medieval.org
diverdi.com
Raum Klang 2901
2011
medieval.org
diverdi.com
Raum Klang 2901
2011
01 - Viel liebe grüsse süsse [4:36]
Tenor HO
02 - Wach auff, mein hort [2:53]
Tenor HO
03 - Frohlich, zärtlich, lieplich [3:19]
Contratenor
04 - Mich tröst ein adeliche mait [2:58]
instrumental
05 - Ain graserin [3:21]
Tenor GH
06 - Frolichen so well wir [3:13]
Tenor HO
07 - Stand auff, Maredel · Frau ich enmag [1:15]
Sopran, Alt
08 - Stand auff, Maredel [1:24]
instrumental
09 - Die minne füget niemand [1:21]
Tenor HO, Tenor GH
10 - Gelück und hail [4:52]
Tenor GH
11 - Des himels trone [6:46]
Tenor HO, Tenor GH
12 - Froleich geschrai [2:14]
Sopran
13 - Improvisation [5:56]
instrumental
14 - Los frau und hör des hornes schall · Sag an, herzlieb
[1:31]
Alt, Tenor GH
15 - Herz, prich, rich, sich [3:05]
Contratenor, Tenor HO
16 - Simm Gredlin, Gret [4:48]
Alt, Tenor HO
17 - Mein herz jüngt sich in hoher gail [4:15]
Contratenor, Tenor HO
18 - Du ausserweltes schöns mein herz [3:34]
Contratenor
19 - Ain gút geboren edel man [5:44]
Contratenor, Tenor HO, Tenor GH
20 - Es nahet gen der vasennacht [3:58]
Tenor HO
Agnes Boll, Sopran · 7, 12
Lydia Vierlinger, Alt · 7, 14, 16
Markus Forster, Contratenor · 3, 15, 17, 18, 19
Hermann Oswald, Tenor · 1, 2, 6, 9, 11, 15,
16, 17, 19, 20
Gernot Heinrich, Tenor · 5, 9, 10, 11, 14, 19
Reinhild Waldek, Harfe / arpa
Jane Achtman, Fidel / viella
Marc Lewon, Laute, Fidel / liuto, viella
Thomas Wimmer, Fidel / viella
Guillermo Perez, Organetto
Wolfgang Reithofer, Perkussion / percussion
Albin Paulus, Maultrommel, Löffelspiel / guimbarde,
cuillères
Michael Posch, Blockflöte / flûte è bec
Mit herzlichem Dank an Dr. Ulrich Müller für die umfassende
wissenschaftliche Beratung dieses Projekts,
an die ULBT in Innsbruck
für die Bereitstellung des Titelbildes
und an das Landesmuseurn
für Kultur und Landesgeschichte Schloss Tirol / Castel Tirolo
für die großzügige finanzielle
Unterstützung.
Die Tonaufnahmen entstanden vom 26. bis 30. Januar 2009 in der Wiener
Hofburgkapelle.
Produktion: Sebastian Pank (Raumklang) und Landesmuseum für Kultur
und Landesgeschichte Schloss Tirol / Castel Tirolo
Tonaufnahme: Wolfgang Reithofer / Sebastian Pank
Schnitt: Wolfgang Reithofer
Redaktion: Ute Lieschke
Love Songs by Oswald von Wolkenstein - monophonic and polyphonic
Oswald von Wolkenstein (ca. 1378/38-1445) is today considered one of
the most important song authors of the German-language, indeed of the
European literature of the Middle Ages. Ninety monophonic and
thirty-seven polyphonic songs as well as two rhymed-couplet monologues
have come down to us. They deal not only with nearly every subject
provided by the tradition of the time, but also offer many new things.
The following large areas can be discerned: erotic themes, spiritual
affairs, travels, and autobiographical stories including two
incarcerations; moreover, there are smaller thematic areas as well as
various combinations. During his lifetime, Oswald had compiled two
extensive parchment manuscripts that are today preserved in Vienna
(Manuscript A) and Innsbruck (Manuscript B); they not only contain the
texts and the corresponding melodies, but also a full-length portrait
(A) and the first individual portrait of a German-speaking author (B).
With a few exceptions, the awareness of his songs was limited at that
time to his immediate environs; only in the twentieth century did
Oswald von Wolkenstein become known to a wider audience.
Oswald von Wolkenstein is the first German-speaking author - after
initial steps by the Mönch von Salzburg (Monk of Salzburg;
fourteenth century) - in whose oeuvre polyphonic song settings
have been preserved in large numbers and indeed in different styles: in
the older "organum style" (i.e., two parts, "note against note"), but
also in the then modern style of the Ars Nova and the
Burgundian chanson, including with parallel polytextuality (motetus).
Others were adopted from Romance countries (France, Italy) in the form
of arrangements or contrafacta. In doing so, Oswald almost always
completely reformulated the texts, so that in a sense German-language
originals were created. For various polyphonic settings, no Romance
models are known, and it cannot be ruled out that many of them were
composed by Oswald himself.
Most of the polyphonic settings are "love songs" in the broadest sense;
in particular, songs with erotic content of the most diverse kinds. For
some of them, but not nearly all, we also know the "position in life"
at the time: namely, for the songs that are addressed to a longtime
mistress by the name of Anna Hausmann, the unmarried daughter of Brixen
schoolmaster, as well as for the songs for his fiancée and later
wife Margarete von Schwangau, the "proud Swabian." They encompass, from
elegant-courtly to coarse and lewd, just about everything that was
possible in poetry at that time. The present CD offers a selection:
first and foremost polyphonic songs (including two performed
instrumentally), but also three monophonic songs.
Oswald exercised as much care with the texts as he did with the music,
which has to be borne in mind in today's performances. Performances of
songs in the Middle Ages undoubtedly varied greatly, since tempo,
instrumental accompaniment, expression, and, in the monophonic songs,
also the rhythm were left to the discretion of the respective
musicians, who were thus afforded a certain improvisational freedom.
Today's musicians must find their way into this tradition. Their
particular interpretation can naturally offer only a specific
performance that to them seems to be the best possible rendition, but
they have to keep in mind that one can also do it differently.
Several comments on the pronunciation of Middle High German: back then
there was no generally binding orthography for the scribes, but only
various local traditions and customs. The exact pronunciation of the
texts can only be approximately reconstructed with the help of
latter-day dialects. For the present CD, we employed a pronunciation of
the old texts that avoids everything exotic or affected, including the
pronunciation of sp- and st- at the beginning of a word with a
voiceless s, which often finds use today; initial si- and sw- are
pronounced as in Modern High German.
1. Vil lieber grüsse süsse (KI 42; monophonic).
A spring song that has as its subject the awakening of nature and the
associated joy of love. It treats a popular motif of medieval love
poetry, here, however, with an extraordinary and, in its way, entirely
new elaborateness.
2. Wach auff, mein hort! (KI 101; two-part; four-part
adaptation, with additional triplum and contratenor, by
Marc Lewon).
A morning song, a very popular genre in Middle High German. The same
story is related in each case: a couple has spent a forbidden night
together, and in the morning the man (usually a young knight) has to
leave the chamber of the lady, since otherwise both risk danger to life
and limb; whereby in German versions, in contrast to French versions,
it is never expressly said that the lady is a married noblewoman - yet,
it would be just as risky to "climb in through the window" (Romeo and
Juliet!) of an unmarried noblewoman. The dawning day is announced by
the singing of a bird or by the castle watchman. Oswald tried out all
the possibilities of this genre: in this song, the lady, who has seen
the daybreak and heard the singing of the nightingale, awakens her
lover, and both lament the pain of the necessary separation. The song
is one of the few by Oswald that was more widely known in his time:
besides in the main manuscripts, it is also preserved in the Lochamer
Liederbuch (Nuremberg, fifteenth century) as well as in the Rostocker
Liederbuch (a song collection probably belonging to a student at
the university in Rostock in the late-fifteenth century).
3. Frolich, zärtlich, lieplich (KI 53; two-part;
three-part arrangement, employing the adapted contratenor of
the original composition, by Michael Posch).
This song alludes in the first verse to the situation of a morning
song. The man exuberantly praises the beauty of his mistress and
yearningly imagines making love to her again. The song is unique in as
much as Oswald succeeds here in an impressive, if not to say singular
example of "word eroticism," whereby the frequent repetitions and
parallelisms have an almost mellifluous effect. He adopts and arranges
here the polyphonic setting, but not the story or text, of an anonymous
fourteenth-century French rondeau (En tous doulz flans).
4. Mich träst ein adeliche mait (KI 78; two-part;
transcription and three-part arrangement, with a contratenor bassus,
by Guillermo Perez).
This is a song of praise to a young lady of the court, and is performed
here in a purely instrumental version, something that was certainly
also occasionally proffered back then.
5. Ain graserin (KI 76; two-part; transcription by Michael
Posch).
In this song, Oswald takes up another lyrical genre that was popular
above all in France, namely the pastourelle. Like the morning
song, it too has a stereotypical story: a young man, usually of a
higher standing (knight or scholar), meets a country girl (for example,
a pastorela or shepherdess, from which the medieval genre
derives its name) in the open air, and he attempts with sweet words,
presents, and sometimes also with force to induce the girl to make love
- usually with success. Oswald sets the plot in an alpine scenery: the
young man by the name of Jensel (i.e., Hänsel, diminutive of
Hans), apparently a country lad, meets a girl who is cutting grass and
repairing the fence around the meadow where her geese graze, and the
whole affair is obviously fun for both of them. The humor of the song
lies in the fact that Oswald uses formulations that are actually above
suspicion, here agricultural terms, in an erotically equivocal manner -
a centuries-old technique that even today (almost) everybody
spontaneously understands. A model for the melody is not known.
6. Frolichen so well wir (KI 47; two-part; transcribed and
arranged for three voices by Marc Lewon, employing emendations in the contratenor
of the original composition).
A spring song: while nature awakens, a young man approaches a maiden
with all the arts of flattery and persuasion, imploring her for an
answer - one could describe the song, somewhat crudely, as a
late-medieval example for "hitting on" a girl. Oswald succeeds in
presenting the everyday subject with true elegance. He adopted and
arranged the song setting, but not the text, from a French model.
7. Stand auff, Maredel (KI 48; two-part; arranged for four
voices by Michael Posch after the original setting).
A morning song variant: Oswald transfers the plot into the rural world:
the farm girl Maredel/Gredel corresponds to the lady in the courtly
morning song, her (silent) Künzel "from the beautiful Ziller
Valley" to the young knight, and the farmer's wife to the watchman.
Early in the morning, the farmer's wife calls the rebellious farm girl
to work, and apparently also has an eye on the young man. This is a
two-voice duet, whereby the two roles of the farm girl and the farmer's
wife are at times heard simultaneously. Oswald adopted here the song
setting, but not the text, of an anonymous French rondeau (Jour a
jour la vie), and in this way created something new and original.
9. Die minne füget neimand (KI 72; three-part).
This song deals in a slightly cynical manner with the connection
between eroticism and money: he who has no money, does not get anywhere
with the women (1), and the innkeeper also insists upon payment (2).
Nevertheless, the "poor fellow" calls for a drinking binge (3), and
announces his intention to pounce on the young girl in the haystack.
Thus: not a trace of "high courtly love"! The melody, in the form of a
canon, is again from France, where it
was very popular (originally: Talent mes pris, already
documented in the thirteenth century). The text was however newly
written. In the performance, reminiscences of the hoquetus form
can be perceived (see comment to no. 15).
10. Gelück und hail (KI 61; monophonic)
The song begins as a New Year's greeting for a young woman, whose
beauty is then described and praised from head to toe, so to speak,
whereby Oswald expressly leaves out nothing "in between." Finally, he
asks her to give ear to him. Such literary "nudes" were relative seldom
in the Middle Ages, and Oswald was perhaps inspired by the singer
Tannhäuser (thirteenth century), whose works he obviously knew.
11. Des himels trone (KI 37; two-part arrangement, by Marc
Lewon, of the dance-like section by means of the addition of a contratenor
bassus).
Again a spring song: the singer experiences the break of day and
yearningly praises the lady courted by him. Then he asks her for a
dance and invites her to join the spring's joy of living, i.e., to give
herself to him. A model for the melody is not known.
12. Frolich geschrai (KI 54; three-part).
That the song deals with erotic pleasure and the effect of wine is
obvious. Rather associatively and suggestively intimated, and less
concretely depicted, it becomes apparent how a willing girl (in a
tavern?) cannot get enough love: she demands a young man who can
vigorously "fiddle" her, and berates another who will not or cannot any
more, and finally asks yet another to "teach her the ABCs" - but
without hurting her. The song is a small gem: highly erotic and
suggestive, but without vulgarity. Oswald adopted and arranged the
music, but again not the text, from a French model.
14. Los frau und hör des hornos schall / Sag an, herzlieb
(KI 49; three-part).
Again a morning song in which now the three usual persons are present:
In the duet, the lady and the watchman appear in the upper voice (discantus),
and the man in the lower voice (tenor). The charm of this song
is not in the well-known subject and plot, but rather in the musical
duet form. A model for the melody is not known.
15. Herz, prich, rich, sich (KI 93; two-part).
This song deals with the anguish of love. In terms of form, it is a hoquetus
(from the early French word for "hiccup"), i.e., "a musical device in
which one or more parts are broken up by pauses into single tones or
very short phrases and, by means of alternating pauses, creates the
effect of the parts interrupting each other or complementing one
another to make up a single melody" (Lewon, 2011). Thus, the textual
context only results through the sequential words of the discantus
and tenor. The complicated musical form requires the poet to
take great pains to linguistically depict his subject. A model for this
tour de force is not known. A combinational game of this sort, with
single sounds and words, also belongs to the idiosyncrasies of many a
modern poem.
16. Simm Gredlin, Gret (KI 77; two-part; transcription by
Michael Posch).
This song is nothing less than a heartfelt love dialogue. The names
"Gredlin" and "Öselein" show that Oswald was obviously referring
to himself and his fiancée and later young wife Margarete von
Schwangau. The song, however, does not present any biographical
information, but rather concentrates on the traditional subject of
love, which is however vividly described here. A model for the melody
is not known.
17. Mein herz jüngt sich in hoher gail (KI 68; two-part;
transcription by Michael Posch).
The song extols the requited love of the singer to his herz lieb
(sweetheart). As the play with the letters clearly shows, it is
Margarete von Schwangau who is meant, Oswald's fiancée and later
young wife. The text of the second verse presents the letters of her
name. "Marriage songs" such as this and the previous song first
appeared in the Late Middle Ages (Hugo of Montfort) and in the early
modern era, and the same is also true for the mention of the beloved
lady's name. A model for the melody of this song is not known.
18. Du ausserweltes schöns mein herz (KI 46; four-part).
This song praises the inner and outer beauty of a lady, who is
addressed affectionately as "lovely falcon." The singer affirms his
faithful service to her. Oswald arranged here the three-part setting of
a fourteenth-century French ballade (Je voy mon coeur).
19. Ain gút geboren edel man (KI 43; three-part).
This seven-verse song is a courtship dialogue between a nobleman and a
young maiden of obviously somewhat lower standing, who describes
herself as not very good-looking and (already?) twenty-four years old.
But she is not interested, and reproaches him for his behavior, which
is potentially damaging to her reputation. He tries again, but is
ultimately rather brusquely turned down. A model for the melody is not
known.
20. Es nahet gen der vasennacht (KI 60; monophonic) This song
presents an almost theatrical scene: the singer participates in the
carnival dance, but does not have a girl as his partner, for he was
cuckolded by his mistress (his búl), apparently lured
into a trap, and mishandled. He therefore dances with a crutch and
berates the other couples, who are merry and cheerful like doves. lt is
rather certain that this depicts an actual event in Oswalds life,
namely his imprisonment in 1421: since Oswald had unlawfully
appropriated by force the two-thirds of "his" Hauenstein Castle that
did not belong to him, Martin Jäger, the guardian of Forst Castle,
had him waylaid, taken prisoner, and tortured in order to forcibly
assert his own property rights; also involved, according to Oswald, was
his mistress of many years, Anna Hausmann, who likewise felt herself
cheated by him: she was to blame (because of a feigned pilgrimage?)
that now during carnival he had to be content with a crutch as a
dancing partner. Unusual is the blunt sarcasm with which Oswald
presents himself here in his role.
Ulrich Müller
translation: Howard Weiner