Romantic Lieder and the Search for Lost Paradise

The archetypal myth of lost paradise, found in both civilized and primitive cultures throughout history, was central to Enlightenment and Romantic thought, influencing philosophical, literary, artistic and musical works. This book explores manifestations of the lost paradise myth in Lieder by Franz Schubert, Johannes Brahms, Hugo Wolf and other nineteenth-century composers, with emphasis on works conveying nostalgia for classical antiquity, childhood, and folk song. Through a series of autonomous yet interrelated studies, Marjorie Hirsch examines the myth’s influence on the origins and development of the Romantic Lied. The book thus takes a thematic approach to the study of Romantic Lieder, with introductory sections supplying historical context for analyses of individual songs or small groups of songs expressing nostalgia for lost paradise in various guises.