Mutya ng Pasig (Nicanor Abelardo)

Here's one in keeping with the theme of lesser known pieces. I don't know about you, but until my student brought this song to me, I wasn't at all familiar with Filipino art song. This piece is a "kundiman", the Philippines signature love song. In the lexicon of the Tagalog (the official language of the Phillipines,) the word "mutya" means, literally, "pearl" and, figuratively, "gem", "charm", and "amulet." In the Tagalog folklore, the mutya is a woman, a maiden goddess of the rivers, lakes, springs, seas and oceans - in short she is the "Mother of Waters."

This is a beautiful performance by soprano, Mimi Kater and pianist, Christina Yue. The style contains elements of European romanticism mixed with more traditional folk sounding melodic lines and textures. This beautiful Kundiman portrays a lost kingdom and a mythical past.

Mutya ng Pasig
Music: Nicanor Aberlando (1893-1934)
Text: Deogracia A. Rosario

A brief translation:

On a night when the moon peeks from the heavens, when the gentle breeze tries to awaken her from her slumber. A vision of purity, her hair flows like a wave. She is the Mutya of Pasig, whose every gesture is song and poetry. (the muse speaks) "I was once a princess in the kingdom of Love. When love died so did my kingdom. My strength has gone and now lives in your hearts. If you want me to live again, give me back my love!"

Egypt: The Sound of Freedom/Moustafa Fahmy, Mohamed Khalifa, and Mohamed Shaker.

Just minutes ago, Vice President Sulieman annouced that President Mubarak has stepped down!

The people of Egypt have won their freedom from 30 years of a dictatorship. The sound of freedom is a glorious thing.

Good luck to the people of Egypt and continued strength in the days ahead.

The Sound of Freedom by Moustafa Fahmy, Mohamed Khalifa, and Mohamed Shaker.

"I went down and I said I am not coming back, and I wrote on every street wall that I am not coming back.

"All barriers have been broken down, our weapon was our dream, and the future is crystal clear to us, we have been waiting for a long time, we are still searching for our place, we keep searching for a place we belong too, in every corner in our country.

"The sound of freedom is calling, in every street corner in our country, the sound of freedom is calling..

"We will re-write history, if you are one of us, join us and don't stop us from fulfilling our dream.

Haugtussa (Grieg)

This performance is from Grieg's "Haugtussa, op 67 (The Mountain Maid), 8 songs in Norwegian. Swedish mezzo, Anne Sofie von Otter singing, Bengt Forsberg, piano.

It's a repeat of an earlier post, but it bears repeating because Scandinavian music is also somewhat neglected by singers in America, perhaps due to the fact that Norwegian and Swedish aren't part of the standard German, French and Italian taught at conservatories.

Haugtussa is a beautiful song cycle to poems by Arne Garborg (1851-1924). "Grieg himself maintained that the 'Haugtussa' songs were the best he ever composed. The cycle is a richly varied poetic work which nonetheless possesses a high degree of unity. The poems are centred around Veslemoey, a visionary young herd girl from a wilderness area in southwestern Norway. Rejected by her lover, she tries to escape life's harsh realities and the indifference of those around her. In her visions she comes into contact with nature itself and the powers of the underworld."

This the fourth song in the cycle:
Møte, n°4 (The Enounter)
text in Norwegian (Nynorsk)

Ho sit ein Sundag lengtande i Li;
det strøymer på med desse søte Tankar,
og Hjarta fullt og tungt i Barmen bankar,
og Draumen vaknar, bivrande og blid.
Då gjeng det som ei Hildring yver Nuten;
ho raudner heit; - der kjem den vene Guten.

Burt vil ho gøyma seg i Ørska brå,
men stoggar tryllt og Augo mot han vender;
dei tek einannan i dei varme Hender
og stend so der og veit seg inkje Råd.
Då bryt ho ut i dette Undringsord:
"Men snille deg då, at du er så stor!"

Og som det lid til svale Kveldings Stund,
alt meir og meir i Lengt dei saman søkjer,
og brådt um Hals den unge Arm seg krøkjer
og øre skjelv dei saman Munn mot Munn.
Alt svimrar burt. Og der i Kvelden varm
i heite Sæle søv ho i hans Arm.


English Translation

One Sunday she sits pensive on the hillside,
while sweet thoughts flow over her,
and her heart beats full and heavy in her breast,
and a shy dream wakens within her.
Suddenly, enchantment steals along the hilltop.
She blushes red; there he comes, the boy she loves.

She wants to hide in her confusion,
but timidly she raises her eyes to him;
their warm hands reach out for one another,
and they stand there, neither knowing what to say.
Then she bursts out in admiration:
"My, how tall you are!"

And as the day moves softly into evening,
they turn to each other full of longing,
their young arms wind around each other's necks,
and trembling mouth meets mouth.
Everything shimmers away, and in the warm evening
She falls blissfully asleep in his arms.



This is Lynni Treekrem singing a beautiful composition by Ketil Bjørnstad, a composer I came across it by chance. It's actually hard to pin the style, straddling folk and a more modern idiom. I thought it would be interesting to hear what this rich poetry would sound like in the hands of a contemporary composer.

This is the prologue of the Haugtussa, Text: Arne Garborg (1851-1924) Unfortunately, I wasn't able to find a translation.

Til deg, du Hei og bleike Myr
med Bukkeblad,
der Hegre stig og Heilo flyr,
eg gjev mitt Kvad.

Til deg, du visne Lyng um Haug,
der Draumar sviv,
eg gjev min Song um Dimd og Draug
og dulde Liv.

Eg kjenner deg, du Trollheim graa,
du Skugge-Natt!
Eg rømde rædd; men stundom maa
eg sjaa deg att.

Eg kjenner deg, du Havsens Marm,
med Galdre-Song;
du gauv meg Gru i rædde Barm
so mang ein Gong.

Eg kjenner Striden tung og sein
mot Trolldoms Vald.
Gud hjelpe oss for brotne Bein
og Mannefall!

Eg kjenner deg, - eg kjenner deg,
som ikkje vann! --
Eg saag din Strid, eg veit din Veg
i Skugge-Land.

Eg røynde sjølv den Striden stygg
i mange Aar,
med ville Mot, med bøygde Rygg,
med svære Saar.

Du um meg sviv, du hjaa meg sit,
du arme Aand!
I meg du enno riv og slit
i dine Baand.

Eg veit det væl: dei sterke Troll,
den Vilje rik;
ein Baat i Foss, eit Kvad i Moll,
sløkkt i eit Skrik. ­--

Men Lerka stig fraa gløymde Grav
med Sigers Ljod;
og Vinden stryker inn av Hav
so frisk og god.

Og um me kjenner Graat og Gru
og Saknad saar,
so maa me Lerkesongen tru,
som lovar Vaar.

Von Ewiger Liebe (Brahms)

Brahms (1833-1897) wrote 196 art songs. This is one of his masterpieces.

Fassbaender's recording was the one I listened to, many years ago — along with Fischer Dieskaus's — when I first learned this piece. Fassbaender is a great singer, who sings with commitment, passion, beauty of tone, great phrasing and attention the text. Never sentimental, she tells the story in the most direct and compelling way. I can't think of a better recording of this great piece. Irwin Cage plays beautifully.

It is important to note that the text has been falsely attributed in many additions to Joseph Wenzig. The error was made by Brahms when the piece was published and has been passed down by subsequent editions, but the text is from August Heinrich Hoffman von Falersleben's Gedichte of 1837 and is a free transcription of a translation from the Wendish by Leopold Haupt.


Von Ewiger Liebe/ Eternal Love

Dark, how dark it is in the forest and field!
It's already evening; now the world is silent.
Nowhere anymore light and nowhere anymore smoke.
Yes, and the lark is now silent too.

The lad is coming from the village,
He escorts his sweetheart home.
He leads her past the willow bushes,
Talking so much, and of so many things:

"If you suffer shame and if you grieve,
If you suffer disgrace before others because of me,
Then our love shall break apart as quickly as we came together.
Depart with the rain and depart with the wind,
As we were once united."

The maiden says, the maiden says:
"Our love cannot be torn asunder!
Steel is firm and iron very much so,
Yet our love is firmer still.

Iron and steel can be reforged.
But our love--who will transform it?
Iron and steel can disintegrate;
Our love, our love must endure eternally!"

Translation: Milagro Vargas

Here's Alexander Kipnis' version with Gerald Moore playing the piano for an excellent version with a male voice.

Non, Je ne regrette rien (Charles Dumont)

Composed by Charles Dumont, with lyrics by Michel Vaucaire, it was written in 1956, and is best known through its 1960 recording by the legendary Édith Piaf. The sound of her voice is unmistakable. She was the greatest popular singer of her time.

Non, rien de rien
Non, je ne regrette rien
Ni le bien qu'on m'a fait
Ni le mal, tout ça m'est bien égal
Non, rien de rien
Non, je ne regrette rien
C'est payé, balayé, oublié
Je me fous du passé

Avec mes souvenirs, j'ai allumé le feu
Mes chagrins, mes plaisirs, je n'ai plus besoin d'eux
Balayées les amours, avec leurs trémolos
Balayées pour toujours, je repars à zéro

Non, rien de rien
Non, je ne regrette rien
Ni le bien qu'on m'a fait
Ni le mal, tout ça m'est bien égal
Non, rien de rien
Non, je ne regrette rien
Car ma vie car mes joies
Aujourd'hui, ça commence avec toi

English Translation

No! Absolutely nothing...
No! I regret nothing
Neither the good that I've done nor the bad
All this is much the same to me!

No! Absolutely nothing...
No! I regret nothing...
It is paid, swept away, forgotten
I don't care about the past!

With my souvenirs
I lit a fire
My sorrows, my pleasures
I need them no more!

Swept away the love affairs
With their tremors
Swept away forever
I leave with nothing ...

No! Absolutely nothing...
No! I regret nothing
Neither the good that I've done nor the bad
All this is much the same to me!

No! Absolutely nothing...
No! I regret nothing...
Because my life, because my joys
Today that begins with you!

Schäfer's Klagelied (Schubert)

If you're an Aksel Schiøtz fan, this will be a treat. If you aren't you should be.

Here he performs three Schubert Lieder--Halt! Eifersucht und Stolz and Schäfers Klagelied with Gerald Moore, piano.

Nothing more to say--one of the great Lieder singers of our time.

Ging heut Morgen übers Feld (Mahler)

Fischer Dieskau is heard here singing the second song in Mahler's orchestral song cycle Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen.

The text was written by Mahler himself. The performance is quintessential Dieskau. He sings here with abandon, beautiful phrasing and great attention to color and the text It dates from the year 1960. The cycle tells the story of a young man who takes a journey, having lost his love to a another.

The piece is a staple of singers and orchestras. But there is also a very good chamber ensemble arrangement by Schönberg, which affords the opportunity to perform the piece with smaller forces.


Ging heut Morgen übers Feld/ I walked across the fields this morning

I walked across the fields this morning;
dew still hung on the blades of grass.
The merry finch spoke to me:
"Hey! Isn't it? Good morning! Isn't it?
You! Isn't it becoming a fine world?
Chirp! Chirp! Fair and sharp!
How the world delights me!"
Also, the bluebells in the field
merrily with good spirits
tolled out to me with bells (ding, ding)
their morning greeting:
"Isn't it becoming a fine world?
Ding, ding! Fair thing!
How the world delights me!"
And then, in the sunshine,
the world suddenly began to glitter;
everything gained sound and color
in the sunshine!
Flower and bird, great and small!
"Good day,
Is it not a fine world?
Hey, isn't it? A fair world?"
Now will my happiness also begin?
No, no - the happiness I mean
can never bloom!

Translation from Lied and Art Song Texts Page (see side bar for links)