Rafael Rennicke: Inneres Tšnen: Zum Alphorn-Lied
von Friedrich Silcher
The Ranz des vaches, a simple strain blown by shepherds into an alphorn
when gathering their herds, was made famous by RousseauÕs depiction of its effect
on Swiss mercenaries in his Dictionnaire de musique (1768). Reaching the apex of its popularity in the
romantic era, it was a fascinating empirical phenomenon, a symbol for the ability
of music to jog the memory, arouse longings for home, and evoke a general state
of wistfulness. Following its pronounced reception in poetry and travel literature
in the decades around 1800, composers began to take note of its suggestive
powers, which they proceeded to reflect in their works. The sound and effects
of alphorn music became the prototypical ideal for the concept of poetic music for
Berlioz, Schumann, Liszt, and Wagner. And yet it was Friedrich Silcher who
first imbued these sounds with a new and inner meaning. His utterly neglected
song ÒAlphornÓ of 1828 (or early 1829) subtly demonstrates one of the cornerstones
of romantic poetics: subjective metamorphosis and the internalization (Verinnerlichung) of
nature.
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