Mahler & Strauss - Sunday Clas­sics

Bryndís Guðjónsdóttir soprano
Eva Þyri Hilmarsdóttir piano

This programme, which revolves around two magnificent song cycles, takes the listener through the musical world of two great masters of German Romanticism; Gustav Mahler and Richard Strauss. Their works are characterized by a complex depth of emotion and an extremely delicate handling of text and tones. Many of the songs have in common that they are performed either with a symphony orchestra or piano, as both composers were exceptionally symphonic thinkers as well as excellent pianists.

The concert opens with the playful and folk-like Wer hat das Liedlein erdacht? by Mahler from Des Knaben Wunderhorn (The Boy with the Magic Horn), a collection of German folk songs that many poets and composers used in their creations in the 19th and 20th centuries. This is followed by Rückert-Lieder, a song cycle consisting of five songs, in which Mahler achieves a unique balance between poetic contemplation and dramatic expression. In these beautiful songs, we look both inward and outward into the wider world, find harmony with love in nature, in the scent of trees and the sweet taste of honey; a soundscape that leaves no one untouched.

The latter half is dedicated to Richard Strauss with a performance of the complete Acht Gedichte aus “Letzte Blätter” op. 10, which he composed in his youth to poems by Hermann von Gilm. Despite his young age, the songs bear witness to great sensitivity and a keen sense of tone and text. This song cycle includes some of his most beloved songs, including Zueignung, Die Nacht and Allerseelen. The program ends with one of Strauss's best-known songs, Ständchen, a playfully light and sparkling song of love and anticipation.

Bryndís and Eva Þyri have worked together extensively over the past few years. The most notable project is "Hidden Treasures", where they collected unknown songs and poems by Icelandic women, performed them at various concerts and recorded an album that will be released in the coming months. Also worth mentioning is their particitation in the Year of Icelandic Song, which took place in 2022-2023, and their frequent visits
to nursing homes in the Capital Region, where they have held concerts with accessible repertoire for residents and their guests.

Duration: approx one and a half hours, including interval.

Programme

Gustav Mahler (1860-1911)

Wer hat das Liedlein erdacht? from “Des Knaben Wunderhorn” (1899/1901)
Poem: traditional/unknown

Rückert-Lieder (1901-02)
Poem: Friedrich Rückert
 Ich atmet’ einen linden Duft
 Liebst Du um Schönheit
 Um Mitternacht
 Blicke mir nicht in die Lieder!
 Ich bin der Welt abhanden gekommen

Richard Strauss (1864–1949)

Acht Gedichte aus „Letzte Blätter“ op. 10 (1885)
Poem: Hermann von Gilm
 Zueignung
 Nichts
 Die Nacht
 Die Georgine
 Geduld
 Die Verschwiegenen
 Die Zeitlose
 Allerseelen

Ständchen op. 17 nr. 2 (1886)
Poem: Franz Kugler

Promoter

Eva Þyri og Bryndís