Fin de Siècle#

Gustav Mahler: Kindertotenlieder, Nun will die Sonn so hell...#

Gustav Mahler

Perfectionism was characteristic for Gustav Mahler's way of living (1860 Kalischt/Moravia - 1911 Vienna) as well as the joy of pure sensuality, when as the director of the opera he thinks about family planning (Illustration: Mahler with his daughter Anna) but at the same time composes Kindertotenlieder (Songs on the Death of Children)(1900-1905). He conveys borderline emotional experiences in his song Nun will die Sonn so hell aufgehn. (Example) with chromaticism, relentless shifting back and forth or repetition, completely in the spirit of the Fin de siŠcle. He does justice to the cruelty of Fate in all its nuances, whether in his melodic construction or in the timbre of the vocal part which sometimes almost seems to be an instrument. (Compare: H.Wolf). Mahler's sensitivity to the effects of different sounds reaches its zenith in the works of Anton Webern (1883 Vienna - 1945 Mittersill/Salzburg). (M. Saary)

Sound Clip#