In Das Lied von der Erde, Gustav Mahler fused the two forms that most
obsessed him -- song and symphony -- into a masterpiece that epitomized
his musical genius and the very spirit of late Romanticism. It is a work
of stunning power, one that musical artists and audiences worldwide have
made a repertoire favorite, and it is reprinted here from the original
full score published in Vienna by Universal-Edition in 1912.
Based on a cycle of six poems translated from the Chinese by Hans
Bethge, Das Lied von der Erde, scored for tenor, alto (or baritone),
and orchestra, expresses a dualism of feeling -- ecstatic pleasure
shadowed by dark foreboding -- that characterizes not only Mahler
himself but the peculiarly autumnal mood of late Romanticism as well.
Throughout, Mahler calls on the orchestra to suggest the exotic
atmosphere summoned by the text, and to sustain and supplement the solos
with all its resources, both in the accompaniment and the extensive
connecting interludes.
This sturdily bound, finely produced full score, containing an English
translation of the song text is printed on fine-quality paper. It offers
both amateur and professional singers and musicians -- along with music
lovers who enjoy following a love or recorded performance, score in hand
-- a lifetime of pleasurable study and intimate enjoyment of one of the
most celebrated classics of 20th-century music.