Brahms - 5 Lieder,

These five songs represent the whole of Brahms’s output for a cappella men’s chorus. There are two other large works for men’s chorus and orchestra (in each of which the chorus is joined by a highly extensive part for a soloist). Of these, the cantata Rinaldo, Op. 50 is one of the least known of all his compositions, while the so-called “Alto” Rhapsody, Op. 53, is one of his most popular. These a cappella choruses preceded both, and are probably even less known than Rinaldo or most of the other smaller choral works. This has nothing to do with Brahms’s skill in writing for men’s voices, which is impeccable. Rather, the very dated militaristic German texts of Nos. 2-5 are somewhat jarring for modern listeners. Nos. 2 and 5 are blatantly nationalistic, and even belligerent, while No. 4 presents a rather silly stereotype of soldiers. But these songs should not be condemned unfairly for their texts. Brahms set these poems by Karl Lemcke at the height of the nationalistic fervor surrounding Otto von Bisma