Mendelssohn - Three Songs Without Words

[andhow04]

three sings without words from mendelssohn, pretty popular ones i would say: the Spring Song, Shepherd's Complaint (Song of the Heather) and Spinning-song (apparently also called Bee's Wedding). all are lovely to play; i only found out later that two of them (spring & shepherd's) are on Horowtiz's encores album.  of course nobody can beat the Rachmaninoff recording of Spinning-Song, but we mustn't let that stop us from playing it ourselves.

[rachfan]

Hi andhow,

I'm surprised that it has taken so long for you to get a reply.  I just listened to all three of your Mendelssohn pieces and believe you played them very well in character, giving each the right touch and expression along the way.  Wonderful playing!

As you know, Mendelssohn only titled three or four pieces in the rather substantial volume of the Songs.  The rest of the titling was left to the music publishers to maximize sales.  Here in the U.S. Op. 67 No. 4 has always largely been known as "Spinning Song".  I read in a book by the pedagogue Ernest Hutcheson that in his boyhood in Australia the piece was known there as "The Bee's Wedding"; however, I seem to recall in reading another source that "The Bee's Wedding" title could be found in Europe too. 

When Anton Rubinstein used to audition perspective students, he refused to hear bravura pieces, insisting instead on a couple of the Mendelssohn Songs without Words, as there is no place for the pianist to hide in those pieces.  I'm sure you would have passed his test!

David 

[alessandro]

Only picked out "Shepherd's Complaint".   It was so BEAUTIFUL that I don't want more for today 

Gorgeous playing, wonderful pace, breathe, wonderful middle tones, wonderful bass, wonderful singing - I often enjoyed your Bach posts in the Audition Room - and now this, frankly, absolutely beautiful.   I don't know if what comes makes any sense or will sound ridiculous, but I I like the "tune" of the piano, it's like just one tiny little pitch under the perfect tune and it sounds so gorgeous like that.   I sometimes have the same feeling with my piano ; I like it when it's very hardtuned, dry-tuned, when the tuner did a great job, just after he tuned the piano, when the tuning sounds still very firm.  And then, well weeks go by and I still like the sound but without the "wow" feeling.   And then, something strange happens ; there is this kind of singing quality that slipped in, like a voice.   This is what I hear in the instrument in your recording.   It sounds so beautiful and matches very well with the songs (I can call it 'songs'  )

Great stuff.
Thanks and kind greetings.

[andhow04]

Hi andhow,

I'm surprised that it has taken so long for you to get a reply.  I just listened to all three of your Mendelssohn pieces and believe you played them very well in character, giving each the right touch and expression along the way.  Wonderful playing!

As you know, Mendelssohn only titled three or four pieces in the rather substantial volume of the Songs.  The rest of the titling was left to the music publishers to maximize sales.  Here in the U.S. Op. 67 No. 4 has always largely been known as "Spinning Song".  I read in a book by the pedagogue Ernest Hutcheson that in his boyhood in Australia the piece was known there as "The Bee's Wedding"; however, I seem to recall in reading another source that "The Bee's Wedding" title could be found in Europe too. 

When Anton Rubinstein used to audition perspective students, he refused to hear bravura pieces, insisting instead on a couple of the Mendelssohn Songs without Words, as there is no place for the pianist to hide in those pieces.  I'm sure you would have passed his test!

David 

thanks for the kind reply an for listening!  you gave me some new information, as i didnt know about rubenstein and his relationship with these pieces.
i wonder if you know, were the titles given to mendelssohn's pieces during his lifetime?  or would they have come at some other point?
thanks again

[rachfan]

Hi andhow,

Although there are some difficult pieces in the collection, in the day it was mostly aimed at the amateur pianist.  For that reason alone, titles would have been essential.  I'm quite confidant that Mendelssohn's publishers were bold and persuasive enough to apply their own fanciful titles during his lifetime.  Their principal interests were business related--marketing and selling his sheet music.  Perhaps Mendelssohn figured that if they were more creative with naming the "songs", it would benefit him in larger royalties on sales.  

Here are the ones he titled himself:

Three Venetian Boat Songs, Op. 19, No. 6; Op. 39, No. 5; and Op. 62, No. 5
Folk Song, Op. 53, No. 5
Hunter's Song, Op. 19, No. 3
Funeral March, Op. 62, No. 3
Spinning Song, Op. 67, No. 4

All the remaining pieces in the volumes were titled by publishers.

I recalling reading too that usually when Mendelssohn received a request from his publisher for more character pieces, he'd become uptight and agitated.  This was not his favorite genre, and he much preferred to compose advanced literature for the piano and his orchestral works.  But he would eventually calm down, get to work, and produce the music requested every time.  I think that Mendelssohn must have realized that it was not a case of the publisher being a nuisance, but rather the fact that his "public" was clamoring for more songs without words.

David  

[emill]

Hello Nathan,

Always liked the Spinning Song and the Shepherds Complaint .... but the Spring Song makes me smile and laugh ....  I remember the days where I used to spend ours watching B&W TV where that was a hit.   WOW!!  the Spinning Song, the way you play it "separates the men from the kids" the PRO from the wannabes. I recently posted the Spinning song played by my son. Enzo in the thread "Out with the old, in with the new" ... and the difference is galactic! Hope someday Enzo can polish it to your level.

May I just say that I listened to the whole Goldberg Variations ... a favorite of mine .... it was so absorbing ... really enjoyed it.  The video and recording were excellently done too. THANKS!!