Science Fair Project Encyclopedia
Der Erlkönig
"Der Erlkönig" ("The Erl King"; often called just "Erlkönig") is a poem by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. It depicts the death of a child assailed by a supernatural being.
The poem has been used as the text for lieder (art songs for voice and piano) by many classical composers; a list appears here. Of these, the most famous is undoubtedly the one by Franz Schubert, his op. 1 D. 328 (see section below). It was Schubert's most popular song during his lifetime. More recently, the poem has been reinvented by the German band Rammstein as the song "Dalai Lama".
Goethe's poem begins with a young boy being brought to either the court or back to his home by his father, perhaps a farmer or some sort of peasant. The meaning is somewhat ambiguous, as the word Hof has the double meaning of "court yard" or "farm house".
The poem begins by giving the impression that the child is simply dying from a strange disease, and is seeing death as a figment of his imagination. As it proceeds, the poem takes an ever darker twist, and it ends with the death of the child.
| Contents |
Text
| Original German | English Translation |
|---|---|
|
Wer reitet so spät durch Nacht und Wind? |
Who rides so late, through night and wind? |
The Franz Schubert composition
Franz Schubert composed his lied The Erlking in 1815 for solo voice and piano with a fast tempo. The text comes from the Goethe poem. Schubert revised it three times before publishing his fourth version in 1821 as his Opus 1. It was first performed in concert on December 1, 1820, at a private gathering in Vienna and received its public premiere on March 7, 1821, at Vienna's Kärntnertor Theatre .
The four characters — narrator, father, son, and the erlking — are sung by one vocalist using different vocal ranges.
- The narrator is sung in middle range and minor mode.
- The father is sung in low range and minor mode, calming his son from the son's fears.
- The son is sung in high range, minor mode and frightened.
- The erlking is sung, pianissimo, in medium range and major mode.
The Erlking starts with the piano rapidly playing minor octaves in triplets to simulate the horse's galloping; this motive reoccurs throughout the piece. Each of the son's pleas grow louder and higher pitched, than the previous ones. Near the very end of the piece the music slows down and the piano stops before the final, "In seinen Armen das Kind war tot." The piece then ends with two dramatic chords.
Notes
The legend of the Erlkönig appears to have originated in fairly recent times in Denmark and Goethe based his poem on "Erlkönigs Tochter" ("Erlkönig's Daughter"), a Danish work translated into German by Johann Gottfried Herder. The Erlkönig's nature has been the subject of some debate. The word is often translated into English as "Elf-King", but the name "Elf-King" is rendered in German as Elfenkönig, not Erlkönig ("Alder King"). It has often been suggested that Erlkönig is a mistranslation from the original Danish ellerkonge or elverkonge.
Another interpretation says The Erlking is based on the legend that whoever is touched by the king of elves must die.
According to German and Danish folklore, the Erlkönig appears as an omen of death, much like the banshee in Irish mythology. Unlike the banshee, however, the Erlkönig will appear only to the person about to die. His form and expression also tell the person what sort of death they will have: a pained expression means a painful death, a peaceful expression means a peaceful death.
See also
External links
- "Erlkönig" at Emily Ezust's Lied and Art Song Texts Page; another translation and list of settings
- Goethe and the "Erlkönig" Myth
- Mythology: The Elf King
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