Before next week’s release of Lucy Mauro and Donald George’s latest gem, Komm Mit Mir! • Come With Me!, we wanted to give a little background information on the composer Mathilde von Kralik. Yesterday we shared about her historical background, and today we’re focusing on her music.
The Music of Mathilde von Kralik:
“Music as if from a volcano! Mathilde Kralik von Meyrswalden must indeed have had a volcanic temperament … whoever heard it won’t forget it anytime soon.” —Petra Diederichs; Rheinische Post, July 3, 2007
Romantic to the core…
While the Kralik family’s deep Roman Catholic faith was one of the predominant overall themes of both Mathilde’s and Richard’s work, the 25 art songs (and single aria) heard here are not overtly religious in nature or purpose, though there are several instances of distinctly spiritual mood and symbolism. Instead, they are unabashedly, even intensely romantic in nature, encompassing a wide range of classic themes and symbols: romantic love (of course), the elusive “blaue Blume” (blue flower), the isolated “wanderer,” and the manifold beauties of nature and its creatures. Her music – with its stimulating blend of sophistication and passion – is the perfect vehicle for her brother’s heady, yet heartfelt verses. A touching aside: the “Maja songs” in the track listings come from three volumes of love poems inspired by Maja Flattich, who became Richard’s wife. In fact, “Komm mit Mir,” the title song, was Richard’s actual musical marriage proposal to Maja.
The remaining poets whose verses are set here – and the corresponding music – are fairly similar in nature, with like-toned romantic moods, themes and devices. The work of two other excellent male poets is represented: that of Edmund Schwab and the more famous Ludwig Uhland. It’s hardly surprising that Mathilde – ever seeking opportunities to showcase the work of others of her gender – chose to set the verses of accomplished women poets as well. Three of them are represented in this album: Irene Zoepf, Adrienne Sarold (both obscure) and the better-known Enrica Handel.
Musical dynamism and delicacy…
Even in some of the remarkable songs heard here, the listener will agree with the above-excerpted review describing Mathilde’s music as “volcanic.” We hear many instances of bold sound, energetic drive and stormy dramatic intensity. Yet – often even in the same song – she shifts almost seamlessly into contrasting delicacy, lyricism, tender emotion, playful whimsy, or intuitive inwardness. Her inexhaustible gift for gorgeous melody and ingenious harmony is immediately apparent. She cultivates a lush richness in many of her songs that recalls the opulent styles of composers like Mahler and Richard Strauss, while maintaining a strong degree of originality. Her beautifully crafted piano accompaniments confirm her ability to illuminate and amplify her chosen texts with skill, sensitivity and almost Schubertian levels of spontaneity and impressionistic tone-painting – and their frequently virtuosic demands stand as firm evidence of Mathilde’s own considerable keyboard prowess.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QjKGNK8yTv0]
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