ELEVEN ZIGEUNERLIEDER (GYPSY SONGS) FOR VOCAL QUARTET, OP. 103 (Nos. 1-7, 11 also arranged for solo voice and piano)
Recording: Juliane Banse, soprano; Ingeborg Danz, mezzo-soprano; Christoph Prégardien, tenor; Andreas Schmidt, baritone; Helmut Deutsch, piano [CPO 777 537-2]
Recording of Solo Version: Iris Vermillion, mezzo-soprano; Helmut Deutsch, piano [
CPO 999 840-2]
Published 1888.  Solo version published 1889.

These pieces provided Brahms and his circle of friends with unbridled enthusiasm and enjoyment.  Composed for pure pleasure in the wake of his final orchestral composition, the Double Concerto, the songs combine elements from some of his most popular and commercially successful works.  Like the two sets of Liebeslieder waltzes, they are a sequence of shorter vocal quartet pieces in a single meter with a unified text source.  Like the Hungarian Dances, they glorify and exalt the csárdás, the 2/4 dance type closely associated with Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsodies.  The Viennese businessman Hugo Conrat had employed a Hungarian-born nanny, Fräulein Witzel, who translated 25 Hungarian folk song texts into German.  Conrat worked these into rhymed verse, and they were published in 1887 with the original folk melodies, given piano accompaniments by Zoltán Nagy.  Conrat shared the texts with the composer of the ubiquitously popular Hungarian Dances, who eagerly went to work after his own brief winter holiday in Budapest, selecting eleven to set as vocal quartets with piano and calling them Zigeunerlieder (Gypsy Songs).  For Brahms and others of the time, “Hungarian” and “Gypsy” were virtually interchangeable.  An informal performance was arranged with Fräulein Witzel in attendance.  The settings are all very short, and a complete performance lasts about 16 minutes.  Most of them are in a hybrid strophic binary form with some internal repetition.  All of them are in 2/4 time, but the tempo and texture are varied.  The introductory melodic presentation is often given to a solo voice (the tenor in most instances).  Brahms did not refer directly to the original folk melodies (unlike the Hungarian Dances, which he considered “arrangements” and published without opus number), but there is a sense of “ethnic authenticity.”  There are irregular phrase lengths, major/minor alterations (only the first two begin and end in minor), and even an imitation of the Hungarian cimbalom in No. 10.  References to other instruments, such as the zither, concertina, or “gypsy” violin are also present.  Friends such as Clara Schumann, Elisabeth von Herzogenberg, and Theodor Billroth were utterly delighted by the Zigeunerlieder, and the correspondence regarding them is unusually large.  Brahms himself referred to them as “excessively jolly stuff.”  The correspondence of the long-short rhythm in Nos. 1 and 11 is obviously meant to tie the set together.  The piano parts are challenging but generally manageable.  Their popularity led to the composition of four more Zigeunerlieder that were included in the set of six quartets, Op. 112.  There was also demand for solo voice arrangements, which Brahms provided for the first seven and the last.  Nos. 8-10, which contain more counterpoint, imitation, and antiphonal writing, were not suitable for such arrangements.  The existence of these solo versions is somewhat unfortunate, as the quartet writing is so exhilarating.  In 1983, when the first “complete” Brahms recording project was undertaken by Deutsche Grammophon, the solo versions led the producers to only include Nos. 8-10 in quartet recordings, an utterly inexcusable choice.  Recordings existed with small choirs (a valid alternative approved by Brahms), but a true quartet recording of the full set was unavailable until 2017.  The solo versions were published in high and low keys, the low keys a major or minor third lower than the original quartet.  The “high” keys match the original except for No. 7, which is a half-step higher.  A much later “middle key” edition was published by Peters, consistently a whole step below the high key.  The solo voice generally takes the soprano line (or the tenor line when that voice has a solo passage in the quartet), and the piano parts are mostly unchanged.  The biggest change is at the end of No. 1, which omits a powerful cadence figure and culminating final statement to close quietly.

Note: Links to English translations of the texts are from Emily Ezust’s site at http://www.lieder.net.  For the most part, the translations are line-by-line, except where the difference between German and English syntax requires slight alterations to the contents of certain lines.  The German texts (included here) are also visible in the translation links.

All texts translated from the Hungarian by Hugo Conrat.  Guides to solo versions based on quartet guides.

IMSLP WORK PAGE
ONLINE SCORE FROM IMSLP (First Edition from Brahms-Institut Lübeck--includes quartet version and [oddly but fortuitously] the LOW key solo edition)

ONLINE SCORE FROM IMSLP (Quartet version from Breitkopf & Härtel Sämtliche Werke)

ONLINE SCORE FROM IMSLP (Solo version from Breitkopf & Härtel Sämtliche Werke--high/original keys)


1. “He, Zigeuner, greife in die Saiten ein!” (“Hey, Gypsy, pluck your strings!”).  Allegro agitato - Più Presto.  Rounded binary form with recapitulatory coda (AA’BB’A’’B’’).  A MINOR, 2/4 time.

German Text:
He, Zigeuner, greife in die Saiten ein!
Spiel das Lied vom ungetreuen Mägdelein!
Laß die Saiten weinen, klagen, traurig bange,
Bis die heiße Träne netzet diese Wange!

English Translation

QUARTET VERSION
0:00 [m. 1]--Lines 1-2 (A).  The piano forcefully drums a two-measure opening with a clipped inward-moving figure of two sixteenth notes on the first half of the beat and a rest on the second half, moving lower in the second measure.  When the tenor alone enters with the first two lines, this clipped motion continues in the left hand with static octaves on A under the first phrase and more motion of the octaves under the second.  The right hand has undulating triplets in harmony against it, sotto voce ma agitato.  The first six-bar vocal phrase soars up, then works down in long-short rhythm, staying on A minor.  The second phrase is highly disjunct, including a huge upward leap of a ninth that works down to the “dominant” on E.
0:13 [m. 15]--Lines 1-2 repeated (A’).  All four voices now repeat the lines in full harmony, the melody in the soprano.  The piano’s undulating triplets are slightly altered to shadow the tenor melody.  In the second line, there is rhythmic variation between the voices, with straight quarter-note motion placed against long-short rhythms, either in the harmony or the melody.  The volume swells toward the huge melodic leap.
0:21 [m. 27]--Lines 3-4 (B).  The tenor now presents these two lines with the same piano figuration.  The third line is sung to a new melody that begins in A major and still exploits the long-short rhythm, moving down then up, with expressive downward-leaning “appoggiatura” motion on “weinen, klagen.”  The word “bange” is stretched out, the first syllable held over a bar line before moving, expanding the phrase to eight measures, moving to the “dominant.”  The fourth line closely resembles the first line from A, creating a “rounded binary” effect.  It closes on A harmony, vacillating between minor and major.  This time the vocal phrase is stretched to seven measures, and the piano continues its undulation for an eighth.
0:36 [m. 43]--Lines 3-4 repeated (B’).  The voices again repeat the lines in harmony.  This time the piano is unchanged from the tenor’s presentation.  Again, there is contrasting motion, straight quarter notes against long-short rhythms, and the alto even has some upward leaps in eighth notes.  The extended word “bange” creates an opportunity for highly expressive internal motion, syncopation, and asynchronous text.  After the second phrase concludes, including the piano’s extension, the triplet figuration suddenly stops, and a forceful two-measure cadence gesture emphatically asserts A minor, leading into the recapitulatory coda.
0:51 [m. 61]--Coda, lines 1-2 (A”). Più presto.  Now faster and at full volume, the first two lines are sung again in harmony.  The soprano is obviously the same as before, but there is some exchange and variation in the alto and tenor parts, and some shifting of register in the bass.  The piano figuration is changed to an even more exciting pattern.  The “clipped” figures are removed from the bass, and the undulating triplets are now passed between the hands, with the triplets usually starting in one hand and finishing in another, the right hand “resetting” things at the bar lines while the left reaches down for low bass punctuation.
1:01 [m. 73]--Coda, lines 3-4 (B”).  In the recapitulatory statement of these lines, there is less variation and exchange of the parts, and it is completely absent from the point of the extended “bange” on.  The piano figuration reverts to its previous pattern under “bange,” but then changes back to the triplets passed between the hands.  In the last three vocal measures, the pattern changes to the descending right hand following rising octaves from the left hand. 
1:12 [m. 87]--At the vocal cadence, the piano reverts to its previous undulating patterns, and the extension is stretched to three measures, quieting rapidly over a shift from major to minor, then yielding to the suddenly forceful cadence gesture, which is expanded to three measures by the concluding arrival chord.
1:22--END OF SONG [93 mm.]

SOLO VERSION (A minor, Low key F minor)
0:00 [m. 1]--Lines 1-2 (A).  The piano opening is as in the quartet version.  The solo voice sings the original solo tenor line.  The sotto voce ma agitato triplets in the right hand are mostly as in the quartet version, with very minor alterations.
0:13 [m. 15]--Lines 1-2 repeated (A’).  The solo voice takes the original soprano line.  Because all four voices entered here in the quartet version, Brahms varies the accompaniment to provide variety in the solo version.  The triplets had shadowed the tenor line, which here is not present.  Now they follow the main vocal line, and they are also placed in a lower octave, in the tenor register.  In the second line, the right-hand triplets return to their original level from the quartet version.
0:23 [m. 27]--Lines 3-4 (B).  The solo voice sings the original solo tenor line, and the piano accompaniment is as in the quartet version.
0:36 [m. 27]--Lines 3-4 repeated (B).  Here there is a simple repeat sign where the four voices had entered in harmony.  The forceful cadence gesture is completely omitted, as is the entire recapitulatory coda.
0:49 [m. 43]--Instead of the dramatic cadence gesture from the quartet, here the piano undulation simply continues, shifting from major to minor and becoming quieter (as at the end of the quartet).  After two measures, the triplets stop, and the piano simply closes pianissimo with a low open third and two open fourths over a bass A.  The distinctive, memorable cadence gesture is not heard at all in the solo version.
0:58--END OF SONG [47 mm.]


2. “Hochgetürmte Rimaflut” (“High-towering River Rima”).  Allegro molto.  Rounded binary form.  D MINOR, 2/4 time.

German Text:
Hochgetürmte Rimaflut,
Wie bist du so trüb;
An dem Ufer klag ich
Laut nach dir, mein Lieb!

Wellen fliehen, Wellen strömen,
Rauschen an dem Strand heran zu mir.
An dem Rimaufer laß mich
Ewig weinen nach ihr!

English Translation

QUARTET VERSION
0:00 [m. 1]--Part 1.  Stanza 1, lines 1-2.  The voices begin in forceful unison, presenting a distinctive main gesture with a long-short downward turn and a descending octave leap.  The piano shadows this, with the right hand following the left off the beat, harmonizing the first note.  The voices then break into harmony, the soprano and alto gliding down in thirds with the long-short rhythm, the tenor leaping up and back down, and the bass punctuating in straight rhythm.  The piano has harmonized downward-leaping figures in the left hand, with the right hand shadowing the melodic motion off the beat.  The “dominant” arrival is decorated with a “weeping” grace note in the upper voices and in the piano’s phrase-completing extension.
0:07 [m. 9]--Lines 3-4.  The answering phrase begins with the same opening gesture, but in the harmonized continuation, the soprano and alto begin their descent a step higher, the harmony turning to the “relative” F major.  The tenor and bass both have arching motion in straight rhythm.  The voices, with another “sobbing” soprano grace note, complete a full D-minor cadence, but this is undermined by the piano.  While bass octaves in the left hand support the cadence, the off-beat right hand harmonies under the vocal cadence and in the extension (with grace note) divert toward G minor and a “plagal” approach to the repeat.
0:14 [m. 1]--Part 1 repeated.  Stanza 1, lines 1-2 as at the beginning.
0:20 [m. 9]--Lines 3-4, as at 0:07.
0:26 [m. 17]--Part 2.  Stanza 2, lines 1-2.  For the ten-bar contrasting phrase, the voices lower their volume and steadily build in fully harmonized “waves,” surging up three times in succession.  The bass and piano left hand preserve the opening gesture through the first two of these “waves.”  The right hand continues to play off the beat, now alternating between “diminished seventh” and “dominant seventh” harmonies, lending a sense of instability.  When the climax is reached with the top of the third “wave” in the middle of the second line, the voices plunge down.  The tenor reaches a high B-flat and the bass has leaping octaves.  The piano abandons the off-beat patterns, harmonizing and extending the descent and “dominant” arrival.
0:35 [m. 27]--Lines 3-4.  The closing phrase is a variant of the second phrase from Part 1.  The opening gesture returns, but it is extended by a measure, with the soprano and bass twice singing the initial downward turn.  The alto and tenor diverge from the original unison, singing long notes to the words “an dem Ufer,” removing the name of the river “Rima.”  The descent begins yet another step higher with new harmonization (and a weaker emphasis on F major), but it soon returns to the original level from the end of Part 1, with the descent to the D-minor cadence, complete with “sobbing” grace note.  The piano, with its bass octaves doubling the vocal bass, now fully supports the cadence, trailing down in the middle range.
0:43 [m. 17]--Part 2 repeated.  Stanza 2, lines 1-2, as at 0:26.
0:52 [m. 27]--Lines 3-4, as at 0:35.  The nine-bar phrase is extended by a final held chord in the piano, the right hand following the left’s low bass note in the middle range, and inflecting the chord to major.
1:06--END OF SONG [37 mm.]

SOLO VERSION (D minor, Low key B-flat minor)
0:01 [m. 1]--Part 1.  Stanza 1, lines 1-2.  The solo voice sings the original soprano line, and the piano part is as in the quartet version.  The “weeping” grace note is retained in the voice and piano.
0:08 [m. 9]--Lines 3-4.  In the answering phrase, Brahms indicates an option for the voice to leap up and sing an octave higher on the last three measures of the descent (“dir, mein Lieb!”), including the grace note.  The original full descent is preferred.  He also places a very small deviation in the piano part on the first of these measures, adding an upper octave note to the right hand.
0:15 [m. 1]--Part 1 repeated.  Stanza 1, lines 1-2.
0:22 [m. 9]--Lines 3-4, as at 0:08.  Vermillion sings the upper octave option here.
0:29 [m. 17]--Part 2.  Stanza 2, lines 1-2.  In the contrasting phrase, there are no changes in the piano part.  The solo voice follows the original soprano through the climax up to the held note on “mir.”  At that point, the voice switches to the original tenor note (up to held note on E instead of down to B-natural), resulting in a more dramatic downward leap (to A) than the original stepwise descent of the quartet soprano line.  The lowering of volume at the beginning of the phrase is also marked piano instead of simply mezzo forte.
0:39 [m. 27]--Lines 3-4.  For the closing phrase, the voice follows the original soprano line, with the option again of leaping to the higher octave on the last three measures of the descent (“weinen nach ihr!”).  The piano again adds the upper octave note to the right hand at the same point as in the second phrase of Part 1.  The grace notes in the voice and piano are omitted here, and the notes of the last long-short rhythm in the penultimate vocal measure (m. 33) are straightened out, as they were in all voices except the soprano.
0:47 [m. 17]--Part 2 repeated.  Stanza 2, lines 1-2, as at 0:29.
0:57 [m. 27]--Lines 3-4, as at 0:39.  Vermillion again sings the upper octave option.  The extension with the final chord inflected to major is unchanged.
1:12--END OF SONG [37 mm.]


3. “Wißt ihr, wann mein Kindchen am allerschönsten ist?” (“Do you know when my beloved is the fairest?”).  Allegretto - Allegro.  Strophic form with repeated “choral” refrain.  D MAJOR, 2/4 time.

German Text:
Wißt ihr, wann mein Kindchen am allerschönsten ist?
Wenn ihr süßes Mündchen scherzt und lacht und küßt.
Mägdelein, du bist mein, inniglich küß ich dich,
Dich erschuf der liebe Himmel einzig nur für mich!

Wißt ihr, wann mein Liebster am besten mir gefällt?
Wenn in seinen Armen er mich umschlungen hält.
Schätzelein, du bist mein, inniglich küß ich dich,
Dich erschuf der liebe Himmel einzig nur für mich!

English Translation

QUARTET VERSION
(NB: The measure numbering here follows the Breitkopf & Härtel Sämtliche Werke, with both verses written out.  Other editions are notated like the solo version, with a Da capo following the interlude and with the words for the first and second verses under the tenor and soprano, respectively, of the Allegretto.)
0:00 [m. 1]--Stanza (strophe) 1.  Lines 1-2.  Each verse opens with an “Allegretto” section for solo voice.  In the first verse, that is the tenor.  The melody lightly skips along, with the piano right hand playing short marching staccato harmonies.  The piano bass comically imitates the voice twice under the first, “questioning” line.  The right-hand harmonies are smoother under the “answering” second line and marked dolce.  This time, the imitation is in high octaves as the harmonies are passed to the left hand.  After the singer finishes the “answer” with a full close, the piano reiterates it and extends the phrase a ninth measure.
0:13 [m. 10]--Lines 3-4 (refrain).  These lines, mostly the same in both verses, are treated as a refrain, sung forte by the full quartet.  The tempo speeds up to Allegro.  Line 3 is sung in joyous harmonies to anapestic (short-short-long) rhythms.  The piano right hand doubles the soprano and alto, while the left hand erupts into fast sixteenth-note arpeggios.  Line 4 treats the voices in pairs and is two bars longer.  The soprano and alto begin, surging upward to a climax in long-short rhythms.  The tenor and bass follow a beat later and omit the words “liebe” and “einzig.”  The piano’s figures are directed upward.  The voices cadence in the fifth measure, and the piano completes the phrase with broken bass octaves and a bubbling right hand.
0:23 [m. 10]--Lines 3-4 (refrain) repeated.  The men sing “Mägdelein” and the women “Schätzelein” on all statements of the refrain, combining the one difference between the verses.
0:33 [m. 20]--Interlude.  The piano suddenly arrests its motion and quiets down after the repeat.  The right hand descends in slower thirds while the left hand has a short-long upward half-step gesture.  The thirds then slow down even more, adding a tender chromatic motion, and the left hand has another short-long gesture.  The piano breaks off expectantly, allowing a measure of rest before the return of the Allegretto for the second verse.
0:38 [m. 24]--Stanza (strophe) 2.  Lines 1-2.  The soprano now has the “Allegretto” lines, turning from the feminized “Kindchen” of the tenor’s verse to the distinctly masculine “Liebster,” each lover having a turn to express the tender feelings about the other.  One note is added for the word “er.”
0:51 [m. 33]--Lines 3-4 (refrain).  Text and music as at 0:13 and 0:23 [m. 10].
1:00 [m. 33]--Lines 3-4 (refrain) repeated.  Two measures of punctuating chords are added as a closing in place of the sudden slow-down of the interlude.  In editions where both verses are not written out, these measures are treated as a “second” ending and the interlude as a “first” ending, albeit (confusingly) after the repeat sign for the refrain.
1:17--END OF SONG [44 mm.]

SOLO VERSION (D major, Low key B-flat major)
0:01 [m. 1]--Stanza (strophe) 1.  Lines 1-2.  The piano part has no deviation from the quartet version, and the voice follows the soprano line in the refrains.  The two verses are not fully written out, however.  The singer presents the original tenor statement of the “Allegretto,” and since this was originally a solo passage, it is completely unchanged.
0:18 [m. 10]--Lines 3-4 (refrain).  Curiously, because of the dialogue nature of the text, Brahms indicates an optional second voice for the “Allegro” refrain, making it a duet.  The second voice (not used in this recording) is the original alto line (with an exception on the penultimate note, where it uses the tenor’s note).  For the first verse, as in the original text, the word “Mägdelein” is used.
0:28 [m. 10]--Lines 3-4 (refrain) repeated.
0:39 [m. 20a]--Interlude, here notated as a “first ending” of four measures after the repeat and with Da capo indicating a return to the opening for the second verse.
0:45 [m. 1]--Stanza (strophe) 2.  Lines 1-2.  The singer presents the “Allegretto” with the words of the original soprano statement.  Again, one note is added to accommodate the word “er.”
1:03 [m. 10]--Lines 3-4 (refrain).  The word “Schätzelein” is now used.
1:14 [m. 10]--Lines 3-4 (refrain) repeated.  The punctuating chords are a “second ending,” but one that is two measures shorter than the “first ending” of the interlude.
1:32--END OF SONG [23 mm. (21 mm. Stanza 2)]


4. “Lieber Gott, du weißt, wie oft bereut ich hab” (“Dear God, you know how often I’ve been sorry”).  Vivace grazioso.  Strophic form with repeated “choral” refrain.  F MAJOR, 2/4 time.

German Text :
Lieber Gott, du weißt, wie oft bereut ich hab,
Daß ich meinem Liebsten einst ein Küßchen gab.
Herz gebot, daß ich ihn küssen muß,
Denk, solang ich leb, an diesen ersten Kuß.

Lieber Gott, du weißt, wie oft in stiller Nacht
Ich in Lust und Leid an meinen Schatz gedacht.
Lieb ist süß, wenn bitter auch die Reu,
Armes Herze bleibt ihm ewig, ewig treu.

English Translation

QUARTET VERSION
(NB: The measure numbering here follows the Breitkopf & Härtel Sämtliche Werke, with the repetition of the refrain written out.)
0:00 [m. 1]--Stanza (strophe) 1.  Lines 1-2.  The soprano sings these playful lines as a solo.  The first line skips up and back down.  The main interest is in the piano, which decorates some vocal doubling with a constantly moving inner voice.  This inner voice is a series of rippling descents that pass to the left hand.  After the first line arrives on C (the “dominant”), the piano’s upper melodic line slides up by half-step for the second line, which is very similar.  The primary difference is the harmony halfway through, which emphasizes the area of A minor.  The ending of the vocal line makes an upward turn instead of the previous downward one, and the “transitional” piano harmony returns to the “dominant” with a stronger pull.
0:11 [m. 9]--Lines 3-4 (refrain).  The rest of the quartet joins in full harmony.  After line 3 begins at full volume, it quiets down after “Herz gebot” with gently detached notes.  The tenor and bass have slower motion and omit the words “daß ich.”  The piano has upward-reaching arpeggios with rolled left hand chords under the loud opening, then thins to gentle ripples, shadowing the melody with harmonic thirds, under the quieter portion.  The line ends on the “dominant” harmony.  Line 4 is similar, beginning loud (but with faster notes) and then quieting down, this time reaching a full close.  The slower tenor and bass cut out the word “ersten.”  The piano trails the vocal cadence leading into the full repetition of the two lines.
0:21 [m. 17]--Lines 3-4 (refrain) repeated.  After the conclusion, the piano trails down again, then continues for a measure, cutting off abruptly on a “dominant” chord.  A full measure rest serves as a “first ending,” the pause preparing for the second verse.
0:33 [m. 1]--Stanza (strophe) 2.  Lines 1-2.  As in the first verse, they are presented by the soprano.
0:43 [m. 9]--Lines 3-4 (refrain).  With the new text, the slower tenor and bass omit the words “auch die” in line 3 and the repetition of “ewig” in line 4.
0:53 [m. 17]--Lines 3-4 (refrain) repeated.  The “first ending” pause is replaced by a forceful concluding chord as a “second ending,” resolving the “dominant” chord that had cut off abruptly before the pause.
1:09--END OF SONG [26 mm.]

SOLO VERSION (F major, Low key D major)
0:00 [m. 1]--Stanza (strophe) 1.  Lines 1-2.  The solo voice sings the line that was already sung as a solo by the soprano in the quartet version.  The piano part is unchanged.
0:13 [m. 9]--Lines 3-4 (refrain).  The solo voice sings the soprano line from the quartet, removing the “detached” character of the “quieter” notes.  The piano part remains unchanged.
0:24 [m. 17]--Lines 3-4 (refrain) repeated.  As in the quartet version, the piano trails down and cuts off after the “dominant” chord before a full measure pause.
0:37 [m. 1]--Stanza (strophe) 2.  Lines 1-2.
0:50 [m. 9]--Lines 3-4 (refrain).
1:01 [m. 17]--Lines 3-4 (refrain) repeated, with forceful concluding chord.
1:17--END OF SONG [26 mm.]


5. “Brauner Bursche führt zum Tanze” (“A swarthy young man leads to the dance”).  Allegro giocoso.  Four-phrase strophic form, with entire text repeated.  D MAJOR, 2/4 time.

German Text:
Brauner Bursche führt zum Tanze
Sein blauäugig schönes Kind;
Schlägt die Sporen keck zusammen,
Csardasmelodie beginnt.

Küßt und herzt sein süßes Täubchen,
Dreht sie, führt sie, jauchzt und springt;
Wirft drei blanke Silbergulden
Auf das Zimbal, daß es klingt.

English Translation

QUARTET VERSION
0:00 [m. 1]--First statement.  Introduction.  It is short but dramatic.  The right hand begins with a syncopated third on an eighth note upbeat held over the bar.  On the downbeat, the left hand plays a quick arpeggio.  The right hand continues with a downward-arching rhetorical gesture in sixth and thirds.  Two detached chords, the second on the “dominant,” precede an expectant fermata.
0:04 [m. 3]--Lines 1-2.  Each phrase has six measures.  In all but the third, the last two are an instrumental bridge.  Here, the voices enter together in forceful block harmonies.  The first three measures all begin with a long-short rhythm.  The melodic line arches up twice.  Under the voices, the piano’s figures are distinctive.  After a rapid upward arpeggio from the left hand using a fast triplet rhythm, the right hand follows with harmonized downward-arching figures in slower triplet rhythm.  The fourth measure has straighter rhythms.  After the voices break off, the interlude combines elements of the introduction--the syncopated opening in thirds and the straight left-hand arpeggio--with the right-hand triplet figures.
0:12 [m. 9]--Lines 3-4.  The second phrase is similar in rhythm and contour, with a longer upward motion.  It touches on the “relative” minor (B minor) before closing in the “dominant” A major.  This time the interlude dispenses with the triplet figures and approximately echoes the close of the vocal phrase harmonized in thirds, still beginning with the syncopation.
0:20 [m. 15]--Lines 5-6.  This phrase deviates from the pattern.  With a sudden piano, line 5 is sung in the first two measures, which alter the rhythm by placing the long-short rhythm at the end of the measure.  There are now two short arching figures, which the piano right hand follows more directly.  The triplets are dispensed with in both hands.  The next two measures stretch out the first half of line six, with leaping gestures in slower quarter notes, still in block harmonies.  The piano continues its pattern, playing its own arching figures in the new rhythm.  These measures have a strong crescendo.  Finally, the line is completed with forte block chords in voice and piano leading to a fermata on the “dominant” and no interlude.
0:28 [m. 21]--Lines 7-8.  The original rhythm and patterns return for the last phrase, including the triplet figures in the piano and the long-short rhythm at the beginning of the measure.  The first two measures have a downward trajectory in the soprano with more arching motion in the lower voices.  In the last two, there is another upward sweep before the satisfying cadence with leaping piano bass octaves.  This time the interlude merges with the introduction, easily facilitated by the expected syncopation in the right hand.  The left-hand arpeggio is wider, using fast triplets.  After the first measure (m. 25), there is a repeat sign leading back to the second measure of the introduction, the detached chords leading to the fermata.
0:38 [m. 3]--Second statement.  Lines 1-2, as at 0:04.
0:46 [m. 9]--Lines 3-4, as at 0:12.
0:54 [m. 15]--Lines 5-6, as at 0:20.
1:02 [m. 21]--Lines 7-8, as at 0:28.  This time the measure with the detached chords is written out as m. 26, and there is no fermata or pause.  Instead, a final measure and chord are added to complete the cadence.
1:15--END OF SONG [27 mm.]

SOLO VERSION (D major, Low key B major)
0:00 [m. 1]--First statement.  Introduction, as in the quartet version.
0:05 [m. 3]--Lines 1-2.  The solo voice sings the original soprano line throughout.  In this phrase, there are no changes to the accompaniment other than it being marked piano before the interlude.
0:14 [m. 9]--Lines 3-4.  There is a slight thinning of the harmony in the right-hand triplet in the third measure (m. 11).
0:24 [m.15]--Lines 5-6.  There is a slight change to the right-hand harmony in the second measure (m. 16) to remove two notes that had doubled the (now absent) alto voice.  The singer here adds a slight slowing.
0:33 [m. 21]--Lines 7-8.  The piano adds a right-hand harmony on the first beat of the third measure (m. 23) and adjusts the orientation of the notes in the right-hand triplet of that measure to better fit the solo voice.  As in the quartet version, the interlude merges with the introduction with a repeat from m. 25 back to m. 2.
0:43 [m. 3]--Second statement.  Lines 1-2, as at 0:05.
0:53 [m. 9]--Lines 3-4, as at 0:14.
1:03 [m. 15]--Lines 5-6, as at 0:24.  The singer here slides up to the high note at the beginning of the last phrase.  The soprano in the quartet version also did this to add variety to the second statement.
1:13 [m. 21]--Lines 7-8, as at 0:33.  As in the quartet version, the second measure of the interlude is written out, there is no fermata, and a final measure is added to complete the cadence.
1:25--END OF SONG [27 mm.]


6. “Röslein dreie in der Reihe blühn so rot” (“Three little roses in a row, blossoming so red”).  Vivace grazioso.  Binary strophic form with repeated “choral” refrain.  G MAJOR, 2/4 time.

German Text:
Röslein dreie in der Reihe blühn so rot,
Daß der Bursch zum Mädel gehe, ist kein Verbot!
Lieber Gott, wenn das verboten wär,
Ständ die schöne weite Welt schon längst nicht mehr;
Ledig bleiben Sünde wär!

Schönstes Städtchen in Alföld ist Ketschkemet,
Dort gibt es gar viele Mädchen schmuck und nett!
Freunde, sucht euch dort ein Bräutchen aus,
Freit um ihre Hand und gründet euer Haus,
Freudenbecher leeret aus.

English Translation

QUARTET VERSION:
0:00 [m. 1]--Stanza (strophe) 1.  Lines 1-2.  There is a very short two-bar introduction, two quiet right-hand harmonies that suggest E minor instead of G major.  The tenor alone sings the first two lines to a jaunty, leaping melody.  The piano is also light and detached, alternating left- and right-hand harmonies.  In each line, the final notes are stretched out by detached pauses.  The first line is in pure G major, but the second strongly hints at B minor before closing on G.
0:10 [m. 11]--Lines 1-2 are sung by the top three voices in harmony without the bass, the soprano taking over the melody from the tenor.  The melody is unchanged except at the very end when it turns up instead of down to accommodate a motion to the “dominant” harmony after the material hinting at B minor.  The piano adds a delightful new element, right-hand arpeggios that rapidly ripple down at the end of each line.
0:17 [m. 19]--Lines 3-5 (refrain).  With a surge in volume, the voices, including the bass, joyously sing line 3 with a broad downward sweep.  The piano, emerging out of the last rippling arpeggio, continues with more arpeggios, ascending off the beat, for this line over solid bass octaves.  Line 4 suddenly returns to the quiet volume and detached character of the first two lines, the bass punctuating more slowly and omitting the words “weite” and “längst.”  The line is highly chromatic, with a prominent minor-key tinge lent by the note E-flat.  The short last line returns to the broad surge of line 3, its brevity allowing for even more broadening.  The piano bass has broken octaves and the cadence is marked by punctuating chords.
0:27 [m. 19]--Lines 3-5 (refrain) repeated.
0:37 [m. 31]--The piano has a brief but powerful postlude that echoes line 5, placing the melody a third higher.  Right-hand chords are played over broken octave figures (with the upper note harmonized) in the left hand.  The postlude suddenly breaks off, aborting the cadence with a pause (m. 34a) that serves as a “first ending” before the da capo return for the second stanza.
0:41 [m. 1]--Stanza (strophe) 2.  Lines 1-2.  The short introduction is repeated before the tenor sings the first two lines of the second stanza (about the little town of Ketschkemet) to the same music as before.
0:51 [m. 11]--Lines 1-2 sung by the top three voices with rippling piano arpeggios, as in stanza 1.
0:58 [m. 19]--Lines 3-5 (refrain) with new text.
1:09 [m. 19]--Lines 3-5 (refrain) repeated.
1:19 [m. 31]--Piano postlude, now with the cadence completed on a satisfying G-major chord (m. 34b).
1:26--END OF SONG [34 mm.]

SOLO VERSION (G major, Low key E-flat major)
0:00 [m. 1]--Stanza (strophe) 1.  Lines 1-2.  The solo voice sings the original solo tenor line.  The piano part is unaltered from the quartet version throughout the song, including the tiny “E-minor” introduction.
0:11 [m. 11]--The solo voice now takes the soprano line.  The lack of variety presented by the absence of the lower parts is compensated by the rippling piano arpeggios.
0:18 [m. 19]--Lines 3-5 (refrain), with solo voice on the original soprano part.
0:30 [m. 19]--Lines 3-5 (refrain) repeated.
0:41 [m. 31]--Piano postlude, with “first ending” pause breaking off the cadence.
0:45 [m. 1]--Stanza (strophe) 2.  Lines 1-2 with introduction.
0:56 [m. 11]--Repetition of lines 1-2 with rippling piano arpeggios.
1:03 [m. 19]--Lines 3-5 (refrain) with new text.
1:15 [m. 19]--Lines 3-5 (refrain) repeated.
1:26 [m. 31]--Piano postlude with closing chord.
1:32--END OF SONG [34 mm.]


7. “Kommt dir manchmal in den Sinn, mein süßes Lieb” (“Do you sometimes remember, my sweet love”).  Andantino grazioso.  Binary form.  E-FLAT MAJOR, 2/4 time.

German Text:
Kommt dir manchmal in den Sinn, mein süßes Lieb,
Was du einst mit heil’gem Eide mir gelobt?
Täusch mich nicht, verlaß mich nicht,
Du weißt nicht, wie lieb ich dich hab,
Lieb du mich, wie ich dich,
Dann strömt Gottes Huld auf dich herab!

English Translation

QUARTET VERSION
0:00 [m. 1]--Part 1.  Lines 1-2.  The tenor sings the first presentation of these lines as a solo.  The melody of the first line winds upward, using gentle long-short rhythms.  The piano harmonizes the melody and includes a steady downward bass line.  After the tenor concludes the first line in three measures, the piano trails after to complete the four-bar phrase, echoing with similar long-short leaping gestures.  The melody of the second line is similar, reaching higher and ending with a reverential “plagal” cadence.  The piano introduces mild syncopation.  It echoes the cadence to complete the phrase over broken bass octaves.
0:21 [m. 9]--Lines 1-2 repeated.  They are now sung by the full quartet, the vocal bass mirroring the piano bass.  The soprano takes the melodic line that had been sung by the tenor solo.  The piano here places the right-hand harmonies after the beat, and they are marked dolce.  The inner voice in the piano’s “echoing” measure is more active.  The tenor enters in syncopation before the other voices in the second line, in which the piano continues the right-hand harmonies after the beat, then intensifies the syncopation.  This continues in the “echoing” measure with thirds that trail down between the melody and the bass.
0:42 [m. 17]--Part 2.  Lines 3-4.  The tenor again has a solo role for the first presentation.  The two lines are sung to downward-moving phrases, again using the long-short rhythm.  The piano now has more flowing motion, with arching left-hand arpeggios and right-hand figures that begin off the downbeat and seem to “echo” the vocal line with faster notes but also double the left hand an octave above.  The end of line 4 makes a strong suggestion of the “relative” C minor.  The vocal phrase combines these shorter lines into four measures.  The piano adds a fifth measure with flowing internal voices, still suggesting C minor.
0:54 [m. 22]--Lines 5-6.  The tenor continues, reaching the highest note so far at the beginning of line 5 and continuing with two downward sweeps.  These end with poignant chromatic “leaning” notes or “appoggiaturas.”  The piano is more complex here, with arching lines passed from the right to the left hand, and the right hand continuing with downward arpeggios against the left-hand arches.  Line 6 works its way down to a warm and comforting cadence.  The piano thins out a bit here, with the left hand moving to slower octaves.  There is another trailing fifth measure after the four-bar vocal phrase, with the right hand working up against another left-hand arch.  This leads into the full quartet statement of the four lines.
1:07 [m. 27]--Lines 3-4 repeated.  The full choir sings the lines with the soprano on the original tenor melody.  The lower three voices come after the soprano starts, and they have independent counterpoint.  The alto and tenor enter a half-beat after the soprano and the bass a half-beat after that.  All three lower voices move more slowly and omit the words “verlaß mich nicht.”  The tenor has mild syncopation.  The piano figuration is different from 0:42 [m. 17].  The arching motion is largely dispensed with.  The “echo” effect is retained, but the melodic notes alternate with lower ones in the first two measures.  The left hand then moves to wide up-down motion.  The piano’s extra measure is unchanged.  There is a new crescendo.
1:20 [m. 32]--Lines 5-6 repeated.  After the buildup, these lines are now begun forte by the quartet, but they quiet down toward the cadence.  Again, the soprano leads with the original tenor melody, and the lower three voices have slower independent counterpoint like the previous phrase, with lines reflecting the chromatic notes in the melody.  They omit the words “wie ich dich.”  The piano patterns revert to nearly the same figuration as heard at 0:54 [m. 22], with arching lines passed from right to left hand.  The piano’s trailing measure leads into a new dolce cadence measure with a bass figure followed by an off-beat chord.
1:43--END OF SONG [37 mm.]

SOLO VERSION (E major, Low key C major)
0:00 [m. 1]--Part 1.  Lines 1-2.  This is the only solo version where Brahms transposed the “high key” from the quartet original, moving it up a half-step.  The solo voice sings the original tenor solo line.  The piano part, including the “trailing” measures is unchanged except for one added harmony note in measure 3.
0:24 [m. 9]--Lines 1-2 repeated.  The singer has the same melody as before, now the original soprano line.  The piano retains the dolce right-hand harmonies after the beat.  A slight rhythmic shift in the piano’s main descending line may be meant to compensate the absence of the tenor’s early syncopated entry.
0:48 [m. 17]--Part 2.  Lines 3-4.  The singer presents the melody over the same flowing piano lines heard in the quartet version, with the added fifth measure.
1:02 [m. 22]--Lines 5-6.  The singer reaches the highest note and sings over the more elaborate piano part as heard in the quartet version.
1:18 [m. 17]--Lines 3-4 repeated, as at 0:48.  Brahms marks a repeat sign here for the statement where the lower quartet voices had come in with independent counterpoint, thus also dispensing with the changes in the piano part.  The crescendo added here in the quartet version is indicated, presumably meant to be observed in both statements.
1:33 [m. 22]--Lines 5-6 repeated, as at 1:02.  The final dolce cadence measure is added after the repeat sign with the bass figure and off-beat chord.
2:00--END OF SONG [27 mm.]



8. “Horch, der Wind klagt in den Zweigen traurig sacht” (“Hart, the wind laments in the branches, mournful and soft”).  Andantino semplice.  Binary strophic form.  G MINOR/MAJOR, 2/4 time.  NO SOLO VERSION

German Text:
Horch, der Wind klagt in den Zweigen traurig sacht;
süßes Lieb, wir müssen Scheiden: gute Nacht.
Ach wie gern in deinen Armen ruhte ich,
doch die Trennungsstunde naht, Gott schütze dich.

Dunkel ist die Nacht, kein Sternlein spendet Licht;
süßes Lieb vertrau auf Gott und weine nicht;
führt der liebe Gott mich einst zu dir zurück,
bleiben ewig wir vereint in Liebesglück.

English Translation

0:00 [m. 1]--Stanza (strophe) 1.  Part 1 (G minor).  Lines 1-2.  The first two lines are presented in a brief fugue/canon.  The tenor enters first with the melancholy three-bar “subject” on the first line, characterized by its downward-swooping lines and figures with two longer notes and four shorter ones.  The piano doubles and harmonizes it in thirds with the right hand against syncopated octave leaps in the bass.  The tenor immediately follows in the “dominant” minor (D minor) with a “countersubject” on the second line with upward-arching figures, sung against the alto, who enters on the first line with the “subject” in D minor, the piano right-hand now harmonizing in sixths.  The end of the statement turns back to G minor.
0:17 [m. 7]--The soprano now enters with the original “subject” on line 1.  The alto sings the upward arching “countersubject.”  The tenor has a new second “countersubject” with slower downward-swooping lines against the alto’s rising ones.  Tenor and alto both sing line 2 and the piano harmonizes in thirds.  When the bass finally enters, only the piano has the “subject” in fuller harmony.  All four voices sing line 2, forte.  The soprano has a version of the second “countersubject.”  The other three voices, including the entering bass, sing new lines that were not part of the counterpoint.
0:33 [m. 13]--Part 2 (G major).  Line 3.  With the striking shift to major, the tenor presents this line as a solo, gently arching down and reaching up.  The piano enters off the beat in each of the three bars to support the tenor’s melody.
0:42 [m. 16]--Line 4.  This line stretches the three-bar phrase that has characterized this song to six bars.  All four voices sing it, with the soprano on a melody that continues the tenor’s previous line.  The first text statement does not come to a complete close, and the soprano repeats “Gott schütze dich” to close on a full cadence.  The lower three voices sing in slower quarter notes, and they do not reach the words “Gott schütze dich” until the soprano has already sung them the first time.  Then they join to harmonize the soprano’s second statement of the words to the cadence, thus repeating no text themselves.  The piano has more flowing sixteenth-note arpeggios in the right hand against solid bass octaves.  It echoes the cadence.
0:57 [m. 22a]--First ending (2 measures).  The piano repeats its echo of the cadence an octave lower with new harmonization, changing it to minor to prepare for and lead into the second stanza.
1:03 [m. 1]--Stanza (strophe) 2.  Part 1.  Lines 1-2.  Tenor and alto entries in fugue/canon, as in stanza 1.
1:19 [m. 7]--Soprano and bass entries, piano statement of “subject” against bass entry, as at 0:17.
1:35 [m. 13]--Part 2.  Line 3.  Tenor solo in major, as at 0:33.
1:44 [m. 16]--Line 4.  Longer line with soprano melody, as at 0:42.  The repeated lines in the soprano for the cadence are “in Liebesglück.”
1:59 [m. 22b]--Second ending (2 measures).  The echo is repeated as before in the first ending, but it remains in major, and the song is closed off with a gentle rolled chord.
2:09--END OF SONG [23 mm.]


9. “Weit und breit schaut Niemand mich an” (“Far and wide, no one looks at me”).  Allegro - Più presto.  Binary strophic form.  G MINOR/MAJOR, 2/4 time.  NO SOLO VERSION

German Text:
Weit und breit schaut niemand mich an,
und wenn sie mich hassen, was liegt mir dran?
Nur mein Schatz der soll mich lieben allezeit,
soll mich küssen, umarmen und herzen in Ewigkeit.

Kein Stern blickt in finsterer Nacht;
keine Blum mir strahlt in duftiger Pracht.
Deine Augen sind mir Blumen Sternenschein,
die mir leuchten so freundlich, die blühen nur mir allein.

English Translation

(NB: The measure numbering here follows the Breitkopf & Härtel Sämtliche Werke, with the repetition of lines 1-2 written out.)
0:00 [m. 1]--Stanza (strophe) 1.  Part 1 (G minor).  Lines 1-2.  All four voices plunge down in forceful unison, doubled by the piano, which decorates the plunge with rapid arpeggios over a downward marching syncopated octave bass that shadows the voices.  The voices break into harmony after the first four notes.  At the end of line 1, the piano reiterates the last motion at a higher level.  Line 2 begins with a similar forceful unison in faster notes, still doubled and decorated by the piano over syncopated octaves.  The harmonized ending of this line makes a striking, unusual motion to F major.  The piano uses its trailing reiteration to move back to the “dominant” harmony in G minor.
0:10 [m. 9]--Lines 1-2 repeated.   The last measure is changed with the piano using a “diminished” harmony after its trailing reiteration to move toward the “relative” major key of B-flat.
0:19 [m. 17]--Transition.  Line 3 anticipation.  Beginning in B-flat major, the words “Nur mein Schatz” are sung to transition into the faster Part 2.  The soprano descends from on high in long-short rhythm over full-measure notes in the lower voices.  The piano has chords and octaves rapidly alternating between left and right hands in a general upward motion.  Under the last word “Schatz,” the harmony shifts toward G major with slower piano motion.
0:24 [m. 21]--Part 2 (G major).  Più presto.  Lines 3-4.  In bright major and at a faster tempo, with light, detached excitement, the voices sing line 3 in harmony, the soprano and alto beginning with an upward slide.  The words “soll mich lieben” are repeated in all voices.  The piano figuration is like the arpeggios in Part 1, now over broken bass octaves.  The longer line 4 begins with an off-beat syncopation in which the piano anticipates the opening “slide,” now in alto and tenor.  “Gasping” pauses break up the words expressing affection.  The piano continues with the “sliding” figures, harmonized in thirds and octaves.  After a downward motion through the pauses, an emphatic cadence leads into a bridging piano arpeggio.
0:33 [m. 31]--Transition varied.  The opening words of line 3 are again sung with the soprano descent, but now the harmony is in the “dominant” key of D major, and the lower voices have slightly more motion.  The piano again alternates harmonies and octaves between the hands but does not slow down.
0:37 [m. 35]--Lines 3-4, varied repetition.  Line 3 is given a subtle but effective variation in this repetition.  The soprano melody and the static vocal bass are the same, but the alto and tenor are changed to have a more direct descent.  The tenor uses longer notes that stand out against the texture, omitting the text repetition as well as the word “allezeit.”  The arpeggios in the right hand of the piano are also moved up a third.  Line 4 is then presented without variation.  A four-measure “first ending” for the piano uses hammered chords and dramatic pauses to shift back to the minor for the second stanza.
0: 51 [m. 1]--Stanza (strophe) 2.  Part 1.  Lines 1-2.  A da capo repeat indication leads back to the beginning.  The lines are sung beginning with the plunging minor-key unison, as in stanza 1.
1:00 [m. 9]--Lines 1-2 repeated with new final measure (“second ending”), as at 0:10.
1:09 [m. 17]--Transition.  Line 3 anticipation, as at 0:19.  The words “Deine Augen” are one syllable longer, accommodated in the lower parts by splitting held notes.
1:13 [m. 21]--Part 2.  Lines 3-4, as at 0:24.  The repeated words in all voices are “sind mir Blumen.”  The pauses in the comparisons between the sweetheart’s eyes and the flowers are not quite as natural as in stanza 1, but they still work well.
1:23 [m. 31]--Transition varied, as at 0:33.
1:27 [m. 35]--Lines 3-4, varied repetition, as at 0:37.  The tenor here omits the repetition of “sind mir Blumen” and the initial words “Deine Augen” (which were just sung in the transition).  The tenor line thus begins with a single statement of “sind mir Blumen.”  The second ending has the initial hammered chords now remaining in major, removes the dramatic pauses, and adds a closing G-major chord.  It is one measure shorter than the first ending.
1:43--END OF SONG [48 mm. (47 mm. stanza 2)]



10. “Mond verhüllt sein Angesicht” (“The moon is veiling her face”).  Andantino.  Binary strophic form with first part repeated in each strophe (AAB).  B-FLAT MAJOR, 2/4 time.  NO SOLO VERSION

German Text :
Mond verhüllt sein Angesicht,
süßes Lieb, ich zürne dir nicht.
Wollt ich zürnend dich betrüben, sprich
wie könnt ich dich dann lieben?

Heiß für dich mein Herz entbrennt,
keine Zunge dir’s bekennt.
Bald in Liebesrausch unsinnig,
bald wie Täubchen sanft und innig.

English Translation

(NB: The measure numbering here follows the Breitkopf & Härtel Sämtliche Werke, with the repetition of Part 1 written out.)
0:00 [m. 1]--Stanza (strophe) 1.  Part 1.  Lines 1-2.  The setting is characterized by entries of soprano/alto and tenor/bass as pairs.  There is a two-measure forte piano introduction that sets up the pervasive tremolo figures in thirds that evoke the Hungarian cimbalom.  These appear in the left hand against sighing thirds in the right with long-short rhythms.  In the second measure, the B-flat home key is already a “dominant” harmony in E-flat, and when the soprano and alto enter in the third bar, they sing the first line in a mixture of G major and minor, with minor prevalent, in expressive down and up motion.  After upward triplet arpeggios under the voices, the piano restates the introduction in G major that becomes a “dominant” in C.
0:13 [m. 7]--The tenor and bass now sing the first line with the same basic motion, but moving toward F major and then D minor.  The piano’s figuration begins as it had with the soprano/alto entry but does not break into triplet arpeggios.  Before the tenor and bass finish the line, the soprano and alto begin line 2 in third-based harmony on a broad arching phrase, moving back toward F major.  Overlapping with the end of the statement in the same manner, the tenor and bass sing the second line, the harmony taking a somewhat tortured path back to B-flat for the repetition of Part 1.  The two voices close on the opening downbeat.
0:26 [m. 13]--Part 1 repeated.  The tenor and bass conclusion overlaps with the beginning of the piano introduction, then the soprano and alto have their initial entry before the restatement of the introduction.
0:38 [m. 19]--Overlapping statements of tenor/bass line 1, soprano/alto line 2, and tenor/bass line 2, as at 0:13.  The tenor and bass conclusion overlaps now with the opening of Part 2.
0:51 [m. 25]--Part 2.  Lines 3-4.  The piano now has the “cimbalom” tremolo figures almost continuously in the right hand against broad arches and broken octaves in long-short rhythm.  The soprano and alto enter with line 3 in B-flat.  Both parts have a narrow range, but they do not move together on the text, the alto initially moving faster, then slowing down as the soprano completes its sighing melody.  By the end of their phrase, they have shifted the key to E-flat.  The tenor and bass enter with their lengthened statement of the line a full measure before the soprano and alto finish, with the same “offset” motion between the pair of voices.  Before they complete it, the soprano and alto begin line 4 with the overlapping word “sprich.”
0:59 [m. 29]--The key has shifted again on “sprich” with the “dominant” chord in G minor, where the soprano and alto continue with line 4 as the tenor and bass complete line 3 (except for the overlapping “sprich”).  The soprano and alto move again, now toward F major, as the tenor and bass enter with “sprich” and continue with their statement of line 4.  The same “offset” motion between the two voices of each pair continues as it has been established.  The soprano and alto now join the conclusion of the tenor/bass statement of line 4, breaking the overlapping entries and striving to bring the harmony back home to B-flat, but a rogue A-flat in the alto again suggests a pull toward E-flat as the voices conclude the line together.
1:10 [m. 34]--The voices close off the strophe by repeating “dann lieben” together in slower notes, the tenor with a brief anticipation on the word “dich.”  All voices except the tenor break up the final word “lieben” with quarter rests, the tenor sustaining its notes for a full half-note length.  The approach to the final cadence is unusual, with a struggle to reach B-flat as a destination.  The piano ends its “cimbalom” tremolo on E-flat (as a “subdominant”), and then the cadence harmony uses a “diminished seventh” with the note G-flat borrowed from the minor rather than the standard cadence from the “dominant.”  The piano’s slow upward figures on this cadence are played against bass octaves on B-flat.
1:17 [m. 1]--Stanza (strophe) 2.  Part 1.  Lines 1-2.  The return to the beginning for the second verse is indicated with a da capo repeat from m. 36.  Piano introduction, soprano/alto statement of line 1 and restatement of the introduction in G, as at the opening.
1:30 [m. 7]--Overlapping statements of tenor/bass line 1, soprano/alto line 2, and tenor/bass line 2, as at 0:13.  The tenor and bass conclude the word “bekennt” as the Part 1 repetition begins.
1:43 [m. 13]--Part 1 repeated, as at 0:26.  Introduction, soprano/alto entry, and restatement of introduction.
1:55 [m. 19]--Overlapping statements of tenor/bass line 1, soprano/alto line 2, and tenor/bass line 2, as in the stanza 1 repetition at 0:38 with the stanza 2 text from 1:30, the conclusion overlapping with Part 2.
2:08 [m. 25]--Part 2.  Lines 3-4.  “Cimbalom” tremolo in piano right hand.  Overlapping entries of line 3 in soprano/alto and tenor/bass with varied “offset” motion between the voices of each pair, as at 0:51.  The “overlapping” word leading into line 4 is the repetition of “bald.”
2:17 [m. 29]--Overlapping entries of line 4 in soprano/alto and tenor/bass, with soprano and alto entering at end of tenor/bass statement, as at 0:59.
2:27 [m. 34]--Voices close with repetition of “und innig” (the tenor anticipating with “sanft”), as at 1:10.
2:36 [m. 37]--The piano adds descending inversions of the B-flat chord on the second beat of two added bars (the second chord held) to close this most contrapuntally and tonally complex of the Zigeunerlieder.
2:47--END OF SONG [38 mm.]


11. “Rote Abendwolken zieh’n am Firmament” (“Red evening clouds drift across the heavens”).  Allegro passionato.  Binary form.  D-FLAT MAJOR, 2/4 time.

German Text:
Rote Abendwolken zieh’n am Firmament,
Sehnsuchtsvoll nach dir, mein Lieb, das Herze brennt,
Himmel strahlt in glühnder Pracht,
Und ich träum bei Tag und Nacht
Nur allein von dem süßen Liebchen mein.

English Translation

QUARTET VERSION
0:00 [m. 1]--Part 1.  Line 1.  The piano begins with two emphatic chords in an introductory measure.  The tenor then enters with a solo presentation of the line, sweeping down and soaring back up before cutting off on a downward leap.  The piano accompaniment is exciting, with pulsating left-hand syncopations in the middle range.  The right hand participates in some of the syncopation, but also has internal motion from weak beats to strong beats.  Approaching the end of the phrase, the left hand moves to the bass and the right hand becomes less syncopated.  The piano extends the phrase by a measure.  Its opening and closing measures balance the tenor’s six-bar statement into a regular eight-measure phrase.
0:07 [m. 9]--Line 2. The key abruptly shifts up a minor third to E major for this phrase, starting with the two emphatic piano chords.  The keys are not as unrelated as may seem.  The “relative” minor key of E major is C-sharp minor, which is the “home” or “parallel” minor key to D-flat major (D-flat and C-sharp being “enharmonic” or identical pitches).  After the piano chords, the tenor has a similar vocal phrase for line 2, with a new down-up swing at the end turning to the “relative” C-sharp minor to ease the transition back to D-flat.  The piano patterns are also mostly a direct transposition with the modification at the end.
0:14 [m. 17]--Line 1 repeated.  Back in D-flat, the full quartet now has a statement of the line, again beginning with the piano chords.  The soprano takes the original tenor melody.  In the quartet harmonies, the tenor begins with a longer note and shortens “Abendwolken” to “Wolken.”  The bass has a solid marching line, and the alto is especially active.  The voices extend their closing note into the piano’s extension bar.  The piano part itself is unchanged from the statement with the solo tenor.
0:21 [m. 25]--Line 2 repeated.  The piano chords again abruptly shift to E major.  The quartet sings the second line, the soprano again taking the original tenor melody.  Again, the tenor begins with a longer note, now omitting the words “nach dir.”  Again, the piano part is unchanged, and the voices sing into the extending measure.
0:27 [m. 33]--Part 2.  Lines 3-4.  The key signature is marked as D-flat, but the piano chords help in a shift toward its “dominant” key of A-flat.  After the chords, the tenor is again given the first statement of the lines as a solo.  Suddenly quiet, the vocal line rises steadily in two four-measure waves, the first in the “dominant” A-flat and the second in D-flat.  The piano harmonizes the melody in the right hand and continues with syncopated patterns in the left, now all in the bas register and moving lower.  The volume builds at the end of the second “wave” and the piano has a three-bar extension echoing and prolonging the end of the vocal line, building up to forte.  With the opening chords, the entire phrase is twelve measures.
0:38 [m. 45]--Line 5.  For the first time, there is vocal participation in the opening chords, previously the domain of the piano alone.  The tenor begins the line with the piano on those, then continues in the manner of line 1, but extending it with a wide upward leap of a seventh on “süßen” and broadening the downward descent.  The piano part has syncopation in both hands and internal motion like that in lines 1-2.  The piano diverts and extends the cadence after the tenor’s arrival, giving it a “plagal” character.  The tenor’s line, including the opening chords, is eight measures with the last note held into a ninth.  The piano then extends the phrase for another measure, the delayed cadence, for a total of ten.
0:46 [m. 55]--Lines 3-4 repeated.  The piano has the same chord shifting toward the “dominant.”  The lines are sung by the full quartet, the soprano as usual on the original tenor melody over the two waves.  The voices mostly move in block harmonies, with one mild syncopation added in the bass.  The piano part is as at 0:27 [m. 33].  In the three-bar extension previously taken by the piano alone, the voices now sing along, repeating the words “bei Tag und Nacht” and greatly increasing the power of the buildup.  The piano’s left hand, which had syncopated octave leaps in its solo extension, now continues the pattern of pulsation.
0:57 [m. 67]--Line 5 repeated.  The quartet sings the line beginning with the chords, the soprano on the melody.  They extend the vocal presentation to participate in the piano’s extension of the cadence.  This involves text repetition, with the alto and bass repeating “dem süßen,” the soprano simply repeating the final word “mein” on the cadence note D-flat.  The tenor, who had originally presented the melody, has a longer note on “allein” and trails the others on the text, adding no repetition and joining the alto and bass on “Liebchen” during the cadence extension.  In the piano part, only the final cadence measure is slightly altered to conclude the song rather then propelling forward, adding a fermata as all voices reach “mein.”
1:17 (runoff after 1:09)--END OF SONG [76 mm.]
END OF SET

SOLO VERSION--No. 8 (D-flat major, Low key B-flat major)
0:00 [m. 1]--Part 1.  Line 1.  The opening piano chords are presented as in the quartet version, and there are no alterations to the vocal part sung by the tenor in the quartet version.
0:07 [m. 9]--Line 2.  The key shift occurs, and the solo voice sings the original tenor line.  The piano part is unchanged.  Curiously, in the low key, the key shift is from B-flat to the “original” D-flat.
0:14 [m. 1]--Line 1 repeated.  Without the full quartet, the section is here simply marked with a repeat sign.
0:21 [m. 9]--Line 2 repeated.
0:28 [m. 17]--Lines 3-4.  Two waves with three-bar extension.  The piano bass uses the continuing pulsations originally heard in the quartet statement, not the octave leaps from the tenor presentation, but the voice does not sing the extension as the quartet had done.
0:39 [m. 29]--Line 5.  The singer joins the opening chords as in the initial tenor statement.  The extension of the cadence leads into the repetition (with repeat sign) back from m. 38.
0:47 [m. 17]--Lines 3-4 repeated.
0:58 [m. 29]--Line 5 repeated.  In the one major change from the quartet version, the piano is given a new two-bar extension to fully round off the phrase to twelve bars.  This is done by repeating the forward-propelling measure before the repeat (as m. 39) and then using the concluding chord with fermata from the end of the quartet version (as m. 40).  This adds a much-needed sense of finality that is absent without the presence of the full quartet to sing on the final chord.
1:20 (runoff after 1:10)--END OF SONG [40 mm.]
END OF SET


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