Classical music: A gem-like short song by Felix Mendelssohn is rediscovered and recorded for the BBC after 132 years. Here is the story on NPR.

By Jacob Stockinger

In 1842, five years before his death at 38, the early Romantic composer Felix Mendelssohn (below, in an etching from the Hulton Archive/Getty Images), who lived from 1809 to 1847 and is known for his charming and accessible works, wrote a short song of just 29 measures for a friend in Berlin.

Twice the unpublished song manuscript changed hands, being auctioned off in 1862 and 1872.

And then it went missing for a long time.

Until it mysteriously resurfaced in the U.S. this year.

The title is suggestive and intriguing. The song is called “The Heart is Like a Mine” and takes it text from a poem by Friedrich Rückert (below, 1788-1866), a master of 30 languages whose own prolific poetry was used by other major composers including Franz Schubert, Robert Schumann, Clara Schumann, Johannes Brahms, Bela Bartok, Paul Hindemith, Richard Strauss, Hugo Wolf and Gustav Mahler.

Sounds as if the song could be pretty bleak and dire, if you are thinking coal mine.

Or bright and hopeful, if you are thinking about a diamond or gold mine.

You can decide for yourself.

After the manuscript of the song resurfaced, the BBC had it recorded by a singer and a pianist, who do a fine job with it.

You can use the link below to the feature on NPR and its outstanding classical music blog  — “Deceptive Cadence” — to listen to the song, plus get the background about its history and its upcoming auction at Christie’s. And you can find the recording of the lovely 1-1/2 minute song at the bottom in YouTube video.)

The Ear hopes the autographed manuscript ends up in a public museum and not again in a private collection, which is how it went missing for so long. But we will soon see.

http://www.npr.org/blogs/deceptivecadence/2014/05/06/310089313/midspring-surprise-lost-mendelssohn-song-found

 

 

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Posted in Classical music
Tags: Arts, auction, autograph, Bartok, BBC, Berlin, Brahms, Christie, Christie's, Clara Schumann, Classical music, Felix Mendelssohn, Franz Schubert, Friedrich Ruckert, Friedrich Rueckert, German, Germany, Hindemith, Hugo Wolf, Jacob Stockinger, Johannes Brahms, Mahler, manuscript, Music, NPR, Paul Hindemith, Piano, Richard Strauss, Robert Schumann, Schumann, song, Strauss, vocal music, Wolf, YouTube