Schubert's song cycle, Die schöne Müllerin, is based on poems by Wilhelm Müller, which were originally part of a 'Liederspiel' (song-play) created by a group of artists and intellectuals in Berlin.
Instruments
The fortepiano used in this recording is a Conrad Graf from Vienna, built in 1835.
Composition History
The poems for Die schöne Müllerin were published in an anthology with the Romantic title 'Seventy-seven Poems from the Posthumous Papers of a Travelling Horn-Player'.
Critical Reception
Wilhelm Müller, the poet of Die schöne Müllerin, died without knowing that Schubert had set his words to music, fulfilling his wish for a 'kindred spirit' to hear the tunes behind his words.
Cultural Impact
The story of the miller maid and her suitors, which inspired Die schöne Müllerin, is a very old scenario dating back to the Middle Ages, with versions found across Europe.
Composer Biography
Schubert began composing Die schöne Müllerin after discovering he had contracted syphilis, a disease he knew would lead to madness, paralysis, and death.
Compositional Technique
Schubert's cycle omits two of Müller's poems that vividly portray the miller lad's revulsion and female sexuality, resulting in a gentler death for Schubert's protagonist.
