Lieder – Compare and Contrast

Schubert, Schumann, and Brahms wrote about aspects of nature in their song texts. Schubert used very flowery language in “Die Mondnacht” to describe the beautiful landscape. The song is about the moonlight that makes nature sparkle and shine. Schumann did the same in “Mondnacht”, but instead of focusing on moonlight, he wrote about the breeze that blows through the forest on a clear night.

Brahms was the only composer of the three who was different in his writing. Although his song “An den Mond” focuses on moonlight, it is more melancholic than the other two songs. The text is about a man on his deathbed longing for his lost love. The song does not fully focus on nature and its beauty like those of Schubert and Schumann.

Each of the three songs “Die Mondnacht”, “Mondnacht” and “An den Mond” begins with a piano introduction and ends with a piano conclusion. They also have a piano interlude between the verses of the text. Therefore, they not only have text aspects in common, but they also have form aspects in common. In “Die Mondnacht”, the piano imitates the glow of nature in the moonlight. Throughout the song, the piano maintains a steady, fast rhythm under the vocals.

The piano in “Mondnacht” also takes on a character in nature. It plays the role of the breeze, making the forest rustle and sway. He also keeps a steady beat behind the vocals. Unlike the piano in the songs of Schubert and Schumann, the piano in the Brahmn song “An den Mond” does not take on a character in nature.

The piano seems to be the man of the song. When the voice gets dramatic, so does the piano, when the voice gets bold or soft, the piano does too. Instead of contrasting the voice with a continuous rhythm, the piano flows along with the voice complementing the emotions of the man in the song.

“Die Mondnacht” and “Mondnacht” communicate the words of the songs better than “An den Mond”. The use of word painting with the piano allows the listener to understand what the moonlight and breeze are doing in the songs. The listener can hear the way the moonlight makes the leaves sparkle and the water ripple or the breeze makes the forest rustle by the sound the piano makes when playing those characters.

On the other hand, “An den Mond” is more effective than the other two songs. It evokes more emotion in the listener than “Die Mondnacht” or “Mondnacht”. Rather than being upbeat and simply describing nature, Brahm’s song is slower and more dramatic, conveying the heartbreaking loss man has suffered.

My favorite song of the three is “An den Mond” by Brahm. Even though the text is in German, I can still understand that the song is about some kind of loss because the music corresponds to the words. Even if the song didn’t have any lyrics, the music would still tell a story. I listen to songs because I can relate to them, because songs create emotions like “An den Mond”.

In general, Schubert and Schumann have the most similar compositional style. With his text about nature and his word painting with the piano, they both composed upbeat and upbeat songs. Brahms, though different from Schubert and Schumann, still composed an equally great song. He incorporated an aspect of nature (moonlight) like Schubert and Schumann, but Brahms intended to communicate a different and more moving message to his audience.

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