Heine-Lieder : Kommt feins Liebchen heut'? / Franz

Composer: Franz, Robert
Dates: 1815-1892
Song title: Kommt feins Liebchen heut'? = Will he come today?
Opus, no., etc.: op.25, Nr.4
Music collection title: Sechs Lieder nach Gedichten von Heinrich Heine
Imprint(s): Leipzig : C.F.W. Siegel, [1870?]
Source(s) for score: Franz-Album, Band 2 -- Original-Ausgabe -- Edition Peters (Pl. no. 1360a, high voice; 1360b, low voice); same vol. also issued under imprint of C.F.W. Siegel
1st line of poem: Morgens steh' ich auf und frage (Go to text and translation)
Source of poem: Buch der Lieder: Junge Leiden: Lieder, Nr.1
Date of composition: -
Nationality of composer: German
Language(s) of text: German and English; translation by Elisabeth Rücker
Tempo marking: Larghetto
Key: reviewed: C-sharp minor (for high voice); (lower ed. in C minor? Shirai sings in C minor on her Capriccio recording)
Time signature: 2/4
No. of measures: 20
Approximate duration: 1 min. 10 sec.
Form: Varied strophic
Vocal range: B-sharp to f-sharp' [b-sharp to f-sharp"]
Vocal tessitura: middle (Go to chart)
Vocal rhythms: mostly in eighth-notes
Vocal intervals: mainly stepwise motion, with a few skips of a fourth
Vocal comments: Not very challenging vocally if singer has good control in passaggio. Lower-lying phrases may be a problem for some higher voices. Very grateful (and graceful) vocal line; a beautiful melody which is very easy to take too slowly: the Larghetto should not become Largo. Male singer (tenor or high baritone) more appropriate to text
Textual variants, etc.: -
Instrumental part(s): piano part not difficult, left hand mostly sixteenth note accompanimental Alberti-type figures, right hand follows voice (with no actual doubling until final phrase) in mostly eighth-note motion; short interludes in octaves or sixths.
Summary: Very short but charmingly beautiful song with a memorable melody and some nice word-setting touches. Very diatonic with a few accidentals. (Go to analysis)