Strauss's Lieder take many forms. Sometimes he emphasises the strophic nature of the text – as well as the music of his forebears. Yet Strauss also blurs formal distinctions. ‘Allerseelen’, written in 1882–83, bridges the two types. Although the refrain of ‘Wie einst in Mai’ in Hermann von Gilm zu Rosenegg's poem encourages repetition, Strauss provides a seamless rhapsody, while maintaining something of the text's salon atmosphere. The first whispered reference to the previous May speaks of cherished memories, as does the 'sweet gaze' mentioned in the second verse. There is, of course, a formal link between the two utterances, though the whole unfolds as if one thought, building to a painfully outspoken conclusion in the final verse. Here there are hints of a finality that the singer cannot fully address, but to which the postlude alludes with its bittersweet remembrance of things past.
Click here to listen to Diana Damrau singing this Lied.
The painting is 'Die Liebe: Mittleres Paar' by Ferdinand Hodler.
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