Performers
- Nataša Mirković voice
- Matthias Loibner hurdy-gurdy
Programme
Franz Schubert Winter Journey (Winterreise), Op. 89 D.911 [70’]
Good Night (Gute Nacht. Mässig)
The Weathervane (Die Wetterfahne. Ziemlich geschwind)
Frozen Tears (Gefrorne Tränen. Nicht zu langsam)
Numbness (Erstarrung. Ziemlich schnell)
The Linden Tree (Der Lindenbaum. Mässig)
Flood (Wasserflut. Langsam)
On the Stream (Auf dem Flusse. Langsam)
Backward Glance (Rückblick. Nicht zu geschwind)
Will-o’-the-Wisp (Irrlicht. Langsam)
Rest (Rast. Mässig)
Dream of Spring (Frühlingstraum. Etwas bewegt)
Loneliness (Einsamkeit. Langsam)
The Post (Die Post. Etwas geschwind)
The Grey Head (Der greise Kopf. Etwas langsam)
The Crow (Die Krähe. Etwas langsam)
Last Hope (Letzte Hoffnung. Nicht zu geschwind)
In the Village (Im Dorfe. Etwas langsam)
The Stormy Morning (Der stürmische Morgen. Ziemlich geschwind, doch kräftig)
Deception (Täuschung. Etwas geschwind)
The Signpost (Der Wegweiser. Mässig)
The Inn (Das Wirtshaus. Sehr langsam)
Courage! (Mut. Ziemlich geschwind, kräftig)
The Mock Suns (Die Nebensonnen. Nicht zu langsam)
The Hurdy-Gurdy Player (Der Leiermann. Etwas langsam)
Concert description
Fremd bin ich eingezogen, / fremd zieh ich wieder aus (I came here as a stranger, / As a stranger I leave again; translated by M. Lester). The very opening of Winter Journey, an all-time song cycle, already reveals its character and main subject. It is a study of alienation, maladjustment. The Romantic hero – misunderstood and rejected by the world – has got a perfect, timeless portrait in Wilhelm Müller’s poems immortalized by Schubert. Winterreise is not a journey in the colloquial sense. It has no definite physical, geographic destination (it may only end in death), becoming an eternal wandering.
Schubert’s masterpiece, although perfect for piano, was also transcribed for other instruments. It tempts singers, instrumentalists, and arrangers, who sometimes record and perform it many times, trying to penetrate its mystery. Sometimes they even become obsessed with it (a word used by Ian Bostridge in the title of his famous book). However, the arrangement for hurdy-gurdy and voice – especially the final Der Leiermann (The Hurdy-Gurdy Man) – is special. It shows Schubert’s perfect ear and unique sensibility with the most clarity. Winterreise goes back to its roots.
– Dominika Micał, “Ruch Muzyczny”