Album insights
Carl Loewe, born just two months before Schubert, was aptly described as the wandering medieval minstrel of Romanticism. Hailing from Löbejün near Halle, he showcased his musical talent in the Köthen Boys Choir as a schoolboy. His standout performance caught the attention and financial support of Jérôme Bonaparte, the King of Westphalia. Two of his most famous ballads, "Edward" and "Erlkönig," were composed in 1817/18 during his studies in Halle. In 1820, Goethe and his musical advisor Carl Zelter in Weimar were greatly impressed by Loewe’s performances of "Erlkönig" and other songs. Loewe was appointed as music director in Stettin the same year and prolifically composed across various genres of the time. Celebrated as a singer of his own songs, Loewe received acclaim for his dramatic presence and remarkable voice—a tenor-baritone with a wide vocal range and a special knack for figurations and gentle high-pitched music, both playful and eerie.
In late 18th-century Germany, ballads, often of English, Celtic, or Scandinavian origin, were in vogue due to an aesthetic preference for idealized and simple artistic expression over the artificiality of French Rococo. Renowned poets like Johann Gottfried Herder, Goethe, Schiller, and other lesser-known writers catered to this period's taste with tales of murders, vengeful ghosts, and enchantments by elves and fairies. Loewe, as a traveling singer and actor who skillfully engaged his audience, found in these one-man mini-operas the perfect medium for artistic expression, with the singer portraying multiple characters while the piano set the stage with lighting and sound effects.
Loewe's composition "Edward" is a translation of a chilling Scottish folk ballad from Thomas Percy's collection "Reliques of Ancient English Poetry" from 1765. Wagner admired Loewe's rendition in E minor, finding it more impactful than Schubert's straightforward treatment of the text. Loewe's composition introduced new, psychologically revealing twists with each desperate exclamation of "Oh!" and heightened dramatic moments with chilling harmonic shocks, particularly during Edward's confession of murder and the hysterical curse at the end.
The poem of "Erlkönig," an adaptation of a Danish folk ballad, originated from a little-known play by Goethe, "Die Fischerin," performed at the Weimar court in 1782. While Schubert’s musical adaptation in 1815 delivered a gripping dramatic force, Loewe's composition two years later aligned more closely with the text, a reason why Goethe valued it. Loewe's rendition, though more subdued than Schubert’s, culminated in a melodramatic conclusion with meaningful pauses and a "startling" diminished seventh chord on "tot."
One of Loewe's finest works is his bel canto setting of Goethe's text "Lynceus, der Thürmer," exuding a charming quality akin to a mix of Schubert and Bellini. Appearing in Faust II where the watchman with lynx eyes marvels at beauty, Loewe's rendition showcases elegance and sensitivity, with moments of impressive solemnity when the poet imagines the clock stopping, resulting in a profound breadth of emotion.
Loewe's legacy primarily rests upon a selection of about a half-dozen ballads out of his total of approximately 200 compositions. While some may seem conventional, his exceptional works, like the Goethe settings "Wandrers Nachtlied," reveal a masterful craft of well-structured, tuneful melodies paired with fitting, atmospheric accompaniments.