Album insights
During the 19th century, the salon melodrama with instrumental accompaniment emerged as a popular art form. Influenced by opera and musical theater, this genre gave rise to notable works like "Pierrot lunaire" and "Peter and the Wolf." Notable composers such as Schubert and Richard Strauss also ventured into this realm, with Strauss's hour-long accompaniment for Tennyson's "Enoch Arden" being a standout piece. While Schubert's contribution ("Farewell to the Earth") is part of Graham Johnson's extensive compilation of Schubert songs and Liszt composed five melodramas, including possibly a sixth based on Schubart's text. Liszt's compositions featured themes from various works, demonstrating his mastery in combining music and narration effectively.
The significance of the following performances lies in showcasing these peculiar and emotive works, solely backed by pianos. This collection serves to rescue five poignant pieces that had been somewhat overlooked due to the declining popularity of melodramas as an art form.
"Lenore" by Gottfried Bürger was a widely appreciated poem that inspired significant musical compositions, notably Raff's Symphony No. 5. Liszt's interpretation of "Lenore" includes both spoken and musical elements, blending fleeting gestures with more elaborate passages. The composition mirrors the poetic intensity of Bürger's work, drawing upon Liszt's skills from his Weimar period. Despite the evolving tastes in poetry, "Lenore" profoundly influenced subsequent German Romanticists.
"The Sad Monk" based on a ballad by Nicolaus Lenau unveils Liszt's mature musical style, characterized by whole-tone scales and dissonant harmonies—a daring move for its time. Liszt's atonal approach in this piece, with intense accompaniments surpassing Lenau's poem, marked a departure from conventional tonality.
"Aloysha the Pot" originates from Felix Draeseke's original composition, later adopted by Liszt for recitation purposes. The richly romantic musical language, comparable to Draeseke's style, reflects Liszt's mentorship and encouragement towards his pupil. This piece remained unpublished until Liszt's rediscovery of melodrama in 1874.
In Liszt's later years until his passing in 1886, he reconnected with his Hungarian roots through compositions in the Hungarian language and themes. Liszt’s deep ties to Hungary, evident through sporadic attempts to master the language and create Hungarian songs and choral works, culminated in "Des toten Dichters Liebe" as a standout composition in Hungarian. Inspired by the poem honoring Hungarian poet Sándor Petöfi, this piece serves as a poignant tribute to Liszt's homeland.
Liszt's only venture into the Russian language, a setting of Count Alexey Konstantinovich Tolstoy's poem "Do Not Reject Me, My Friend," took shape in 1866. Liszt later revisited Tolstoy's poem "The Blind Singer," adapting it into a solo piano work in 1878. This transformation retained the poem's narrative essence, with Liszt consistently placing the poet's words at the forefront. Notably, the conclusion of this last recitation resolves triumphantly, marking a departure from his previous works.