Charles Ives' early song "Songs My Mother Taught Me" (1895) betrays the influence of the European song tradition. Ives' setting, in fact, bears some resemblances to Dvorak's 1880 song on the same text (from Seven Gypsy Melodies, Op. 55). Still, there are already hints of the subtle harmonic and rhythmic nuances that flavored later, tonally based songs such as Two Little Flowers (1921). While the older Ives would often temper his wistfully nostalgic style with humor or irony, his treatment of the text in "Songs My Mother Taught Me" is unapologetically straightforward and sincere.



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