Morgen: Songs for Cello and Piano CD booklet

Abstract

“The purpose of transcriptions has never been to “improve “ the original, nor has it been to stimulate an identical effect. It can only be likened to a painter putting on canvas the same tray of fruits, or the same landscape, that others before him have painted. The subject therefore may be identical, but each artist’s approach is different, conditioned by his brush, eyes and creative personality” Janos Starker 1960 It has often been said that the cello closely resembles the human voice because of both its range and timbre. Along with the medium of the string quartet, the great composers of the past expressed many of their most personal and intimate emotions in song, and from all of the romantic 19th century songbook, it is perhaps the songs of Brahms that most lend themselves to the cello. For Brahms, poetry was an excuse for melody, the melody wrapping around the words rather than being dependent on them. His inspiration was always his personal mood; Brahms used the words to set the scene for personal experience.