Kopflos (Headless) op. 108, A song cycle based on droll and mischievous poems by Hermann Hesse, voice and piano

Kopflos op. 108, Liederzyklus nach skurrilen Gedichten von Hermann Hesse

Hummel wrote this song cycle in the last months of his life and called it his "swan-song". In the light of this, his selection of poems is highly unusual: the composer did not focus on qualities such as the wisdom of age and detachment from worldly affairs, but instead chose lines rich in scepticism and a mocking vein of humour; this can be heard particularly in the last song, where we hear: "My dear boy, everything that people say is more or less a pack of lies?"The music, which is delicately worked through in both the voice and piano parts, is vividly effective for performers and audience alike.

CONTENIDO:

Kopflos (Headless)
Antwort an Freunde (In answer to friends)
Waldnacht (Night in the Forest)
Bildnis eines zu alt gewordenen Literaten (Portrait of an ageing man of letters)
Soirée
Belehrung (A lecture)