Sonntag, 24. Oktober 2021

Gisela May - Brecht-Songs - Eisler - Dessau

Gisela May was, along with Helene Weigel and Lotte Lenya, one of the definitive postwar interpreters of the music composed for Bertolt Brecht by Kurt Weill, Hanns Eisler and Paul Dessau. The husky simplicity of her voice particularly suited Eisler - who despised sentimentality and valued clarity of expression. The power of Brecht's poetry shines through her delivery of songs like the astonishing "O Falladah, die du hangest" - written from the angle of an exhausted horse lying helplessly on a busy street as a mob of desperate Depression-era Berliners carve up her living body for meat. 

This is not a comfortable image - but Brecht is showing us that economic injustice has uncomfortable consequences. Compare "O Falladah" with the "Song of the Invigorating Effects of Money" and the listener begins to understand that Brecht and Eisler deserve to be remembered not only as talented agitators for Marxist revolution but also as acute observers of human nature. One cannot say if the results of the famous Brecht-Eisler collaboration are timeless, but they certainly have a long shelf life.

Also noteworthy in this album are the "Song of the Moldau" and two anti-war hits  - "Song of the Woman and the Soldier" and "Song of a German Mother." Note also the contrast between Eisler's lively, jazz-influenced style and Dessau's sometimes plodding treatment of songs from Brecht's later plays, which constitute the second half of the CD.


Like other albums in Edel's "Berlin Classics" series, the Gisela May CD offers digitally-remastered analog recordings from the GDR (East German) recording industry. 



Tracklist:


       Hanns Eisler (1898-1962):
1Lied Eines Freundenmädchens
2Lied Von Der Belebenden Wirkung Des Geldes
3Kuppellied
4Das Frühjahr
5Mutter Beimlein
6O Falladah, Die Du Hangest!
7Ballade Von Der Judenhure Marie Sanders
8Das Lied Von Der Moldau
9Das Lied Vom Kleinen Wind
10Das Lied Vom Kelch
11Und Was Bekam Des Soldaten Weib
12Ballade Vom Weib Und Dem Soldaten
13Lied Einer Deutsches Mutter

 Paul Dessau (1894-1979):
14Lied Der Mutter Courage
15Lied Vom Fraternisieren
16Salomon Song
17Lied Von Der Grossen Kapitulation
18Als Ich Nachher Von Dir Ging
19Sieben Rosen Hat Der Strauch
20Das Pferd
21Der Rabe
22Der Igel
23Die Kellerassel
24Lied Vom Achten Elefanten
25Ballade Vom Forster Und Der Grafin
26Kleines Lied
27Grusches Lied Vier Generäle
28Lied Einer Deutsches Mutter
29An Meine Landsleute

Gisela May - Brecht-Songs - Eisler - Dessau
(320 kbps, cover art included, missing track now included)

4 Kommentare:

Anonym hat gesagt…

There's 28 *.mp3 files in archive (I guess, "Lied Einer Deutsches Mutter" by Dessau is absent)

zero hat gesagt…

Sorry for the mistake. Now there is a complete version of the album with a better bit rate. Hope you enjoy it!

Anonym hat gesagt…

Thank you for this recording. The Sonja Kehler singt Brecht, Eisler, Dessau no longer works. Would it be possible to bring it back? Many thanks.
Philip in Canada

zero hat gesagt…

Of course, will reup it tonight. Greetings!

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