Gustav Mahler

Kindertotenlieder 4

I was 13 years old when I first heard Gustav Mahler’s Kindertotenlieder in concert, a composer about whom I knew nothing at the time. This masterpiece of vocal and orchestral literature left such a deep impression on me that it remained in my memory for many years before I rediscovered it through recordings, score in hand. I still remember the terrifying In diesem Wetter, performed that evening by the great German baritone Udo Reinemann.

Since then, I have never stopped listening to and studying the entire body of work of this Austrian genius, and in 2015, I composed the solo guitar piece Mahlérienne as a tribute to him. These present transcriptions for guitar quartet remain very faithful to the original text. In my opinion, this ensemble beautifully restores the intimate character of these Lieder, which are orchestrated almost like chamber music.

I chose to assign the baritone part almost exclusively to the first guitar, keeping it in the same register rather than that of the mezzo-soprano, though both versions are possible. This gives the singing more depth on the lower strings, with the exception of a few very soft passages played on the higher strings. It also allows the melody to be doubled an octave higher at times, just as Mahler does in his orchestration.