Brahms' German Requiem, you will love this motet.

Johannes Brahms (1833-1897) is widely regarded as one of the preeminent German composers of the 19th century.

Background

Brahms wrote this motet in 1877, during what has been described as a period of "high maturity". After 15 years, Brahms felt inspired to compose unaccompanied sacred choral music, and the "Warum" motet from his Opus 74 is a real standout.

Brahms describes the motet as “A little essay about the great ‘Why’, especially in stark contrast to his sunnier Symphony No. 2. The "Warum" motet as a whole has a great emotional impact, whether it be the anguished cries of “Warum?” in the first section or the joyous six-voice counterpoint in the second and third sections.

The motet has four distinct sections.

1. The opening section is severe and imposing in the key of D minor, the key often used during the 19th century to characterize melancholy. Listen to how Brahms sets the Biblical texts from the Book of Job, particularly for the anguished cries of "Warum" throughout.
    
2. A canonic setting in six parts in the key of F major, the key of complaisance and calm. Here, Brahms sets text from the Book of Lamentations by the prophet Jeremiah, Lasset uns unser Herz samt den Händen aufheben zu Gott im Himmel (Let us lift up our heart
   with our hands unto God in the heavens).
    
3. The third section (Siehe, wir) is in two parts, set to words from the Letter of St. James in the New Testament. The second part of this section begins with the words Die Geduld Hiob (The Patience of Job), which echoes back to the text of the first section. Melodically, this second part also develops into a recap of the second section (Lasset uns).
    
4. The final section is a chorale that sets the words of the Lutheran Nunc Dimittis by Martin Luther. In it, death is seen not as something to be feared, but rather as a will of God and the fulfillment of a promise. Perhaps it's fitting that Brahms sets this section in the key D major, which is the key of Handel's "Glory to God", "Worthy is the Lamb" and "Hallelujah" movements from Messiah, and the triumphant conclusion to Beethoven's Symphony No. 9.

Forming musical roots

For Timothy Shantz, founder and artistic director of Luminous Voices, the "Warum" motet is a beloved choral work. "It is music that seemingly forms my own musical roots in counterpoint and romanticism," says Shantz. "He was a composer who carried the great German musical and choral traditions of Schütz and Bach deep into the 19th century yet with his own rhythmic style and personal sense of expression. Those musical ideas are encapsulated in this motet." Indeed, Bach's influence is strong in this motet, such as the use of counterpoint and the structure of the motet, right down to its concluding harmonized chorale.

YOUTUBE: Watch and listen to the La Maîtrise de l'Académie Vocale de Paris, directed by Iain Simcock, perform the motet in 2011.

Translations:

Accessed 06 October 2017, http://www.kellydeanhansen.com/opus74.html

From Job 3:20-23

Warum ist das Licht gegeben dem Mühseligen,
und das Leben den betrübten Herzen,
Die des Todes warten und kommt nicht,
und grüben ihn wohl aus dem Verborgenen,
Die sich fast freuen und sind fröhlich,
daß sie das Grab bekommen,
Und dem Manne, deß Weg verborgen ist,
und Gott vor ihm denselben bedecket?

Wherefore is light given to him that is in misery,
and life unto the bitter in soul;
Which long for death, but it cometh not;
and dig for it more than for hid treasures;
Which rejoice exceedingly, and are glad,
when they can find the grave?
Why is light given to a man whose way is hid,
and whom God hath hedged in?
 

From Lamentations 3:41

Lasset uns unser Herz
samt den Händen aufheben
zu Gott im Himmel.

Let us lift up our heart
with our hands
unto God in the heavens.

From James 5:11

Siehe, wir preisen selig,
die erduldet haben.
Die Geduld Hiob habt ihr gehöret,
und das Ende des Herrn habt ihr gesehen;
denn der Herr ist barmherzig,
und ein Erbarmer.

Behold, we count them happy
which endure.
Ye have heard of the patience of Job,
and have seen the end of the Lord;
that the Lord is very pitiful,
and of tender mercy.

From Martin Luther

Mit Fried und Freud ich fahr dahin,
in Gottes Willen,
getrost ist mir mein Herz und Sinn,
sanft und stille.
Wie Gott mir verheissen hat:
der Tod ist mir Schlaf worden.

With peace and joy I travel to that place,
according to God's will;
my heart and soul are comforted,
gently and quietly.
As god has promised me,
death has become sleep to me.