Wiegenlied (Brahms)

Brahms based the music of his "Wiegenlied" partially on "S'Is Anderscht", a duet by Alexander Baumann [de] published in the 1840s.

[6] The lyrics are from Des Knaben Wunderhorn, a collection of German folk poems:[7][9] Guten Abend, gut' Nacht, mit Rosen bedacht, mit Näglein besteckt, schlupf' unter die Deck': Morgen früh, wenn Gott will, wirst du wieder geweckt.

Brahms adapted a second verse from an 1849 poem by Georg Scherer [de]:[5][6][3] Guten Abend, gut' Nacht, von Englein bewacht, die zeigen im Traum dir Christkindleins Baum: schlaf nun selig und süß, schau im Traum 's Paradies.

[5] In 1922, Australian pianist and composer Percy Grainger arranged the "Wiegenlied" as one of his "Free Settings of Favorite Melodies" for solo piano.

[12] A 1936 biographical film of Brahms with Albert Florath as the composer, took its title from the opening lines of this song, Guten Abend, gute Nacht.

[14] In an article published in 2005, Karen Bottge analysed Brahms's "Wiegenlied" as an expression of the maternal voice, basing her reflections on writings by theorists such as Friedrich Kittler, Michel Chion, Gilles Deleuze, Félix Guattari, and Theodor W.