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Musicology:
In contrast to the somber songs of Opus 94, these are lighter, more folk-like, and mostly from the female point of view. Beyond this commonality of tone and style, there is no other particular connection.
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7 Lieder, Op.95Year: 1884
Genre: Solo Song / Lied / Chanson
Pr. Instrument: Voice
- 1.Das Mädchen
- 2.Bei dir sind meine Gedanken
- 3.Beim Abschied
- 4.Der Jäger
- 5.Vorschneller Schwur
- 6.Mädchenlied ('Am jüngsten Tag ich aufersteh')
- 7.Schön war, das ich dir weihte
1. Das Mädchen (The Maiden). A young woman daydreams about the possibility of different lovers: the horror of an old man, or the more pleasant prospect of a younger one. Brahms differentiates these dreams with an almost comical contrast of musical styles.
2. Bei dir sind meine Gedanken (My Thoughts Are with You). This song in simple strophic form depicts a young woman who cannot take her mind off her lover. The flightiness of her thoughts is depicted in the quick and restless figurations of the accompaniment.
3. Biem Abschied (At Parting), two versions. This is the only song in this Opus that is definitely from the male point of view. A young man is depressed by the absence of his lover. His anguish is illustrated in the fleeting accompaniment. This song exists in two versions. The first has the piano in the same meter as the voice, the second has it in a duple meter against the voice's triple, thus increasing the breathlessness of the song.
4. Der Jäger (The Hunter) is a typically romantic song where the maiden loves a hunter. The syncopated accompaniment and the boisterous vocal line invoke the brave and rugged hunter.
5. Vorschneller Schwur (Rash Oath). This song is similar to the first in its division into two parts, somber and lively. In the first, the maiden vows never to wear flowers, drink or kiss boys, in the second she regrets her oath and decides flowers, drink and kisses might be more fun.
6. Mädchenlied (Maiden's Song). This is a harmonically complex setting of a maiden who fears that after death she will be admitted to paradise, but her lover will not. The angular, chromatic melody seems out of place with the folk-like context of this text and the other songs of the Opus.
7. Schön war, das ich dir weihte (Fair Was My Present to You). A maiden's gifts and love are not returned in kind by her beloved. This seemingly simple and ingenuous setting is in fact subtly profound in its understated calm.
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