Songs
Der Knabe
(1820)
D692
Der Knabe
Wenn ich nur ein Vöglein wäre,Ach, wie wollt’ ich lustig fliegen,Alle Vögel weit besiegen.Wenn ich so ein Vogel bin,Darf ich, alles haschen,Und die höchsten Kirschen naschen;Fliege dann zur Mutter hin.Ist sie bös in ihrem Sinn,Kann ich lieb mich an sie schmiegen,Ihren Ernst gar bald besiegen.Bunte Federn, leichte FlügelDürft’ ich in der Sonne schwingen,Dass die Lüfte laut erklingen,Weiss nichts mehr von Band und Zügel.Wär’ ich über jene Hügel,Ach, dann wollt’ ich lustig fliegen,Alle Vögel weit besiegen.
The boy
If only I were a bird,ah, how joyfully I would fly,far outstripping all other birds.If I were a birdI could get everythingand nibble the highest cherries.Then I’d fly back to mother.If she were angryI could nestle sweetly up to herand soon overcome her sternness.Coloured feathers, light wings,I could flap them in the sunlight,so that the air resounded loudly,I would no longer be curbed and shackled.If I were beyond those hills,ah, how joyfully I would fly,far outstripping all other birds.
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Composer
Franz Peter Schubert was an late Classical and early Romantic composer. He produced a vast oeuvre during his short life, composing more the 600 vocal works (largely Lieder), and well as several symphonies, operas, and a large body of piano music. He was uncommonly gifted from a young age, but appreciation of his music was limited during his lifetime. His work became more popular in the decades after his death, and was praised by 19th century composers, including Mendelssohn, Schumann, Brahms, and Liszt.
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Poet
Karl Wilhelm Friedrich (after 1814: von) Schlegel was a German poet, literary critic, philosopher, philologist and indologist. With his older brother, August Wilhelm Schlegel, he was one of the main figures of the Jena romantics. He was a zealous promoter of the Romantic movement and inspired Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Adam Mickiewicz and Kazimierz Brodziński. Schlegel was a pioneer in Indo-European studies, comparative linguistics, in what became known as Grimm's law, and morphological typology. As a young man he was an atheist, a radical, and an individualist. Ten years later, the same Schlegel converted to Catholicism. Around 1810 he was a diplomat and journalist in the service of Metternich, surrounded by monks and pious men of society.
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Der Knabe
The boy
If you would like to use our texts and translations, please click here for more information.
Composer
Franz Peter Schubert was an late Classical and early Romantic composer. He produced a vast oeuvre during his short life, composing more the 600 vocal works (largely Lieder), and well as several symphonies, operas, and a large body of piano music. He was uncommonly gifted from a young age, but appreciation of his music was limited during his lifetime. His work became more popular in the decades after his death, and was praised by 19th century composers, including Mendelssohn, Schumann, Brahms, and Liszt.
Information from Wikipedia. Read more here.
See Full Entry
Poet
Karl Wilhelm Friedrich (after 1814: von) Schlegel was a German poet, literary critic, philosopher, philologist and indologist. With his older brother, August Wilhelm Schlegel, he was one of the main figures of the Jena romantics. He was a zealous promoter of the Romantic movement and inspired Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Adam Mickiewicz and Kazimierz Brodziński. Schlegel was a pioneer in Indo-European studies, comparative linguistics, in what became known as Grimm's law, and morphological typology. As a young man he was an atheist, a radical, and an individualist. Ten years later, the same Schlegel converted to Catholicism. Around 1810 he was a diplomat and journalist in the service of Metternich, surrounded by monks and pious men of society.
Taken from Wikipedia. To view the full article, please click here.
See Full Entry
Sorry, no further description available.
About Oxford Lieder
Oxford Lieder is one of the world's leading promoters of song and the winner of a prestigious Royal Philharmonic Society Award. The focal point of each year is the two-week Oxford Lieder Festival in October.
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