Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen (Songs of a Wayfarer)

All that we know about this love affair is what Mahler revealed in letters, in veiled terms, to his friend Fritz Löhr. On 1st January 1885, he told Fritz Löhr that that he had written the soprano singer “six Lieder”. Today, we can say, with some certainty, that these were only poems. Manuscripts for the first two have survived and are marked: December 1884. The accompanying music came at a slightly later date, but it is impossible to accurately say when. The finalised cycle only included four songs. The original manuscript is currently unknown, but there is one in the Rosé collection which appears to date from the 1880s upon which is written the title: “Songs of a Wayfer (fahrenden Gesellen), in four songs for a deep voice with orchestral accompaniment”. Another title page, which seems more recent, is labelled “Rhapsody in four poems”. Although it also mentions orchestral accompaniment, its actual score was certainly completed at a later date, probably around 1891-1892, and revised again in 1896, shortly before the first performance. 

The piano version we are accustomed to hearing is the one Mahler himself published with Weinberger in 1897. The most surprising thing is that it differs in many details from the orchestral version, which was published the same year and by the same publisher. From the start, the rhythmic notation for the first four bars is not the same in the two scores. Later, there are one or two important differences, even in the vocal sections. It is therefore the original version from 1884-1885 that we are accustomed to hearing, and which, as such, deserves recognition. 

The Title

The word Gesell means “companion” in old German (Saal: room, house; the word Gefährte means “travel companion”). Later on, the word Gesellen referred to workers, apprentices or agricultural labourers who travelled around Germany looking for work. However, the meaning of the French word “Companion” can be confusing, the usual translation “Songs of a Wayfarer” seems to better fit the context, even if it is less exact than that of “Songs of a wandering companion”.

The Poems

Although Mahler did not put his name to the various editions of the Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen, he is obviously the author of at least three of the poems. A few years after his death, the origin of the first text, Wenn mein Schatz Hochzeit macht, was found in the Knaben Wunderhorn. This discovery was somewhat puzzling, since the composer claimed that he had not seen the Arnim and Brentano collection until much later, whilst rummaging through the library of his Weber friends in Leipzig in 1888. Perhaps Mahler had instead, consciously, or unconsciously, recalled a popular song from his childhood, or had he read it in a newspaper or in an anthology other than the Wunderhorn? In any case, the use of the two poem anthologies alone, which were combined in the first song, proves that the composer had already undertaken an in-depth study of this style of popular German poetry.

As with the Poisl Lieder poems from 1880, the Gesellen Lieder poems showcase one of the most popular literary themes of German romanticism: that of the disappointed hero, an innocent victim of fate, wandering aimlessly near and far, seeking to alleviate his pain. As demonstrated in his fahrender Gesell, had Mahler himself not frequently felt like an outsider in a cruel world, a world full of deceit and deceptive appearances? The contrast between the beauty of nature and the despair of the human heart is another popular theme amongst romantic poets. From a musical stance, the cycle includes some Mahlerian Leitmotive, such as the grupetto which appears in the first, the ascending and descending fourth, as well as the ascending melodic sixth measures. The predominance of walking rhythms would soon become commonplace in all of Mahler’s work. It also characterizes the Wanderlied genre, for which the first part of Schubert’s Winter Journey remains the supreme model.

The First Performances

Ging ’heut’ morgen über’s Feld was created shortly after its composition and performed during a charity concert given by Mahler on 18th April 1886, in the winter garden of the Prague Grand Hôtel. Betti Frank, a singer at the Prague theatre, accompanied by Mahler himself on piano, were highly applauded and the Prager Tablatt critics were particularly complimentary.

But it was not until 16th March 1896, in Berlin, that the orchestral version of the complete cycle was created, which had been revised by Mahler. They were performed by the Dutch baritone, Anton Sistermans, and accompanied by the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra (which was conducted by Mahler). During this same concert, the revised First Symphony was performed for the first time, and Mahler also conducted the first movement of the Second Symphony, also entitled Todtenfeier.

Mahler again provided piano accompaniment to the Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen in 1907 in Berlin, and conducted them one last time in 1910, in New York. They are now some of the most frequently interpreted songs in the Mahlerian repertoire, as evidenced by the large number of versions appearing in our discography.