- Date: 1809
- Composer: Ludwig van Beethoven
- Period: Classical (1750-1819)
Review
Beethoven wrote quite a large number of songs in 1809, including the Op. 75 Six Songs. Der Liebende (Loving) was written on texts by Christian Ludwig Reissig. This was one of five settings by Beethoven of works by Reissig in that year. The others included Lied aus der Ferne (Song from afar) and Der Jüngling in der Fremde (The Youth on Foreign Soil). There were also two songs in the Op. 75 collection using texts by him. Beethoven would turn to the work of Reissig two more times after 1809, in Des Kriegers Abschied, WoO 143 (1814), and in Sehnsucht, WoO 146 (1815-16). While the composer had greater admiration for Goethe, his fondness for Reissig was obviously strong, probably because he identified elements from his own failed love life in Reissig's passionate writings.Here Beethoven sets the song in a strophic style and gives the description "In leidenschaftlicher Bewegung" (with passionate movement). There are three verses and the music is indeed passionate. The mood is full of hope and longing, the end of each verse repeating three times as a refrain. A typical performance of the song would last only about two minutes. In the end, this must be ranked a work of high quality, despite its generally light atmosphere and diminutive size.
This song was first published in Vienna and London in 1810. Reissig dedicated the work to Beethoven's friend and patron Archduke Rudolph. ~ Robert Cummings, Rovi
Albums with Complete Performances of the Work
| Der Liebende ("Beglückt, beglückt"), song for voice & piano, D. 207 | |
| Der Liebesexpreß |
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