Franz Schubert, composer

Der Tod und das Mädchen (D.531, February 1817, published by Cappi und Diabelli in Vienna in November 1821 as Op 7 No 3), Death and the Maiden in English, is a lied composed by Franz Schubert. The text is derived from a poem written by German poet Matthias Claudius. The song is set for voice and piano.

[edit] Composition

The piece begins with an introduction in D minor; the first eight bars in the time signature 2/2. Both hands play chords. The section is quiet (pianissimo) and slow (mäßig), and presents the musical theme of Death.

The Maiden enters in the ninth bar on an anacrusis. This section is more agitated than the first; it is marked piano and "somewhat faster" (etwas geschwinder). The melody gradually increases in pitch, chromatically at points. The piano accompaniment is syncopated, playing chords of quavers alternating in the left and right hand. A diminished chord in the first bar of the third line (ich bin noch jung) creates an eerie mood. In the eighth bar of the maiden's song, on the word rühre ("touch"), the quavers stop and the rhythm of the opening section returns. Then an imperfect cadence leads to a rest with fermata. This brings the second section to a total of 13 bars in length.

The third and final section is Death's song. The music returns to the tempo and dynamics of the introduction. Death's melody has a narrow pitch range. The key modulates to F major, the relative major of D minor. With the last syllable of Death's song, the key changes into D-major. The coda is almost a repeat of the introduction, except it is shortened by one bar and is now in the major key.

[edit] Text

Der Tod und das Mädchen (Death and the Maiden) D.531. Text by Matthias Claudius (1740-1815) set by Franz Schubert (1797-1828), D. 531 (1817), published 1821 as op. 7 no 3.

Translation copyright © 1995 by Walter Meyer

[edit] See also

• The piano accompaniment from this song was used as the theme in the second movement (a theme and variations) of Schubert's Death and the Maiden Quartet in 1824.
• The play and film versions of Death and the Maiden take their titles from the song.
• German heavy metal band Rage, on their latest album Speak of the Dead, has an 8-song orchestrated suite called "Suite Lingua Mortis", whose lyrics are largely inspired by Schubert's composition.

[edit] External links

• Der Tod und das Mädchen: Free scores at the International Music Score Library Project.
• Sheet music for "Der Tod und das Mädchen"
• Musical version of the Schubert Lied - free recording (mp3) free score-download