Das Lied von der Erde (The song of the Earth) is an orchestral work for two voices and orchestra written by Gustav Mahler between 1908 and 1909.

[1] Mahler composed this work following the most painful period in his life, and the songs address themes such as those of living, parting and salvation.

Political maneuvering and antisemitism forced him to resign as Director of the Vienna Court Opera, his eldest daughter Maria died from scarlet fever and diphtheria, and Mahler himself was diagnosed with a congenital heart defect.

"[3] The same year saw the publication of Hans Bethge's Die chinesische Flöte, a free rewriting of others' translations of classical Chinese poems.

Mahler was captivated by the vision of earthly beauty and transience expressed in these verses[4] and chose seven of the poems to set to music as Das Lied von der Erde.

The first public performance was given on 20 November 1911 in the Tonhalle in Munich, sung by Sara Cahier and William Miller (both Americans) with Bruno Walter conducting.

[7] One of the earliest performances in London (possibly the first) occurred in January 1913 at the Queen's Hall under conductor Henry Wood, where it was sung by Gervase Elwes and Doris Woodall.

This gives the voice its shrill, piercing quality, and is consistent with Mahler's practice of pushing instruments, including vocal cords, to their limits.

The lyrics, which are based on the first part of a Tang dynasty era poem by Qian Qi,[15] lament the dying of flowers and the passing of beauty, as well as expressing an exhausted longing for sleep.

The music of this movement, "Of Beauty" (for alto, in G major), is mostly soft and legato, meditating on the image of some "young girls picking lotus flowers at the riverbank."

This final song is also notable for its text-painting, using a mandolin to represent the singer's lute, imitating bird calls with woodwinds, and repeatedly switching between the major and minor modes to articulate sharp contrasts in the text.

[1] The singer repeats the final word of the song, ewig ("forever"), like a mantra, accompanied by sustained chords in the orchestra, which features mandolin, harps, and celesta.

[16] It is also worth noting that throughout Das Lied von der Erde there is a persistent message that "The earth will stay beautiful forever, but man cannot live for even a hundred years."

[1] Conductor and composer Leonard Bernstein asserts that this ties in with the Eastern idea of Nirvana, in that the "soul" of the singer, as she or he dies, becomes one with the everlasting earth.

"Der Einsame im Herbst" is based on a poem "After Long Autumn Night" by Qian Qi, another poet of the Tang dynasty.

[15] "Der Abschied" combines poems by Tang dynasty poets Meng Haoran and Wang Wei, with several additional lines by Mahler himself.

These attributions have been a matter of some uncertainty, and around the turn of the 21st century, Chinese scholars extensively debated the sources of the songs following a performance of the work in China in 1998.

[27] According to the musicologist Theodor W. Adorno, Mahler found in Chinese poetry what he had formerly sought after in the genre of German folk song: a mask or costume for the sense of rootlessness or "otherness" attending his identity as a Jew.

Schon winkt der Wein im gold'nen Pokale, Doch trinkt noch nicht, erst sing' ich euch ein Lied!

Ein voller Becher Weins zur rechten Zeit Ist mehr wert, als alle Reiche dieser Erde!

Herbstnebel wallen bläulich überm See; Vom Reif bezogen stehen alle Gräser; Man meint, ein Künstler habe Staub von Jade Über die feinen Blüten ausgestreut.

Sonne der Liebe willst du nie mehr scheinen, Um meine bittern Tränen mild aufzutrocknen?

Wie der Rücken eines Tigers Wölbt die Brücke sich aus Jade Zu dem Pavillon hinüber.

Gold'ne Sonne webt um die Gestalten, Spiegelt sie im blanken Wasser wider, Sonne spiegelt ihre schlanken Glieder, Ihre süßen Augen wider, Und der Zephir hebt mit Schmeichelkosen Das Gewebe Ihrer Ärmel auf, Führt den Zauber Ihrer Wohlgerüche durch die Luft.

Weithin glänzend wie die Sonnenstrahlen; Schon zwischen dem Geäst der grünen Weiden Trabt das jungfrische Volk einher!

The sun reflects back their slender limbs, their sweet eyes, and the breeze teasing up the warp of their sleeves, directs the magic of perfume through the air.

Her proud pose is but a pretense; in the flash of her big eyes, in the darkness of her ardent gaze beats longingly her burning heart.

Ich frag' ihn, ob schon Frühling sei, Mir ist als wie im Traum.

Alle Sehnsucht will nun träumen, Die müden Menschen geh'n heimwärts, Um im Schlaf vergess'nes Glück Und Jugend neu zu lernen!

[citation needed] Arnold Schoenberg began to arrange Das Lied von der Erde for chamber orchestra, reducing the orchestral forces to string and wind quintets, and calling for piano, celesta and harmonium to supplement the harmonic texture.