A lone traveler trudges slowly but steadily through the cold white landscape of
winter. The audience learns in stages of his rejection by a fickle woman, his
despairing flight from the town where she lived, his growing weariness with the
society that has so cruelly rejected him, and his eventual grim resolution to forge
ahead to the death that will finally put an end to his journey. This is the dramatic
script for the cycle of twenty-four songs by Franz Schubert on texts by Wilhelm Müller
entitled Winterreise (Winter Journey), thought by some to be the greatest of all song
cycles, and described by Schubert himself as "a cycle of horrifying songs."1 Only two
actors perform this largely internal drama—a pianist and a vocalist, either on a
concert stage or in a recording studio. By means of Schubert’s skillful interpolation of
melody and accompaniment, the two performers bring Müller’s poetry to life and
portray the emotions and perceptions of the lone wanderer who, after being rejected
by a single woman, is relegated to the status of an outcast from society, and
determined to accept his lonely fate. The lonely journey that begins with the steady
monotonous chords of "Gute Nacht" ends with the haunting organ-grinder melody of
"Der Leiermann." Between these two pieces can be found a variety of short but
detailed character studies of the forlorn figure at the center of the story. It is the
purpose of this paper to examine the musical elements that Schubert uses to build
the dramatic structure of the Winterreise texts.
Schubert composed and published Winterreise in two halves, one in February
1827 and the other in October 1827. The first twelve poems by Müller had been
published in 1823 in a Leipzig periodical entitled Urania, ten more were published in
Breslau later that year, and Müller added "Die Post" and "Täuschung" and
republished the entire cycle of poems in 1824, under the title of "Seventy-seven
Poems from the Posthumous Papers of a Travelling Horn-player." Schubert
presumably knew only of the existence of the first twelve
1 Susan Youens, Retracing a Winter’s Journey (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1991), 27.
1
poems when he wrote the first half of his cycle, and composed the second half only
after learning of the other twelve poems. 2 Indeed, the two parts of Winterreise are
very different from each other, the first part focusing primarily on the anguish of lost
love and the second progressing to the larger theme of rejection from society and
impending death.
Schubert had written an earlier song cycle based on another volume of poems
by Müller published under the "Posthumous Papers" heading, Die schöne Müllerin
(The Maid of the Mill). The two cycles bear some resemblance to each other, but
Winterreise is very different in tone from its predecessor. In the words of John Reed,
"The schöne Müllerin cycle has a real, though shadowy plot involving three principal
characters, though we see them all through the eyes of the young miller . . .
Winterreise, on the other hand, is a wholly interior drama."3 Alan Cottrell points out,
"the landscape and season [of Winterreise] reflect an inner situation contrasting
vividly with the ‘Müllerin’ cycle’."4 Many people have attempted to explain the darker
mood of Winterreise as an example of Schubert’s despair as a composer nearing the
end of his life (the composer died 19 November 1828). Although this theory is
impossible to prove (who can truly know Schubert’s state of mind as he composed
these songs?), it is illuminating to set Winterreise against the backdrop of Schubert’s
life. Certainly, the cycle has a preoccupation with death that is striking.
As mentioned above, the mood of the first half of the Winterreise poems is
very different from the mood of the second half. The first part focuses primarily on
the anguish suffered by the central character upon the rejection he has suffered from
a former paramour. In the opening lines of "Gute Nacht" (Good Night) come the
following words: "The maiden spoke of love, her mother even of marriage. Now is the
2 John Reed, The Schubert song companion (New York: Universe Books, 1985), 441.
3 Ibid., 442.4 Alan Cottrell, Wilhelm Müller’s Lyrical Song Cycles (Chapel Hill: University of
North Carolina Press, 1970), 35.
2
world so troubled, the way covered in snow."5 The wanderer has embarked on his
journey as the song cycle begins, and references to the betrayal he has suffered at
the hands of his former love continue throughout the next several songs. Lost love is
not the only image to permeate the texts of Winterreise, however. In the third verse
of "Gute Nacht," a reference is made to dogs howling "in front of her father’s house."
The image of torment by animals recurs throughout the cycle, as the wanderer is
pelted by hailstones dropped on him by crows in the text of "Rückblick" (Looking
Backward), another crow flies around his head in "Die Krähe" (The Crow) watchdogs
bark in, and still more dogs nip at the heels of the old organ-grinder in "Der
Leiermann" (The Organ-Grinder). The wanderer is not only an outcast from human
society, but he is also a vagabond scorned by wild beasts. However, living creatures
are not the only antagonists on the central character’s journeys.
Throughout the Winterreise cycle are found references to the forces of nature.
Bodies of water, brooks and streams are often linked in the text with the tears of the
main character. In "Wasserflut" (Water Flood), the text describes tears flowing from
his eyes as the snow absorbs his anguish, contrasted to the song "Gefrorne Tränen"
(Frozen Tears) in which frozen teardrops fall from the wanderer’s eyes like ice. Snow
and ice recur as themes as well, particularly in the first half of the cycle. Often the
snowy landscape that surrounds the wanderer on his winter journey is contrasted to
the green landscape that represents the happiness of his past. For example, in "Gute
Nacht" a reference is made to May welcoming him with "many flowery bouquets,"
and in "Rückblick" the wanderer, lamenting on his more joyous past, cries, "The
round lime trees blossomed, the clear brooks murmured, and ah, two girlish eyes
glowed! Then it all happened to you, friend!" In "Die Wetterfahne" the effect of the
wind on the weather is compared to its effect inside the wanderer's heart as he cries,
"The wind plays inside hearts as it does on the roof, but not so loudly." Even the path
5 All of the German translations in this paper are my own interpretations of the line-by-line translations found in Marie-Therese Paquin’s Ten Cycles of Lieder (Montreal University Press: Montreal, 1977).
3
that the wanderer follows is seen as a symbol of the path of his life's journey. As he
progresses along his literal path, his internal path takes him away from the matters
of the heart that concern him most in the first half to the darker regions he enters in
the second half of the cycle.
In the second half of Winterreise, the theme moves away from rejection by a
single woman to the theme of overall rejection from society. As the wanderer fails to
find acceptance by his fellow humans or by animals, he begins to long for the peace
and rest from travel that will only be found in death. The text of "Die Post" (The
Post), which begins the second part, is the last to refer to the lost love. The wanderer
anxiously contemplates the sound of a post horn from the road, but realizes "the post
comes from the town, where once I had a fond sweetheart . . ." From here on, the
tone of the piece becomes quite a bit more contemplative. "Der greise Kopf" (The
Grey Head) shows the wanderer contemplating his youth, and how the frost on his
head has made him look older than he actually is. Snow has become a symbol of the
illusory nature of age. In one of the most calmly contemplative texts of the cycle,
"Letzte Hoffnung" (Last Hope), the central character watches a single leaf on a tree
and utters the following statement: "if the leaf fall to the ground my hopes are
dashed with it; I myself fall to the ground and weep, weep on the grave of my hopes."
Nature is seen as a mirror that reflects the soul of the central character, a theme
prominent in the second half of the cycle.
The second half of Winterreise also contains some of the darkest, most
haunting images in the cycle. In "Der Wegweiser" (The Sign-post), the wanderer sees
"one guidepost . . . standing motionless before my eyes; one street must I follow,
from whence no one has ever returned," and in "Das Wirtshaus" (The Inn) the
wanderer describes a cemetery he passes by as if it were an inn where he may finally
rest from his travels. As the cycle progresses, death becomes a goal he wishes for,
but which constantly eludes him. He laments in "Das Wirtshaus," "Oh unmerciful inn!
Do you refuse me entrance?" However, rest is something that the wanderer is
4
unable to attain within the span of the song cycle. The final song of the cycle, "Der
Leiermann" is an appropriate, if unresolved, end to the drama, as the wanderer
watches an old organ-grinder player who is as much an outcast from society as the
wanderer himself. Alan Cottrell describes the text thus: "The themes of isolation and
monotony here reach their climax."6 Indeed, the wanderer identifies his own plight
with that of the organ-grinder when he says, "Strange old man, shall I go with you?
Will you grind your organ to my songs?" Winterreise ends with a question. What will
be the fate of the lonely wanderer? That is apparently not the concern of the story
told in Müller's poems. Schubert scholar Susan Youens makes an excellent point
when she writes, “The ending of Winterreise may appear tragic, but the wanderer for
the first time seeks out the company of another person, someone whose music is the
catalyst for the wanderer’s realization that sorrow can be sublimated in music.”7
The texts of the songs are only one facet of the drama of Winterreise,
however. It is Schubert’s manipulation of these texts and his facility in setting the
texts to music that adds to their dramatic impact. Immediately at the opening of the
cycle, before the singer utters a single note, Schubert’s piano accompaniment
establishes the tone of the piece, as the steady chord pattern indicates the rhythmic
footsteps of the wanderer at the outset of his journey.
6 Cottrell, Wilhelm Müller’s Lyrical Song Cycles, 63.7 Susan Youens, “Brief Reflections on the Two Müller Cycles of Franz Schubert:
Die schöne Müllerin, D. 795 and Winterreise, D. 911” The NATS Journal 43, no.3 (January/ February 1987): 18.
5
The key of D minor indicates that this is no happy jaunt for enjoyment, though. As
the famed accompanist Gerald Moore described in his book on the Schubert song
cycles, "The pace in ‘Gute Nacht’ is more regular than in any other; there is no
stumbling, no limping, for the man is only at the beginning of his journey . . . [His]
resolution impels him to remove himself as far as he may from all that reminds him
of his lost love."8 However, in the last verse, the song takes on a more tender
quality, as the music shifts into D major. Throughout the song cycle minor keys
predominate, in keeping with the dark mood of many of the texts.9 Only eight of the
twenty-four songs are in major keys. Furthermore, moderate to slow tempi are the
rule in Winterreise. (However, not all of the fast songs are in major keys and vice
versa.)
In "Die Wetterfahne," the action of the wind playing with the weather vane is
depicted dramatically in the accompaniment. The rising and falling motion and trills
paint a vivid musical picture of a weather vane spinning in the winter wind.
The singer's melody in "Die Wetterfahne" is anguished and as unpredictable in its
movement as the wind about which he sings. The wanderer's cry of "What do they
care
8 Gerald Moore, The Schubert song cycles: with thoughts on performance (London: Hamish Hamilton, 1975), 75.
9 It is uncertain whether Schubert’s use of particular keys in Winterreise is essential to the meaning of the work. Several of the songs in the cycle, such as “Der Leiermann” and “Mut” were written in a particular key, only to be transposed to a different key in a later version. Furthermore, in performance a singer will often transpose some songs to a more comfortable key for his or her range. For the purposes of this paper, I will refer henceforth to keys only as “major” or “minor.”
6
for my pain?" is repeated three times in the song, the third time at a higher pitch,
and "Their child is a rich bride" is a climactic melisma. The song, only two pages
long, is a bitter flashback to the emotional pain that was the original impetus for his
journey. In the songs of Winterreise, however, no single mood is in evidence for very
long. After the anger and bitterness of "Die Wetterfahne," the third song "Gefrorne
Tränen" is a sad but gentle lament. One can almost hear the frozen teardrops of the
song's title as they hit the snow, represented in the piano part as a single note struck
alone, with no chords supporting it. The tempo is "nicht zu langsam" (not too slowly),
and the rising vocal line on "as if they would melt the entire winter's ice" is the
primary evidence of the wanderer's grief as he slows his steps on his journey.
The wanderer's grief and the flow of his hot tears are again the dominant
image in "Erstarrung" (Numbness). As he searches in vain for the footprints of his
lost love, the tempo of the music is extremely quick, as if his numbness to his
surroundings were causing him to rush headlong through the snow. The numbness
of the cold winter on his limbs is compared to the numb quality of his emotions. A
rapid triplet pattern repeats throughout the piano accompaniment of the song, and
the vocal line soars on "my hot tears"
and "my heart melts again," creating a forward momentum and emotional impact
that can have a heart-rending effect in the hands of skilled performers. Gerald Moore
remarks, "Schubert flung himself on these verses with fever heat. He could not write
down the notes fast enough . . ."10 Although one can hardly be certain of Schubert’s
state of mind as he worked, the mood of his music in this song is clearly one of
mindless grief. (Moore’s statement is clearly personal opinion, but he describes the
overall effect of the song perfectly.) At the text “Where can I find a blossom, where
can I find green grass?” the addition of accidentals creates a brief modulation into a
major key, as the wanderer searches for a hint of the spring in which he once
10 Ibid., 86.
7
reveled. However, as he resumes his stumbling journey through the cold snow, the
minor key returns.
As "Der Lindenbaum" (The Lime-tree) begins, a triplet pattern similar to that
found in "Erstarrung" is played briefly in the piano. However, this song is much more
serene than "Erstarrung." This song is another moment of reminiscence by the
central character, in which he reflects on an earlier, happier time when the trees
were still green. The song begins in a major key. As he passes the tree that featured
in so many happy memories, though, the result is more grief. As he sings of the cold
winds blowing his hat off, the rushing triplets return, and the key modulates to the
minor mode. The wanderer hears a rustling call: "You will find peace there;" but it is
a bittersweet cry, as he knows that he cannot find peace in the town that has
rejected him.
"Wasserflut" is a slow-tempo piece that is played very differently by different
accompanists. Throughout the piece triplets are lined up with a dotted rhythm, which
is played accurately by some pianists as a staggered rhythm and by others as even
triplets. The example below shows the controversial rhythm:
Gerald Moore preferred the staggered rhythm for a very valid dramatic reason: "the
semiquaver lagging behind . . . symbolizes the tired laboured footsteps of the
wanderer."11 Indeed, at this point in the cycle (the sixth song), it would seem valid
that the wanderer's footsteps would not be as sure and steady as they were earlier in
"Gute Nacht." Nonetheless, many accompanists play the piece with a steady,
11 Ibid., 97.
8
tripletized rhythm. The song is strophic, and both verses end with a rising, emotional
vocal line on the lines "and the soft snow melts" and "there is my beloved's house."
"Auf dem Flusse" (On the River) is another minor key song that links the
flowing of a river in spring with happier times, and the cold crust of ice with the harsh
reality of the wanderer's present condition. The song begins with a simple staccato
piano line, which gets more and more complex as the song progresses. Once again,
the vocal line rises higher and higher as the wanderer's reminiscence of his lost
happiness and love causes him more anguish. This anguish propels him headlong
into one of the more wild dramatic moments of the cycle, the song "Rückblick." In the
words of Susan Youens, "Immersed in memory once more, the wanderer relives his
frantic flight from the sweetheart's town as if it were the present moment."12 The
audience is transported back in time to the events that caused the winter journey in
the first place. The accompaniment consists of intervals in the left hand mirrored in
the right hand in a pounding and rising chromatic figure that depicts dramatically the
character's blind flight from a hostile town. As may be expected, as the wanderer
experiences the despair of a hasty departure, his emotions cause the vocal line to
soar to a higher range once again. As the crows pelt him with missiles, accents in the
vocal and piano lines depict the hailstones finding their mark, presumably
somewhere on the unfortunate wanderer's head.
The next two songs of Winterreise are slower, minor key pieces. "Irrlicht"
(Will-o'-the-Wisp) describes the wanderer picking his way along a deceptive path. As
his path leads him down false turns and down dry riverbeds, the vocal line is as
twisted as the trail he follows, with many wide intervals that carry him quickly
through a range of an octave and a sixth. In "Rast" (Rest), the wanderer finally
realizes how weary he is. He takes shelter in a coal miner's tiny hovel, and as he
reflects on the pain of his wounds (both physical and emotional), the dynamics of the
song alternate between quiet murmurs and sudden mournful cries. On the line "now
12 Susan Youens, Retracing a Winter’s Journey, 188.
9
you feel in the calm the worm that stings hotly inside you," the vocal part recalls the
wide intervals and high range of "Irrlicht," while the walking rhythm in the piano is
similar to that of "Gute Nacht,” but more disjointed and stumbling than the steady
pace of the opening song.
The last two songs of the first part of Winterreise are "Frühlingstraum" (Spring
Dream) and "Einsamkeit" (Loneliness). The former is, as its title indicates, another
dream of the happier days before the winter brought unhappiness to the wanderer's
life. The song is primarily a lilting dance melody in 6/8, but the unhappiness of the
wanderer's present situation keeps intruding on his consciousness in the form of
minor key interludes in a 2/4 meter. The song ends on a final minor chord as the
dream fades completely. "Einsamkeit" closes the first half of Winterreise with the
theme of loneliness that has been building for the past twelve songs. Susan Youens
writes, "The wanderer, his scant sleep broken by interrupted dreams, continues
saddened and exhausted, 'with dragging feet,' on his journey. . . . he is obsessed with
his loneliness and sense of difference from others, and he imagines analogies in
Nature both for his slow, tired motion and the marks of his separation from others."13
Indeed, the wanderer's faltering footsteps can be clearly heard in the alternating
staccato chords of the piano, so much more broken than the opening chords of "Gute
Nacht." When he cries, "Ah, that the air is so quiet! Ah, that the world is so bright!
While the storms still raged I was not so miserable," there is a tremolo in the piano
followed by pounding triplets, and the vocal line soars once more on "I was not so
miserable." This was originally the end of the cycle before Schubert discovered the
other twelve Winterreise poems, and Schubert's marking of Finis on the autograph is
"a clear indication that at the time he regarded these twelve songs as making up the
complete cycle."14 However, the first twelve songs were to be only the "first act' of
the Winterreise drama. The second half, as mentioned earlier, takes a new turn, both
textually and musically.13 Ibid., 217. 14 John Reed, The Schubert song companion, 441.
10
In his book Distant Cycles: Schubert and the conceiving of song, Richard
Kramer writes, "Whether by design or accident, the second part of Schubert's
Winterreise establishes a fresh start. . . . Die Post comes as a new beginning."15 "Die
Post" begins with staccato arpeggiated major chords in the left hand of the piano part
and a legato melody in the right hand that sounds almost like a bugle call. The song
is in a major key throughout, and for a short while it seems as if the sadness of
"Einsamkeit" has been left behind. The tempo, marked etwas geschwind (like the
wind), and the meter of 6/8 create a forward impetus that conjures up images of a
trotting horse rapidly approaching the post-station. However, even in this lilting
happy song, there is a hint of anxiety and sadness as the wanderer exclaims, "Now
yes, the post comes from the town where I had a beloved, my heart!" Each
interjection of "my heart!" in the song is in the higher part of the vocal range, a trait
consistently associated with anguish in the cycle. After this deceptively fresh
beginning, the second half of the cycle quickly becomes darker.
"Der greise Kopf" finds the wanderer contemplating the frost that covers his
head and has created an illusion of age in a man who is still youthful. Indeed, as he
comments, "How far still to the tomb!" the vocal line rises and falls, a pattern that
has previously been associated with cries of despair earlier in the song cycle. This
song represents the beginning of a trend in the second part of Winterreise, wherein
the wanderer focuses on how long his journey has become and how far the voyage to
his final resting place still is. As the second half of Winterreise continues, the
wanderer's thoughts and feelings turn dwell more and more on the journey to the
grave.
In "Die Krähe" the wanderer addresses a crow that has been following him.
Once
15 Richard Kramer, Distant Cycles: Schubert and the conceiving of song (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1994), 173.
11
again, he poses a question about his own fate, "Do you think you will soon take my
body as prey?" The triplet pattern in the piano part hearkens back to the earlier
songs "Erstarrung" and "Der Lindenbaum," but the triplets have become slower and
less rushed. As he calls to the crow, "let me finally see your faithfulness to the
grave," the singer's part soars on the word "grave," and immediately drops back
down to the low range as he repeats his cry. His meditation on the connection of his
fate with the forces of nature continues on the next song "Letzte Hoffnung," where he
compares his fate to that of a single leaf on a tree, as mentioned earlier. Although
the text seems contemplative, the piano and the voice parts are both full of
disjointed staccato bursts. As the leaf falls from the tree, the voice line descends an
octave, but is immediately followed by a rising line as the wanderer cries out, "I
weep, weep on the grave of my hope!"
"Im Dorfe" now finds the wanderer passing through a town where the people
are still asleep in their beds. There is a calm, peaceful morning quality to the song as
he observes the stillness of the village. Not all is perfectly quiet, however. Once
again, the dogs bark and rattle their chains, which has already been a sign of the
wanderer's rejection by society in "Gute Nacht," and again he addresses the wild
beasts, "Bark me away, watchdogs, let me not rest during the slumber hour!" He
does so in a calm manner, though. The tempo remains slow and steady. As he says,
"Why should I tarry among sleepers?" the piano plays a cadence in which the
resolution is suspended, as if the wanderer were pausing one last time before
continuing on his journey. It is a brief respite before the storm breaks in "Der
stürmische Morgen" (The Stormy Morning).
The piano and vocal lines of "Der stürmische Morgen" are reminiscent of the
second song of the cycle "Die Wetterfahne." The furious pounding quality of the song
depicts vividly the winter storm that rages about the wanderer. However, this time
the lost love about whom so much was said in the first half is not mentioned at all.
The wanderer seems to be one with the storm, and indeed he state that this is "a
12
morning right to my mind." The voice and piano reflect this singleness of mood very
clearly, as the piano plays in unison with the singer throughout much of the song.
The storm clears quickly in the next piece. "Täuschung" (Illusion) is another
lilting dance melody in a major key (and in a 6/8 meter that hearkens back to
“Irrlicht” and “Die Post”), as the wanderer follows a dancing light through the night.
In this song, for the final time in the cycle, there is a brief reference to "a dear soul,"
possibly the lost love who has been so conspicuously absent in the second half. As
the title of the song implies, however, the pursuit of this elusive light is as impossible
as his earlier pursuit of love. At the very end of the vocal part is an ascending sixth
followed immediately by a descending sixth, which is extremely reminiscent of the
pattern set by earlier cries of hopelessness. As Susan Youens points out, "Even as he
follows the will-o'-the-wisp in a feigned lightheartedness more tragic than overt grief,
he knows its promises are only deception."16 The delicate quality of this song is so
sweet, it is almost like saccharine, merely a substitute for the happiness the
wanderer desires.
The next two songs of Winterreise are perhaps the darkest in the cycle. "Der
Wegweiser" (The Signpost), as mentioned earlier, finds the wanderer contemplating a
sign that points inexorably toward death. The repeated eight notes in the voice and
piano seen in the following example have a quality of inevitability that is extremely
effective and remarkably haunting.
16 Susan Youens, Retracing a Winter’s Journey, 267.
13
The piece is almost immobile and paralyzed in its hushed tone. The wanderer
accepts his fate with a grim resolution borne of repeated hardship. Susan Youens
makes an excellent observation: "For this moment of revelation, Schubert creates
powerful musical symbols for something so awesome as a vision of destiny within the
mind, tonal disorientation whose rising chromatic bass line conveys a rising horror
within the mind."17 "Das Wirtshaus," in its quiet beauty is almost as horrifying in its
hymn-like setting, as the wanderer compares a cemetery to an inn. The tempo is
sehr langsam (very slowly), as if the wanderer's longing for death has separated him
completely from his emotions. Interestingly, the only hint of emotion in the music
comes when he asks, "Oh unmerciful inn! Do you refuse me entrance?" At this point,
the music lurches into a minor key for a few bars, but as he resumes his journey, the
major key and serenity return at the words, "Now further then, my faithful walking
stick."
As if to further bolster his confidence, the next song "Mut" (Courage) bursts
with energy that was lacking in "Das Wirtshaus." The song has a rousing tempo,
marked kräftig (powerful), and there is indeed power overflowing in this short song.
The range remains in the middle, the most firm and dependable area of most singers'
voices. In the case of tonality, the rapid changes between major and minor modes
indicate the dark undercurrent of the wanderer's attempt to bolster his courage. The
vocal line ends in the major mode as the wanderer exclaims, "If there is not a God on
earth, then we ourselves are gods!" The fatalism behind this sentiment is reinforced
as the piano finishes the song in the minor mode.
With the last bit of his energy having been spent in "Mut," the wanderer
seems to lose most of his will in the final two songs of Winterreise. The enigmatic
text of "Die Nebensonnen" (The Mock Suns) describes the wanderer's vision of three
suns in the sky. Gerald Moore writes, "The distinguished musicologist A. H. Fox-
Strangways suggested that Faith, Hope and Life are represented-- a poetic conclusion
17 Ibid., 276.
14
and in the context of the cycle an acceptable one. Most certainly the suns of Faith
and Hope exist no more for our afflicted wanderer, all that is left to him is Life and
that is a stuff he would readily do without."18 The serenity of Schubert's music for
"Die Nebensonnen" seems to be an indication that the wanderer has lost all ability to
perceive his surroundings objectively. He is lapsing into a quiet torpor, which results
in his calm observation of the poor organ-grinder in "Der Leiermann." The final song
of Winterreise is a marvelously haunting and delicate piece. The piano and voice
participate in a dialogue, wherein the piano takes the part of the organ-grinder
playing his music box melody, as the singer watches in grim fascination. At the very
end of the piece, the piano has a brief crescendo (shown below), which is like a final
sigh of resignation before the cycle fades out completely.
The curtain falls (figuratively speaking) on a poor vagabond whose future seems
inevitable, but who is nevertheless still alive.
Much like a literal journey, then, Winterreise is replete with twists and turns,
signposts, brief rest stops, and an ongoing road whose secrets are hidden by the
ever-present horizon. The audience who attends a recital or listens to a recording of
the song cycle travels arm-in-arm with the performers who portray the wanderer and
his surroundings, who tell his sad tale. It is a testament to the power of Schubert's
work that the song cycle has been recorded in this century (and indeed continues to
be recorded today) by so many tremendously talented musicians-- Gerald Moore,
Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Thomas Hampson, Gerard Souzay, the list goes on and on.
Apparently, audiences continue to be adventurous enough to embark on the
lonesome trek with this tragic
18 Gerald Moore, The Schubert song cycles: with thoughts on performance, 165.
15
wanderer, despite the unanswered question at the very end of the final song. As
Susan Youens points out, "When the quest culminates in partial understanding, the
seeker wants only to reject what he finds, and the self is rent asunder all the more. . .
. Out of the denial that art transcends misery comes art and transcendence."19
Perhaps it is the very elusive nature of the question at the end of Winterreise that is
the key to the musical impact of Schubert's cycle.
19 Susan Youens, Retracing a Winter’s Journey, 312.
16
WORKS CITED
Cottrell, Alan P. Wilhelm Müller’s Lyrical Song Cycles: Interpretations and Texts. University of North Carolina Studies in the Germanic Languages and Literature, no. 66. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1970.
Fischer-Dieskau, Dietrich. Schubert: a biographical study of his songs. Translated and edited by Kenneth Whitton. London: Cassell & Company Limited, 1976.
Kramer, Richard. Distant cycles: Schubert and the conceiving of song. 234 pp. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1994.
Moore, Gerald. The Schubert song cycles: with thoughts on performance. 240 pp. London: Hamish Hamilton, 1975.
Reed, John. The Schubert song companion. 510 pp. New York: Universe Books, 1985.
Schubert, Franz. Neue Ausgabe sämtlicher Werke. Edited by Walther Dürr, Arnold Feil, Christa Landon. Serie IV: Lieder, Band 4a. 191 pp. London: Bärenreiter-Verlag Kassel, 1979.
Youens, Susan. Retracing a Winter’s Journey: Schubert’s Winterreise. 330 pp. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1991.
________. “Brief Reflections on the Two Müller Cycles of Franz Schubert: Die schöne Müllerin, D. 795 and Winterreise, D. 911” The NATS Journal 43, no. 3 (January/ February 1987): 16-18.
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