Ellens dritter Gesang
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Ellens dritter Gesang (Ellens Gesang III, D839, Op 52 no 6, 1825), Ellen's third song in English, composed by Franz Schubert in 1825, is one of Schubert's most popular works for over a century after the composer's death, although some misconceptions exist around it.
\"The Lady of the Lake\" and the \"Ave Maria\"
The piece is often referred to as Schubert's Ave Maria; but it was originally composed as a setting of a song from Walter Scott's popular epic poem The Lady of the Lake, in the German translation by Adam Storck, and thus forms part of Schubert's "Liederzyklus vom Fräulein vom See". In Scott's poem the character Ellen Douglas, the "Lady" of "the Lake" (Loch Katrine in the Scottish Highlands) has gone with her father to hide in the "Goblin's cave" nearby to avoid drawing the vengeance of the King on their host, the Clan-Alpine chieftain Roderick Dhu, who has been affording them shelter since the King had exiled them. She sings a prayer addressed to the Virgin Mary, calling upon her for help. Ellen is overheard by Roderick Dhu who is higher on the mountain, raising the clan for war.The piece is said to have first been performed at the castle of Countess Sophie Weissenwolff in the little Austrian town Steyregg and dedicated to her, which led to her subsequently becoming known as the lady of the lake herself.
The opening words and refrain of Ellen's song, namely "Ave Maria" (Latin, "Hail Mary"), may have led to the idea of adapting Schubert's melody as a setting for the full text of the traditional Roman Catholic prayer Ave Maria. The Latin version of the Ave Maria is now so frequently used with Schubert's melody, that it has led to the misconception that he originally wrote the melody as a setting for the Ave Maria.
The words of \"Ellens dritter Gesang\"
Erhöre einer Jungfrau Flehen, Aus diesem Felsen starr und wild Soll mein Gebet zu dir hinwehen. Wir schlafen sicher bis zum Morgen, Ob Menschen noch so grausam sind. O Jungfrau, sieh der Jungfrau Sorgen, O Mutter, hör ein bittend Kind! Ave Maria!
Ave Maria! Unbefleckt!
Ave Maria! Reine Magd! |
Listen to a maiden's prayer! Thou canst hear though from the wild, Thou canst save amid despair. Safe may we sleep beneath thy care, Though banish'd, outcast and reviled - Maiden! hear a maiden's prayer; Mother, hear a suppliant child! Ave Maria!
Ave Maria! undefiled!
Ave Maria! stainless styled! |
Notes
Walt Disney used Schubert's song in the final part of Fantasia, where he chained it to Mussorgsky's Night on Bald Mountain, in one of his most famous pastiches. The end of Mussorgsky's work blends with almost no change right into the beginning of Schubert's song, and as Deems Taylor remarked, the bells in "Night on Bald Mountain", originally meant to signal the coming of dawn, now seem to be church bells signalling the beginning of religious services. The text for this version is sung in English, and was written by Rachel Field, who based it on Schubert's original. The arrangement was made by Leopold Stokowski especially for the film, and unlike the original, which is scored for a solo voice, the version heard in Fantasia is scored for soprano and mixed chorus, accompanied by the string section of the Philadelphia Orchestra.This version of Ave Maria was also used as the theme song to the fourth installment in the popular Hitman video game franchise , which is available on PC, Xbox 360, Playstation 2 and Xbox.
References
Walt Disney's Fantasia, a book written by Deems Taylor and published in 1940 in conjunction with the film's original release. The text was later adapted for the liner notes in the booklet accompanying the 1957 LP release of the film soundtrack album.
Duos
Yo-Yo Ma & Bobby McFerrin, Celine Dion & Roberto Carlos & Luciano Pavarotti, Cranberries & Luciano Pavarotti, Elvis Presley & Barbra Streisand, Sting & Luciano Pavarotti, Plácido Domingo & Vienna Boys Choir, Kelly Family & Luciano Pavarotti, Bryn Terfel & Sissel Kyrkjebø, Luciano Pavoratti & Aaron Neville, Björk & Arvo Part, Roberto Carlos & Pavarotti, Liona Boyd and ZamfirSolos
Joan Baez, Gregorian Chants-Monasteries of France, Voces Blancas, Benedictine Monks Of Santo Domingo De Silos, Jose Carreras, The Carpenters, Ginette Rino, John Murphy, Kiri Te Kanawana, Mahalia Jackson, Stevie Wonder, Andrea Bocelli, Andy Williams, Arvo Part, Maria Callas, Opera Babes, Chris Cornell, Al Bano, Chanticleer, Ginette Reno, Sound Garden, Barbra Streisand, Boca, The Cathedral Singers, Charles Aznavour, Charlotte Church, Chet Atkins, Vienna Boys Choir, Harry Connick Jr, Jewel, Thievery Corporation, Frank Sinatra, Seatbelts, David Bisbal, Demis Roussos, EKSeption, Eumir Deodato, Inessa Galante Caccini, Harry Belafonte, Hayley Westenra, Helmut Zacharias, Jantje Smit, Josh Groban, Kenny G, La Sonora Carruseles, Mariah Carey, Marian Anderson, Mario Merola, Michelle-Weihnachten, Nana Mouskouri, Nigel Kennedy Gounod, Nino D'Angelo, Perry Como, Renata Tebaldi, Richard Clayderman, Rita Lee, Roger Whitaker, Rondo Veneziano, Roy Black, Rufus Wainwright, Sarah Brightman, Renee Fleming . . .External links
- [Franz Peter Schubert: Master of Song]
- [Ave Maria:The Universal and timeless hymn]
- [A note on the theological perspective of Ellens dritter Gesang]
- [The Lady of the Lake] (Gutenberg e-text #3011)
- [edition by William J. Rolfe, Boston 1883] pdf, with the song on page 58, and notes on alternate words on page 177.
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