Brahms Requiem: A Subjective Interpretation (Third Movement)
Words:
Herr, lehre doch mich, daß ein Ende mit mir haben muß, und mein Leben ein Ziel hat, und ich davon muß. Siehe, meine Tage sind einer Handbreit vor dir, und mein Leben ist wie nichts vor dir.Ach, wie gar nichts sind alle Menschen, die doch so sicher leben. Sie gehen daher wie ein Schemen, und machen ihnen viel vergebliche Unruhe; sie sammeln, und wissen nicht wer es kriegen wird. Nun, Herr, wes soll ich mich trösten? Ich hoffe auf dich. Der Gerechten Seelen sind in Gottes Hand, und keine Qual rühret sie an.
Translation:
Lord, make me to know mine end, and the measure of my days, what it is: that I may know how frail I am. Behold, thou hast made my days as an handbreadth; and mine age is as nothing before thee. Surely every man walks in a vain show: surely they are disquieted in vain: he heaps up riches, and knows not who shall gather them. And now, Lord, what wait I for? My hope is in thee. The souls of the righteous are in the hand of God and there shall no torment touch them.
Taken from the Book of Psalms, the opening lines of the third movement are possibly the most moving in this entire work as the soloist - followed by the choir - rings out the lines of " Herr, lehre doch michdaß ein Ende mit mir haben muß, und mein Leben ein Ziel hat, und ich davon muß" (Lord, make me to know mine end, and the measure of my days, what it is: that I may know how frail I am) - articulating the human cry towards God and plea towards his Maker.
The first half of this piece - right up to the fugue - primarily involves the choir echoing the words of the baritone soloist regarding the frailty of our lives and the vanity of our finest endeavors. The mood of this movement is gloomy, paralleling the previous movement; but in this case, in a much more personal and emotional manner - where the message of temporal human existence is brought to an individual level - thus achieving a greater sense of resonance with us.
But like Movement Two, the final word does not belong to death.
After pondering the question "Nun, Herr, wes soll ich mich trösten?" (And now, Lord, what wait I for?), Brahms provides a reply in a most victorious form as the movement is transformed from a grey of gloom into an anthem of joy*. This is done through the use of a series of triplets that sound the message of hope before achieving their final culmination in a D major fugue as the choir in turn resound the words of "Der Gerechten Seelen sind in Gottes Hand, und keine Qual rühret sie an" (The souls of the righteous are in the hand of God and there shall no torment touch them). With a combination of both tonal and rhythmic complexity, Brahms superbly weaves a message of remarkable hope in God's providence and protection of the righteous. This finally reaches its majestic climax in an aria that shouts out the promise "keine Qual rühret sie an" (that no torment shall touch (the righteous).
*As scholars have pointed out, the first and last movement, second and sixth, third and fifth movements are juxtaposed against one another to demonstrate the overall unity and integrity contained within the message of this work. Its notable that both the third and sixth movements conclude with a fugue - suggesting that Movements One to Three and Movements Four to Six can be seen within a broader thematical framework of death and life, despair and hope respectively. As emphasized already, the final message of this work is about life winning out over death - as seen by the messages contained within both fugues.
Herr, lehre doch mich, daß ein Ende mit mir haben muß, und mein Leben ein Ziel hat, und ich davon muß. Siehe, meine Tage sind einer Handbreit vor dir, und mein Leben ist wie nichts vor dir.Ach, wie gar nichts sind alle Menschen, die doch so sicher leben. Sie gehen daher wie ein Schemen, und machen ihnen viel vergebliche Unruhe; sie sammeln, und wissen nicht wer es kriegen wird. Nun, Herr, wes soll ich mich trösten? Ich hoffe auf dich. Der Gerechten Seelen sind in Gottes Hand, und keine Qual rühret sie an.
Translation:
Lord, make me to know mine end, and the measure of my days, what it is: that I may know how frail I am. Behold, thou hast made my days as an handbreadth; and mine age is as nothing before thee. Surely every man walks in a vain show: surely they are disquieted in vain: he heaps up riches, and knows not who shall gather them. And now, Lord, what wait I for? My hope is in thee. The souls of the righteous are in the hand of God and there shall no torment touch them.
Taken from the Book of Psalms, the opening lines of the third movement are possibly the most moving in this entire work as the soloist - followed by the choir - rings out the lines of " Herr, lehre doch michdaß ein Ende mit mir haben muß, und mein Leben ein Ziel hat, und ich davon muß" (Lord, make me to know mine end, and the measure of my days, what it is: that I may know how frail I am) - articulating the human cry towards God and plea towards his Maker.
The first half of this piece - right up to the fugue - primarily involves the choir echoing the words of the baritone soloist regarding the frailty of our lives and the vanity of our finest endeavors. The mood of this movement is gloomy, paralleling the previous movement; but in this case, in a much more personal and emotional manner - where the message of temporal human existence is brought to an individual level - thus achieving a greater sense of resonance with us.
But like Movement Two, the final word does not belong to death.
After pondering the question "Nun, Herr, wes soll ich mich trösten?" (And now, Lord, what wait I for?), Brahms provides a reply in a most victorious form as the movement is transformed from a grey of gloom into an anthem of joy*. This is done through the use of a series of triplets that sound the message of hope before achieving their final culmination in a D major fugue as the choir in turn resound the words of "Der Gerechten Seelen sind in Gottes Hand, und keine Qual rühret sie an" (The souls of the righteous are in the hand of God and there shall no torment touch them). With a combination of both tonal and rhythmic complexity, Brahms superbly weaves a message of remarkable hope in God's providence and protection of the righteous. This finally reaches its majestic climax in an aria that shouts out the promise "keine Qual rühret sie an" (that no torment shall touch (the righteous).
*As scholars have pointed out, the first and last movement, second and sixth, third and fifth movements are juxtaposed against one another to demonstrate the overall unity and integrity contained within the message of this work. Its notable that both the third and sixth movements conclude with a fugue - suggesting that Movements One to Three and Movements Four to Six can be seen within a broader thematical framework of death and life, despair and hope respectively. As emphasized already, the final message of this work is about life winning out over death - as seen by the messages contained within both fugues.
posted by Benjamin Ho at
7:59 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home