VIENNA BOYS CHOIR Wiener Sängerknaben

2012 Fall Program 

MUSIC FROM THE IMPERIAL CHAPEL 

VIENNA BOYS CHOIR 

Wiener Sängerknaben 

Kerem Sezen, Choirmaster 

Insanae et vanae curae (Mad and vain worries), Hob. XXI:1, 13c 

Christe eleison from Missa ad imitationem Pater noster 

Ego sum panis vivus (I am the living bread) 

Anima nostra (Our soul) from the offertory for the Feast of the 

Holy Innocents, MH 452 

Più non si trovano, K. 549 

Wie lieblich sind Deine Wohnungen (How beautiful are your 

dwellings), Op. 35 

ROMANTIC VIENNA 

Um Mitternacht (At midnight), WAB 98 

Joseph Haydn (1732 – 1809) 

Jacobus Gallus (c. 1550 – 1591) 

Antonio Caldara (1670 – 1736) 

Michael Haydn (1737 – 1806) 

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756 – 1791) 

Josef Gabriel Rheinberger (1839 – 1901) 

Anton Bruckner (1824 – 1896) 

Text: Robert Eduard Prutz 

Vier Gesänge (Four songs), Op. 17 Johannes Brahms (1833 – 1897) 

Es tönt ein voller Harfenklang (The harp resounds with wild refrain) 

Lied von Shakespeare (Song by Shakespeare) 

Der Gärtner (The gardener) 

Gesang aus Fingal (Song from Fingal) 

CONTEMPORARY VIENNA 

Der Traum der Armen (The dream of the poor) 

Laudate Dominum (Praise the Lord) from the Missa vocalis, Op. 40b 

Vienna 

— INTERMISSION— 

[Continued on next page] 

Bernhard Philipp Eder (b. 1984) 

Balduin Sulzer (b. 1932) 

Billy Joel (b. 1949)

The Longest Time 

This Night 

SONGS FROM VIENNA 

[Continued from previous page] 

Derweil i noch klein war – I bin z'schwach auf der Brust 

(When I was little) 

Taubenvergiften (Poisoning pigeons) 

Der Gondelfahrer (The gondolier), D. 809 

Solo to be announced from the stage 

Billy Joel 

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 – 1827) 

Arr. Billy Joel 

Louis Roth (1843 – 1929) 

Text: Carl Lorens (1851 – 1909) 

Georg Kreisler (1922 – 2011) 

Franz Schubert (1797 – 1828) 

Text: Johann Baptist Mayrhofer 

Der 23. Psalm (Psalm 23), D. 706 Franz Schubert 

Text: Biblical; translation by Moses Mendelssohn 

Morgenblätter (Morning papers), Op. 279 

Johann Strauss, Jr. (1825 – 1899) 

Arr. Helmuth Froschauer (b. 1933) 

Tritsch Tratsch (Chitchat), Op. 214 Johann Strauss, Jr. 

Arr. Gerald Wirth (b. 1965) 

Text: Tina Breckwoldt 

PROGRAM IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE 

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2012 Fall Tour of the USA 

PROGRAM NOTES 

Music from the Imperial Chapel 

Insanae et vanae curae (Mad and vain worries), Hob. XXI:1, 13c 

Joseph Haydn (1732 – 1809) 

In 1775, Haydn wrote the oratorio Il ritorno di Tobia, a setting of the apocryphal book of Tobit, for the 

Vienna Tonkünstler-Societät, a society founded by musicians which paid small pensions to musicians 

and their families. Haydn had applied for membership and waived his fee. In spite of the generous 

gesture, which certainly helped the society’s funds, the composer had to wait until 1790 before being 

admitted. Another performance of Tobia, planned for 1781, could not be “produced, because of the 

departure of an alto”. But in 1784, the oratorio was performed again. Haydn was asked to revise 

Tobia. Amongst other things, he added a chorus in D minor (Svanisce in un momento). This chorus 

became later, with a new Latin text, Insanae et vanae curae. It is not known what prompted this 

(although Haydn certainly knew that he had written a very successful piece); the author of the text 

remains unknown. The motet was published in 1809, and was reviewed as a work in its own right in 

1810. 

Haydn contrasts the wild passages in D minor (Insanae et vanae curae, insane and vain worries) with 

calm passages in F Major, quid prodest, o mortalis: what good does it do, o human, to chase worldly 

goods? The resolution is in D Major, sunt fausta tibi cuncta si Deus est pro te: all good luck is with 

you, if God be with you. 

The piece was used in Curt Faudon’s 2009 film about the Vienna Boys’ Choir, ‘Silk Road – Songs 

along the Road and Time’. There, it is the piece sung by the boys to Emperor Joseph II. 

Text: 

Insanae et vanae curae invadunt mentes nostras, 

saepe furore replent corda, privata spe, 

Quid prodest o mortalis conari pro mundanis, 

si coelos negligas. 

Sunt fausta tibi cuncta, si Deus est pro te. 

Translation: 

Insane and stupid worries flood our minds, 

often mad fury fills the heart, robbed of hope, 

O mortal man, what good does it to strive for worldly things, 

if you neglect the heavens? 

All things work in your favour, with God on your side. 

Program Notes continued on the next page

Program Notes – page 2 

Christe eleison from Missa ad imitationem Pater noster 

Jacobus Gallus (c.1550 – 1591) 

Gallus was born in Reifnitz, Carnolia (now Ribnica, Slovenia). His birth name was probably Petelin, 

which in Slovenian means ‘rooster’. As he traveled all over the Habsburg Empire, he used either the 

German - Handl - or the Latin - Gallus - form of his name, sometimes adding the adjective Carniolus, 

in reference to his home country. 

Gallus was educated at the Cistercian monastery at Stična. He arrived in Austria as a teenager, singing 

first in the Benedictine Abbey at Melk and later with the Chapel Imperial in Vienna. It appears that 

some of his works were written for the Imperial choristers. Between 1579 and 1585, Gallus was 

Kapellmeister to the bishop of Olmütz (now Olomouc) in Moravia, before becoming the organist of 

the church sv. Jan na Zábradlí in Prague. In Prague, Gallus oversaw the systematic publication and 

printing of his works. His output was huge: more than 500 sacred and secular works are attributed to 

Gallus. He died in 1591. 

Gallus’s music combines ideas and elements of the Franco-Flemish, German, and Italian Renaissance 

styles. Some of his chromatic transitions in particular hint at much later styles of music. 

Contemporaries admired his works for their beautifully woven counterpoint and compared him to 

Palestrina (1525 - 1594). This was high praise indeed, as Palestrina’s music was considered ‘pure’ in 

the sense of the Platonic ideal of music. 

Gallus differs from Palestrina in his use of rhythm. He deftly moves between double and triple meter, 

he uses word accents to change rhythm, and creates moments of emotional drama and suspense, 

effectively painting the words. 

His most notable work is arguably the six part Opus musicum, 1577, a collection of 374 motets that 

cover the liturgical needs of the entire ecclesiastical year. 

The Missa ad imitationem Pater noster is one of Gallus’s 16 settings of the mass ordinary. It is for 

eight-part double choir, and was edited by Hans Gillesberger (1909 – 1986), artistic director of the 

Vienna Boys Choir in the 1970s. 

Text: 

Christe eleison. 

Translation: 

Christ, have mercy upon us. 



Ego sum panis vivus (I am the living bread) 

Antonio Caldara (1670 – 1736) 

Antonio Caldara, a Venetian, became Vice-Kapellmeister in the Viennese Chapel Imperial in 1716; his 

enormous output comprises over 3400 works, among them 100 operas. Ego sum panis vivus (“I am the 

living bread”) is a motet for Corpus Christi;; the text is from the gospel of St. John 6:51-52. 

Text: 

Ego sum panis vivus 

qui de coelo descendi 

si quis manducaverit ex hoc pane 

vivet in aeternum. 

Alleluia 

Translation: 

I am the living bread 

who descended from Heaven 

whosoever eats from this bread 

shall live forever. 

Alleluia. 

Anima nostra (Our soul) from the offertory for the Feast of the Holy Innocents, MH 452 

Michael Haydn (1737 - 1806) 

The younger brother of Franz Joseph Haydn, Johann Michael Haydn was born in Rohrau in 1737. Like 

his brother, he left home as an eight-year-old to become a chorister at St. Stephen’s Cathedral in 

Vienna – since the court tried to save money, the cathedral choristers were in effect also the court 

choristers at that time. 

From 1762, Haydn worked in Salzburg. In 1781 he succeeded W.A. Mozart as cathedral and court 

organist in the employ of the archbishop of Salzburg. He held this post until his death. Michael Haydn 

is particularly well-known for his many sacred compositions. In 1782, he was asked to edit the 

Austrian hymnal to make it more accessible to the people. Basically this meant translating Latin texts 

into German and simplifying and transposing melodies to encourage the congregation to join in the 

singing. 

Anima nostra was written for the Feast of the Innocents on 28 December, which commemorates the 

mass infanticide in Bethlehem described in Matthew 2:16. The Magi had prophesied King Herod the 

Great that he would lose his throne to a newborn King of the Jews in Bethlehem, and Herod had all 

male children in the village killed to prevent this. This would tie in with Herod’s deteriorating mental 

and physical health and his increasing paranoia fed by his family’s intrigues, but there is no evidence 

that the massacre actually took place, and most modern scholars take it to be anecdotal. 

The text is from Psalm 124 (123):7, attributed to King David who in this psalm praises God as Saviour 

of Israel. 



Text: 

Anima nostra sicut passer erepta est de laqueo venantium. 

Laqueus contritus est et nos liberati sumus. 

Translation: 

Our soul is sprung like a bird from the fowler’s net. 

The net is ripped and we are set free. 

Più non si trovano, K. 549 (1788) 

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756 – 1791) 

Text: Pietro Metastasio (1698 – 1782) 

The canzonetta Più non si trovano is one of six notturni written by Mozart on a text from Pietro 

Metastasio's opera L'Olimpiade – a libretto set to music by no fewer than 17 composers between 1733 

and 1817, among them Vivaldi, Pergolesi, Hasse, Cimarosa, and Donizetti 

In the 1780s, Mozart spent much time with the family of Baron Joseph Nikolaus von Jacquin (1727 – 

1817). Jacquin, a famous University professor of botany and chemistry, hosted weekly salons, and 

Mozart wrote several pieces for these. The two youngest Jacquins, Emil Gottfried (1767 – 1792) and 

Franziska (1769 – 1850), were among Mozart’s most talented pupils. There is some speculation as to 

whether Gottfried might have written some of the vocal parts of the notturni; they were published in 

1803 under his name. Mozart himself probably did note these pieces for publication. 

A (duetto) notturno, literally “night duet” is a short vocal piece for two voices, often with an 

instrumental bass line. The form was popular in the 18 th and 19 th centuries; the pieces – which quite 

often were about love - were for entertainment, and would often be performed outdoors at night. 

Mozart turned the bass line into a third voice, thus creating a trio for two sopranos and bass. The 

Vienna Boys Choir performs the piece as it was written; two boys will be joined by their choirmaster, 

Kerem Sezen, singing bass. 

Text: 

Più non si trovano fra mille amanti 

Sol due bell' anime, che sian costanti, 

E tutti parlano di fedeltà! 

E il reo costume tanto s' avanza, 

Che la costanza di chi ben ama 

Ormai si chiama semplicità. 

Translation: 

One cannot find anymore among a thousand lovers 

even two beautiful souls that are faithful, 

and everybody talks about fidelity. 

And the cause of such goings-on 

is that the (only) constant of one who knows how to love well 

from now on will be called simple-mindedness. 



Wie lieblich sind Deine Wohnungen (How beautiful are your dwellings), Op. 35 (1865) 

Josef Gabriel Rheinberger (1839 – 1901) 

Hymn based on Psalm 84 (V 83) 

Josef Gabriel Rheinberger was born in Liechtenstein;; he was the son of the Prince of Liechtenstein’s 

treasurer. Rheinberger was a nineteenth century wunderkind; at the ripe old age of seven, he became 

organist at Vaduz Parish Church, and his first composition was officially performed when he was 

eight. The treasurer – Rheinberger senior – was not taken with this chosen career, but by 1851, when 

Josef was 12, he gave in and allowed his son to enrol at the Munich Conservatory. Rheinberger was a 

quick study; at 19, he joined the staff of the conservatory, teaching piano and composition. In 1877, he 

became court composer to the Bavarian King Ludwig II. He was much respected and highly influential 

in his time. 

Rheinberger, who had particular regard for Bach, Mozart, Schubert, and Brahms, had a number of 

illustrious pupils, among them Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari, Engelbert Humperdinck, and Wilhelm 

Furtwängler. 

Among his compositions are 14 masses, a requiem, and a Stabat Mater. He wrote operas, symphonies, 

chamber music, and works for organ. The latter in particular are difficult to play; the organ was very 

much his instrument. 

The text of tonight’s piece is based on Psalm 84 (V 83), verses 1 – 4 and 11. The original Biblical 

Psalm is a pilgrimage song, praising God as host in his temple, offering happiness and forgiveness to 

anyone who comes to the sanctuary, literally or figuratively speaking. Anyone who finds God will find 

his altars and will know how to lead a blameless life. Anyone who leads a blameless life is granted 

bliss. 

Text: 

Wie lieblich sind deine Wohnungen, o Herr! 

Es sehnt sich meine Seele nach dem Vorhof des Herrn. 

Mein Herz frohlockt in dem lebendigen Gott. 

Denn der Sperling findet sein Haus und die Taube Obdach im Sturm. 

Ich finde deine Altäre, o du mein König, Herr und Gott. 

Selig sind, die in deinem Hause wohnen, 

in alle Ewigkeit loben sie dich! 

Barmherzigkeit und Wahrheit liebt Gott, 

und denen, die da wandeln in Unschuld gibt er Gnade und Herrlichkeit. 

O wie lieblich sind deine Wohnungen! 



Translation: 

How beautiful are your dwellings, o Lord. 

My soul longs for the court of the Lord. 

My heart cries out for joy to God. 

For the sparrow has found a home and the dove shelter from the storm. 

I find your altars, o my King, Lord, and God. 

Blessed are those who live in your house, 

they shall praise you forever. 

God loves mercy and truth 

And he gives grace and glory to those who are innocent. 

Oh, how beautiful are your dwellings. 

Romantic Vienna 

Um Mitternacht (at midnight),WAB 98 (1864) 

Anton Bruckner (1824 – 1896) 

Text: Robert Eduard Prutz (1816 – 1872) (1841) 

Anton Bruckner, after whom one of the Vienna Boys’ touring choirs is named, was born in upper 

Austria. The son of a schoolteacher and organist, he became a chorister at the Augustinian monastery 

of St. Florian. He attended teacher-training school in Linz. From 1845, he taught at St. Florian’s;; three 

years later, he became the monastery’s organist. In 1855, he went to Vienna to study at the 

conservatory with Austria’s most famous music theorist, Simon Sechter, who also taught the imperial 

choristers. In 1868, he joined the court musicians at Vienna’s Imperial Chapel;; ten years later, 

Bruckner was made court organist. In 1892, he was released from his duties due to poor health. 

Bruckner’s great masses were first performed at the Imperial Chapel, by the court’s choristers, and 

they continue to be part of the Vienna Boys Choir’s repertoire. 

Bruckner, a deeply religious man, spent much time studying Renaissance polyphony as well as the 

works of J.S. Bach. He was famous for his skilful improvisations on the organ, and his compositions 

combine traits of early music with Romantic harmonic shifts. 

The text of Um Mitternacht is by Robert Prutz, a dissident political writer who promoted democracy 

freedom of the press in his writings. Prutz, whose own satirical works were censored (he even went to 

jail for poking fun at the German emperor), felt that he was barred from doing what he could do best. 

The original version in F minor for men’s chorus, alto solo and piano dates to 1864;; a second version 

for men’s chorus a cappella and tenor solo was written in 1886.The work was first performed in Linz 

on 11 December 1864, under Bruckner’s own direction. 



Text: 

Um Mitternacht in ernster Stunde, 

tönt oft ein wundersamer Klang: 

s’ist wie aus liebem Muttermunde 

ein freundlich tröstender Gesang. 

In süßen, unbelauschten Thränen 

Löst er des Herzens bange Pein, 

Und alles unmuthvolle Sehnen 

Und allen Kummer wiegt er ein. 

Als käm der Mai des Lebens wieder 

Regt sich’s im Herzen wunderbar: 

Da quillen Töne, keimen Lieder, 

Da wird die Seele jung und klar. 

So tönt das stille Läuten, 

doch ich versteh’ die Weise nie, 

und nur mitunter möchte ich’s deuten 

als wär’s der Kindheit Melodie. 

Translation: 

At midnight, at the serious hour, 

There often is a wondrous sound: 

As if sung by a mother, 

A friendly, consoling song. 

It dissolves the heart’s pains 

Into sweet, unheard tears. 

And all longing despite yourself 

And all sorrow is lulled. 

As if life’s May had returned 

The heart moves blissfully: 

Sounds well up (and) germinate into songs, 

The soul becomes young and pure once more. 

Thus sounds the quiet tolling, 

But I don’t ever understand the tune, 

And only sometimes I would believe 

That it is the melody of childhood. 



Vier Gesänge (Four songs), Op. 17 

Johannes Brahms (1833 – 1897) 

Es tönt ein voller Harfenklang (The harp resounds) 

Text: Friedrich Ruperti (1805 – 1867) 

Lied von Shakespeare (Song by Shakespeare) 

Text: William Shakespeare (1564 – 1616), German version by August Wilhelm von Schlegel 

Der Gärtner (The Gardener) 

Text: Joseph Freiherr von Eichendorff (1788 – 1857) 


Text: James Macpherson (1736 – 1796) 

Hamburg-born Johannes Brahms was a reserved, logical and thorough man, whose terse manner is 

reflected in his works. He knew a lot of music, and had obviously studied ancient music in some detail 

(this is reflected in his own use of Renaissance and Baroque polyphony). When writing vocal music, 

Brahms paid close attention to words; his sacred music is a deeply felt, non-denominational statement 

of faith. 

Brahms, who for a while was the artistic director of a women’s choir in Hamburg, wrote much music 

for high voices, motets, lieder and folk songs. He made use of traditional folk tunes, sometimes simply 

arranging them but also invented his own, such as his famous lullaby. 

Brahms wrote the four melancholy songs for his women’s chorus. All four deal with unrequited love, 

death or dying in some form; these are highly romantic topics. The unusual instrumentation, two 

French horns and a harp, matches the mood. There is an alternative version by Brahms himself, for 

choir and piano. 

Es tönt ein voller Harfenklang (The harp resounds) 

Text: Friedrich Ruperti (1805 – 1867) 

Text: 

Es tönt ein voller Harfenklang, 

den Lieb und Sehnsucht schwellen. 

Er dringt zum Herzen tief und bang 

und lässt das Auge quellen. 

O rinnet, Tränen, nur herab, 

o schlage Herz mit Beben. 

Es sanken Lieb’ und Glück ins Grab, 

verloren ist das Leben! 



Translation: 

The harp resounds with wild refrain 

That glows with love and yearning 

It fills my heart with deepest pain 

And tears flow hot and burning. 

O flow my tears and soon be shed! 

O shake, my heart, with beating. 

My love and happiness are dead, 

And life has lost its meaning. 

Lied von Shakespeare (Song by Shakespeare from Twelfth Night, Akc II, Scene 4) 

Text: William Shakespeare (1564 – 1616), German version by A.W. von Schlegel (1826) 

The song is taken from Shakespeare’s 1601 comedy Twelfth Night. The scene is set in the Duke of 

Orsino’s house, the Duke and Viola discuss love and the Duke asks Feste the fool to sing this ‘ancient’ 

song. 

Text: 

Komm herbei, komm herbei, Tod, 

und versenk in Cypressen den Leib! 

Laß mich frei, laß mich frei, Not! 

Mich erschlägt ein holdseliges Weib. 

Mit Rosmarin mein Leichenhemd, 

o bestellt es! 

Ob Lieb ans Herz mir tödlich kommt, 

Treu hält es, Treu hält es. 

Keine Blum, keine Blum süß 

sei gestreut auf den schwärzlichen Sarg; 

keine Seel, keine Seel grüß mein Gebein, 

wo die Erd’ es verbarg. 

Um Ach und Weh zu wenden ab, 

bergt alleine mich, 

wo kein Treuer wall ans Grab 

und weine, und weine. 



Shakespeare’s original text: 

Come away, come away, death, 

And in sad cypress let me be laid; 

Fie away, fie away, breath; 

I am slain by a fair cruel maid. 

My shroud of white, stuck all with yew, 

O prepare it! 

My part of death, no one so true 

Did share it. 

Not a flower, not a flower sweet, 

On my black coffin let there be strown; 

Not a friend, not a friend greet 

My poor corpse, when my bones shall be thrown: 

A thousand sighs to save, 

Lay me, O where 

Sad true lover never find my grave, 

To weep there! 

Der Gärtner (The gardener) 

Text: Joseph Freiherr von Eichendorff (1788 – 1857) 

Eichendorff’s text clearly hit a contemporary nerve; there is also a famous duet by Mendelssohn. 

Brahms’s version is a song with verses, in 6/8 time. 

Text: 

Wohin ich geh und schaue, 

in Feld und Wald und Tal, 

vom Berg hinab in die Aue: 

viel schöne, hohe Fraue, 

grüß’ ich dich tausendmal. 

In meinem Garten find ich 

viel Blumen schön und fein, 

viel Kränze wohl draus wind ich 

und tausend Gedanken bind’ ich 

und Grüße mit darein. 

Ihr darf ich keinen reichen, 

sie ist zu hoch und schön, 

die müssen alle verbleichen, 

die Liebe nur ohne gleichen 

bleibt ewig im Herzen stehn. 

Ich schein’ wohl froher Dinge 

und schaffe auf und ab, 

und ob das Herz zerspringe 

Ich grabe fort und singe 

und grab’ mir bald mein Grab. 



Translation: 

Wherever I may wander in field and wood and plains. 

From hill or valley yonder, 

I send you ever fonder a thousand sweet refrains. 

My garden now discloses the fairest flow’rs I know 

A thousand thoughts it encloses, 

and with my garlands of roses a thousand greetings go. 

Alas, the one I cherish, she is a thing apart, 

my wreaths must wither and perish, 

but boundless love will flourish 

forever in my heart. 

I try to bear it gladly 

And labour bravely forth, 

and though my heart beats madly 

I work there singing sadly 

And dig my grave on earth. 


Text: James Macpherson alias Ossian (1761); German text by an anonymous author 

Gesang aus Fingal (Song from the Fingal epic) is a lament for the death of Scottish warrior, “graceful 

Trenar”. Passages for women’s voices a cappella alternate with accompanied passages, first with one 

horn, then two, then harp, effectively creating the mood. 

The text is a poetic German rendition of a passage from James MacPherson’s Fingal, first published in 

1762. MacPherson claimed to have discovered fragments of an ancient Gaelic epic by Ossian, the son 

of Fingal, a third-century king of Scotland. MacPherson’s heroes are noble savages, combining the 

virtues of Achilles in combat with “civilised” and enlightened reasoning, and the “discovery” was 

greeted with enthusiasm. An Ossian craze swept Europe, and visitors flocked to Scotland to visit 

Ossian’s and Fingal’s caves. Napoleon was known to carry a copy of the book, and Goethe’s Werther 

drops The Iliad, his favourite bedtime reading, for Fingal, which he feels is infinitely more stirring and 

“closer to his roots”. 

Despite the book’s phenomenal success, contemporary critics suspected MacPherson of forgery, in 

particular, as he never made the original manuscripts available to other scholars. The dispute was not 

settled until years after MacPherson’s death, when it was established that Fingal was indeed one of the 

more spectacular literary hoaxes of its time. By the time Brahms wrote his song, he would probably 

have known that the epic was a fake, and its author Ossian a pastiche of several celtic heroes and 

bards, as imagined by MacPherson. 



Text: 

Wein’ an den Felsen der brausenden Winde 

weine o Mädchen von Inistore! 

Beug’ über die Wogen dein schönes Haupt, 

lieblicher du als der Geist der Berge wenn er um Mittag in einem Sonnenstrahl 

über das Schweigen von Morven fährt. 

Er ist gefallen, dein Jünglein liegt darnieder, bleich sank er unter Cuthullins Schwert. 

Nimmer wird Mut deinen Liebling mehr reizen, 

das Blut von Königen zu vergiessen. 

Wein’ an den Felsen der brausenden Winde, 

weine, o Mädchen, von Inistore. 

Trenar, der liebliche Trenar, starb. O Mädchen von Inistore! 

Seine grauen Hunde heulen daheim; sie sehen seinen Geist vorüberziehen. 

Trenar, der liebliche Trenar, starb. O Mädchen von Inistore. 

Sein Bogen hängt ungespannt in der Halle nichts regt sich auf der Heide der Rehe. 

Wein’ an den Felsen der brausenden Winde, weine, o Mädchen von Inistore. Wein! 

Translation: 

Weep on the rocks where the storm winds are raging, 

weep, o thou maiden of Inistore! 

Bend over the waters thy lovely head; 

Fairer art thou than the mountain spirit 

When he at noon in the brightness of the sun 

Touches the silence of Morven’s height. 

For he is fallen, thy true love lies defeated, 

slain by the might of Cuthullin’s sword. 

Never again will his valour inspire him 

To sheathe his sword in the blood if princes. 


weep, o thou maiden of Inistore. 

Trenar, ah, Trenar the fair is dead! Dead, o maiden of Inistore. 

See his growling hounds, they howl in his hall; suspicious his ghost walks past the door. 

Trenar, ah, Trenar the fair is dead.Dead, o maiden of Inistore. [...] 

His bow is unstrung and hangs in his castle; 

Hushed, hushed silence is where deer once did wander. 


weep, o thou maiden of Inistore. Weep! [...] 



Contemporary Vienna 

Der Traum der Armen (The Dream of the Poor) (2001) 

Bernhard Philipp Eder (b. 1984) 

Text: Karl Simrock (1802 – 1876), after Ulrich von Liechtenstein (1200 – 1275) 

Bernhard Philipp Eder was born in Vienna. He discovered his passion for music early on; he studied 

piano as a child and attended Vienna's Musikgymnasium. Eder was determined to become a composer; 

he took private lessons, and enrolled in the Vienna Conservatory. In 2005, Eder started studying at 

Vienna's University for Music;; in 2006, he received first prize at the competition “Salieri today”. 

Ulrich von Liechtenstein (1200 – 1275) was a medieval minnesinger and a powerful politician. His 

family took its name from their castle near Judenburg in Styria; there is no connection to the 

principality of Liechtenstein. His political positions include that of steward or seneschal and later of 

marshal and judge of Styria. Ulrich, who owned three castles, wrote a collection of poems called 

Frauendienst (Service of the Lady), in which a knight performs great deeds for – married – 

noblewomen, relations strictly Platonic in keeping with medieval court rules. The hero, who is called 

Ulrich, travels from Venice to Vienna dressed of all possible guises as Venus. Venus competes in 

jousts; he breaks 307 lances and defeats all challengers. The Lady however, is not impressed; she asks 

for more deeds and even requests a mutilation. Ulrich goes on another quest, this time dressed as King 

Arthur. In Brian Helgeland's 2001 movie, A Knight's Tale, the main character, William Thatcher, 

played by Heath Ledger, adopts the name of Ulrich von Liechtenstein. 

Bernhard Eder uses the first three verses of Karl Simrock's 19th century adaptation of the medieval 

text; Ulrich's original has five verses. The poem celebrates the ideal of minne, courtly love, perhaps 

not so ideal, as the singer will never “get the girl”. He has to be content with her greeting, from afar. 

Text: 

In dem Walde süsse Töne 

Singen kleine Vögelein; 

An der Haide blühen schöne 

Blumen in des Maien Schein. 

Also blüht mein hoher Mut 

Wenn er denkt an ihre Güte, 

Die mir reich macht mein Gemüte 

Wie der Traum den Armen tut. 

Hoffnung hat auf hohe Dinge 

Die Erwartung mir gestellt, 

Dass mir noch an ihr gelinge, 

Süsses Los mir einst noch fällt. 

Der Erwartung freu ich mich: 

Gebe Gott, dass ichs beende, 

Dass sie mir den Wahn nicht wende, 

Der mich freut so inniglich. 



Die viel Süsse, Wohlgetane 

Frei von allem Wandel gar, 

Lasse mich im lieben Wahne, 

Bis es endlich werde wahr, 

Dass die Freude lange währe, 

Dass ich weinend nicht erwache, 

Noch dem Trost entgegenlache 

Und der Huld, die ich begehre. 

Translation: 

In the forest, small birdies 

sing sweet notes 

On the heath, beautiful 

flowers blossom in May 

In the same way, my spirit blossoms 

when I think of her goodness 

which enriches my soul 

like a dream the poor. 

Hope has set my sights 

on high things 

That I might succeed for her 

That a sweet lot will fall to me 

I am glad of this hope 

May God grant that I can stop this 

That she will not turn this fantasy 

in which I delight 

The Very Sweet One, the Good One, 

free of any fickleness 

Please leave my to my imaginations 

until they become truth 

that I will not wake up weeping 

but be happy at the solace 

and the grace which I long for. 



Laudate Dominum (Praise the Lord) from the Missa vocalis, Op. 40b (1981) 

Balduin Sulzer (b. 1932) 

Balduin Sulzer was born in Grossraming, Upper Austria. He studied philosophy, theology, history, and 

music in Linz, Rome, and in Vienna. Sulzer became organist at the cathedral in Linz, and taught at the 

city's famous Bruckner-Konservatorium. He founded an orchestra and a choir at the Musikgymnasium 

Linz, a grammar school with a curriculum devised for future musicians. Both ensembles recorded for 

EMI classics. 

To date, Sulzer has written 360 different works; he has composed three operas, seven symphonies, one 

passion, 12 concertos for solo instruments, chamber music, and much vocal music. His works have 

been performed by the London Philharmonic, the Sendai Philharmonic Orchestra, the Stockholm 

Chamber Orchestra, the Bruckner Orchestra in Linz, and the Vienna Chamber Orchestra. 

His compositions always start with an improvisation, either on the piano or on the organ. Sulzer 

throws everything into the mix, “let your imagination run wild, invent, be playful and put your 

playfulness to good use, let your mind dance, be poetic, meditate, by all means philosophise, create 

drama and always be mindful of the little satyr in you“. The music should speak for itself, it should 

appeal directly to the listeners' senses. 

Text: 

Laudate Dominum omnes gentes 

Laudate Dominum omnes populi 

Laudate eum gentes 

Laudate Dominum 

Alleluja 

Amen 

Translation: 

Praise the Lord, all nations 

Praise the Lord, all peoples 

Praise him, nations 

Praise the Lord 

Alleluja 

Amen 



Vienna (1977) 

Billy Joel (b. 1949) 

Vienna was first released on Joel’s 1977 album, The Stranger. In 2008, Joel himself named it in a New 

York Times interview as a song that made him think; it is a song about celebrating life at any age. 

Elsewhere Joel explained that to him, Vienna-the-city is a crossroads, and as a result, a metaphor for 

the rest of one’s life. After tracking down his estranged father whom he had not seen in 15 years, Billy 

Joel experienced Vienna as a place where cultures meet and mingle. Not only cultures, but generations 

as well: Joel was struck at how old people were very much part of the city’s life. Joel said it made him 

realise that he should not fear old age. He came up with the phrase "Vienna Waits for You", used by 

the Vienna Tourist Board as a slogan – which brings to mind another saying, this one attributed to one 

Gustav Mahler: "When the world comes to an end, I shall move to Vienna. Everything happens fifty 

years later there." 

Text: 

Slow down, you crazy child 

You're so ambitious for a juvenile 

But then if you're so smart, then tell me 

Why are you still so afraid? 

Where's the fire, what's the hurry about? 

You'd better cool it off before you burn it out 

You've got so much to do and 

Only so many hours in a day 

But you know that when the truth is told 

That you can get what you want or you get old 

You're gonna kick off before you even get halfway through 

When will you realize, Vienna waits for you? 

Slow down, you're doing fine 

You can't be everything you want to be before your time 

Although it's so romantic on the borderline tonight 

Too bad but it's the life you lead 

You're so ahead of yourself that you forgot what you need 

Though you can see when you're wrong, you know 

You can't always see when you're right, you're right 

You've got your passion, you've got your pride 

But don't you know that only fools are satisfied? 

Dream on, but don't imagine they'll all come true 




Slow down, you crazy child 

And take the phone off the hook and disappear for awhile 

It's all right, you can afford to lose a day or two 


And you know that when the truth is told 

That you can get what you want or you can just get old 

You're gonna kick off before you even get half through 

Why don't you realize, Vienna waits for you 


The Longest Time. Doo-wop song (1984) 

Billy Joel (b. 1949) 

—INTERMISSION— 

Like This Night, The Longest Time was released on the album An Innocent Man. On the original 

recording, Joel sings all the vocals: he recorded 14 different background tracks which were all mixed 

together. The song is accompanied only by bass guitar, hi-hats, and finger clicks. 

Text: 

Woa, oh, oh, oh 

For the longest time 

Woa, oh, oh 

For the longest 

If you said goodbye to me tonight 

There would still be music left to write 

What else could I do 

I'm so inspired by you 

That hasn't happened for the longest time 

Once I thought my innocence was gone 

Now I know that happiness goes on 

That's where you found me 

When you put your arms around me 

I haven't been there for the longest time 

Woa, oh, oh, oh 

For the longest time 

Woa, oh, oh 

For the longest 



I'm that voice you're hearing in the hall 

And the greatest miracle of all 

Is how I need you 

And how you needed me too 

That hasn't happened for the longest time 

Maybe this won't last very long 

But you feel so right 

And I could be wrong 

Maybe I've been hoping too hard 

But I've gone this far 

And it's more than I hoped for 

Who knows how much further we'll go on 

Maybe I'll be sorry when you're gone 

I'll take my chances 

I forgot how nice romance is 

I haven't been there for the longest time 

I had second thoughts at the start 

I said to myself 

Hold on to your heart 

Now I know the woman that you are 

You're wonderful so far 

And it's more than I hoped for 

This Night (1984) 

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827), Arr. Billy Joel (b. 1949) 

This Night was released on Billy Joel’s album An Innocent Man, in August of 1984. The chorus uses 

the second movement of Ludwig van Beethoven’s Pathétique Sonata. 

Text: 

Didn't I say 

I wasn't ready for a romance 

Didn't we promise 

We would only be friends 

And so we danced 

Though it was only a slow dance 

I started breaking my promises 

Right there and then 

Didn't I swear 

There would be no complications 

Didn't you want 

Someone who's seen it all before 



Now that you're here 

It's not the same situation 

Suddenly I don't remember the rules anymore 

This night is mine 

It's only you and I 

Tomorrow 

Is a long time away 

This night can last forever 

I've been around 

Someone like me should know better 

Falling in love 

Would be the worst thing I could do 

Didn't I say 

I needed time to forget her 

Aren't you running from someone 

Who's not over you 

How many nights 

Have I been lonely without you 

I tell myself 

How much I really don't care 

How many nights 

Have I been thinking about you 

Wanting to hold you 

But knowing you would not be there 

This night 

You're mine 


I'll tell you 

To forget yesterday 

This night we are together 

This night 

Is mine 


Tomorrow 

Is such a long time away 


Tomorrow 

Is such a long time away 




Songs from Vienna – Two‘Wienerlieder’ 

Wienerlied, literally “Viennese song”, is a genre that evolved in the first half of the nineteenth century. 

Initially, the songs were anonymous, and they were circulated chiefly by the “man on the street”, often 

in bars and restaurants. Some were printed on flyers. They were often rude and bawdy; some had 

political content or subtext. Many Wienerlieder were pure escapism, telling stories of spring time and 

love and outings in the park. Death was also a popular theme, in keeping with the Viennese character. 

The music is maudlin and melancholy; they use elements of the Viennese waltz, operettas, marches 

and Austrian folk music, especially yodels which are used to great effect. 

At the end of the 19th century the genre’s most popular exponents were brothers Johann and Josef 

Schrammel, who appear in the text. With a guitarist and a clarinettist, they formed the “Schrammel 

quartet”. They specialised in Viennese music, making it their own. The brothers’ incredible violin 

skills made them stars of their time, everybody wanted to hear them, and the Schrammels were invited 

to play in concert halls as well as at court. Eventually, their particular kind of music was named after 

them, Schrammel music. Johann Strauss and Johannes Brahms were among their listeners. The 

Wienerlied, which was most popular in the 1930s, has enjoyed a revival since the 1970s. 

Contemporary composers and performers include Willi Resetarits, Ernst Molden, and Roland 

Neuwirth, with whom the Vienna Boys Choir have appeared. 

Derweil i noch klein war - I bin z’schwach auf der Brust (When I was little) 

Louis Roth (1843 – 1929) 

Text: Carl Lorens (1851 – 1909) 

Louis Roth was a Viennese composer and conductor. He worked in Berlin for a long time, composing 

Viennese operettas. Roth, whose brother was also a composer, has twelve operettas to his name. 

Carl Lorens on the other hand – one of the most important exponents of the Wienerlied genre – was 

self-taught. He started giving improvised performances in his late teens. Lorens became popular very 

quickly, both as a singer and as author of Wienerlieder. He wrote over 3000 texts and melodies; 

around 2000 have been published. In 1908, Carl Lorens celebrated 40 years as a performer, and in 

1909, shortly before his death, he recorded eight songs. 

Text: 

Derweil i noch klein war, 

bin gelegn in der Wiegn 

hab nach der Musik 

im Walzertakt geschriegn 

Die Leut warn ganz narrisch 

Wann i hab so plärrt 

Denn mich ham’s bestimmt glei 

Drei Häuser weit gehört 



Und so bin i älter 

Und größer dann worn 

Doch d’Neigung zum Singan 

Hab i net verlorn. 

Ich singat auch heut noch 

Voll Liebe und Lust 

Doch i kann net, i kann net 

Bin z’schwach auf der Brust. 

Translation: 

When I was still little 

I lay in my cot 

I screamed for music 

In waltz time. 

It made people crazy 

When I bawled like that 

They probably heard me 

Three houses down the road 

And then I got older 

And bigger 

But I have not lost 

My passion for singing. 

I would sing today 

Enthusiastically 

But I cannot, I cannot 

I am too weak in the chest. 

Taubenvergiften (Poisoning pigeons) 

Georg Kreisler (1922 – 2011) 

Georg Kreisler was an author, poet, and a composer. Born in Vienna to Jewish parents, Kreisler fled 

Austria in 1938; the family settled in the USA. Kreisler became an American citizen and wrote songs 

for soldiers in Britain and France during World War II. After the war, he started to perform in clubs. 

Kreisler had a way with words, and a particularly black sense of humour. Songs like “Please Shoot 

Your Husband” were considered “Un-American” in the late 1940s, and Kreisler returned to Europe. 

His humour and his outspoken criticism of society and politics continued to cause him trouble, and led 

to repeated bans of his songs from radio and television. 

Taubenvergiften was first released as Frühlingslied, spring song. The song is so similar to Tom 

Lehrer's song, Poisoning Pigeons in the Park, that both men were accused of copying it from the other. 

Both men have denied this. Lehrer referred to Kreisler in an interview as “a Viennese who stole two of 

my songs”. Kreisler wrote in his autobiography, “I do not want to suggest in any way that Lehrer 

copied from me, that would make me no more intelligent than him.” He suggests that someone may 

have talked to Lehrer about Kreisler's song without mentioning his name, or that they may have hit on 

the idea independently. 



Text: 

Schatz, das Wetter ist wunderschön 

Da leid ich's net länger zu Haus 

Heute muss man ins Grüne gehn 

In den bunten Frühling hinaus! 

Jeder Bursch und sein Mäderl 

Mit einem Fresspaketerl 

Sitzen heute im grünen Klee - 

Schatz, ich hab' eine Idee: 

Schau, die Sonne ist warm und die Lüfte sind lau 

Gehn wir Tauben vergiften im Park! 

Die Bäume sind grün und der Himmel ist blau 


Wir sitzen zusamm' in der Laube 

Und ein jeder vergiftet a Taube 

Der Frühling, der dringt bis ins innerste Mark 

Beim Tauben vergiften im Park 

Schatz, geh, bring das Arsen gschwind her 

Das tut sich am besten bewährn 

Streu's auf a Grahambrot kreuz über quer 

Nimm's Scherzel, das fressen's so gern 

Erst verjag'mer die Spatzen 

Denn die tun'am alles verpatzen 

So a Spatz ist zu gschwind, der frisst's Gift auf im Nu 

Und das arme Tauberl schaut zu 

Ja, der Frühling, der Frühling, der Frühling ist hier 


Kann's geben im Leben ein grössres Plaisir 

Als das Tauben vergiften im Park? 

Der Hansl geht gern mit der Mali 

Denn die Mali, die zahlt's Zyankali 

Die Herzen sind schwach und die Liebe ist stark 

Beim Tauben vergiften im Park... 

Nimm für uns was zu naschen - 

In der anderen Taschen! 


Translation: 

Darling, the weather is lovely 

I cannot sit around at home 

Today one must simply go out 

Into the bright spring. 

Every boy and his girl 

With a small hamper 

They sit in the green clover 

Darling, I have an idea: 



Look, the sun is warm and the air is mild 

Let’s go poisoning pigeons in the park. 

The trees are green and the sky is blue 


We sit together in a gazebo 

And everyone poisons a pigeon 

Spring fills your innermost being 

When you poison pigeons in the park 

Darling, come on, bring on the arsenic 

That always works best 

Sprinkle it on the Graham bread 

Take the heel, they really like that 

First we chase away the sparrows 

For they always spoil everything 

A sparrow is fast, swallows the poison at once 

And the poor little pigeon looks on 

Well, spring, spring, spring is here 


Can there be anything more pleasurable in life 

Than to poison pigeons in the park? 

Hans likes to go with Mali 

Mali pays for the cyanide 

The hearts are weak and the love is strong 

When we go poisoning pigeons in the park 

Take some nosh for us 

But in the other bag! 

Let’s go poisoning pigeons in the park! 

Der Gondelfahrer (The gondolier), D. 809 (1824) 


Text: Johann Baptist Mayrhofer (1787 – 1836) 

Franz Peter Schubert was born in Lichtenthal (now a district of Vienna) in 1797. His father, a teacher, 

gave him violin and piano lessons. In 1808, 11-year-old Schubert auditioned for the imperial court 

choir and was given one of two places in the choir – this makes him one of the most famous alumni of 

the Vienna Boys Choir. Antonio Salieri, who was head of the Chapel at the time, became his teacher. 

Schubert loved the music; he did well at the choir school and wrote his first compositions there, but he 

complained about the food, or the lack thereof. He wrote to his brother Ferdinand, begging for an 

apple or money, because “it is hard to subsist on gruel and to wait for hours from one paltry meal to 

the next”. 



In spite of his enormous talent, Schubert was never able to live off his music; he had to eke out a 

meagre living from teaching. First he worked as an assistant teacher at his father’s school, later he 

taught music at the Hungarian estate of Count Esterházy. 

Schubert wrote eight symphonies, six masses and chamber music. He is most famous for his lieder; he 

wrote more than six hundred songs on poems by Goethe, Heine, Shakespeare and others. Schubert 

died at the age of 31, possibly from medicine he was given to treat an illness. 

Mayrhofer, a poet from Upper Austria, met Schubert in Vienna in 1814; they became close friends. 

Schubert set 47 of Mayrhofer's poems to music, and Mayrhofer wrote the libretti of at least two 

unfinished operas for his friend. 

“The gondolier" is typically Romantic. It can be read as a poem describing a night in Venice and 

celebrating escapism: It is midnight, the poet (or the skipper, as the case may be) is out on the waters 

in Venice, having a grand old time basking in the moonlight. There is however a gloomy undertow: 

“meine Barke”, my skiff, might also refer to the poet himself, who – unfettered, is being rocked by 

“des Meeres Schoß”, literally the bottom of the sea. The choice of words would support this, a 

“Barke” is the kind of boat Charon uses to ferry the deceased across the River Styx. Death is the 

ultimate freedom. 

Finally, St. Mark's campanile strikes midnight – the pianist strikes the same chord twelve times. 

Everybody is asleep, only the skipper – the poet – is awake, or should we say conscious. No one else 

has seen or understood. 

However one chooses to interpret the words, one thing remains clear – the first verse conveys a 

feeling, a longing to be shot of mundane worries, to be free. This certainly applied to Mayrhofer, who 

was forced to work for the censor's office, a job he loathed. In the end, sadly, Mayhofer, who suffered 

from depression, killed himself; he jumped out of his office window in Vienna. 

Text: 

Es tanzen Mond und Sterne 

Den flücht'gen Geisterreih'n 

Wer wird von Erdensorgen 

Befangen immer sein! 

Du kannst in Mondesstrahlen 

Nun, meine Barke, wallen 

Und aller Schranken los 

Wiegt dich des Meeres Schoss. 

Vom Markusturme tönte 

Der Spruch der Mitternacht: 

Sie schlummern friedlich alle, 

Und nur der Schiffer wacht. 



Translation: 

Moon and stars dance 

A fleeting ghostly round - 

Who wants to be caught 

In earthly worries forever! 

My little skiff, you can 

Sail by the moonlight now, 

And unfettered and unhampered 

The sea will rock (dandle) you. 

From St Mark’s campanile 

Sounds the midnight hour: 

They all sleep peacefully, 

Only the skipper is awake. 

Solo lied to be announced from the stage 

Der 23.Psalm (Psalm 23), D. 706 (1820) 


Text: Biblical; translation by Moses Mendelssohn (1729 – 1786) 

The 23rd Psalm bears the title “The good shepherd”;; it is one of the most popular psalms of King 

David. The good (and just) shepherd is an epithet used for gods (and kings) throughout the Ancient 

Near East. It was duty of the king or the city deity to provide for the people and keep them from harm, 

in the same way in which a shepherd looks after his flock: I shall not want. The last two verses 

describe a festive banquet, in fact the ultimate - funereal - banquet, and God himself anoints the 

believer – a gesture of hospitality extended in the Near East. 

Schubert wrote this piece for Anna Fröhlich and her pupils in December of 1820. The poetic 

translation sung today is by philosopher Moses Mendelssohn (1729 – 1786), Felix Mendelssohn’s 

grandfather. 

Text Translation: 

Gott ist mein Hirt, mir wird nichts mangeln God is my shepherd, I shall not want. 

Er lagert mich auf grüner Weide, He makes me lie down in green pastures, 

Er leitet mich an stillen Bächen He leads me beside still waters. 

Er labt mein schmachtendes Gemüt He restores my aching soul, 

Er führt mich auf gerechtem Steige He leads me on the right path 

Zu seines Namens Ruhm. To honour his name. 



Und wall' ich auch im Todesschattentale, And though I walk through the valley of 

the shadow of death, 

so wall’ ich ohne Furcht, I fear no evil: 

denn du beschützest mich. For you watch over me. 

Dein Stab und deine Stütze Your rod and your staff 

Sind mir immerdar mein Trost. Comfort me always. 

Du richtest mir ein Freudenmahl You prepare a banquet for me 

Im Angesicht der Feinde zu, Before my enemies. 

Du salbst mein Haupt mit Öle You anoint my head with oil 

Und schenkst mir volle Becher ein. And fill my cup to the brim. 

Mir folget Heil und Seligkeit Goodness and mercy shall follow me 

In diesem Leben nach, All the days of my life. 

Einst ruh' ich ew'ge Zeit And I shall dwell forever 

Dort in des Ew'gen Haus. In the House of the eternal God. 

Morgenblätter (Morning papers), Op. 279 


Arr. Gerald Wirth 

In 1863, Strauss and his orchestra were asked to provide the music for the annual ball of the Writers’ 

and Journalists’ Association in Vienna (aptly named “Concordia”);; they were to play, and Strauss was 

to write a new waltz. Concordia had also commissioned Jacques Offenbach to write a new piece for 

the occasion. Offenbach supplied his piece without a name, leaving it to Concordia to find one, and 

Strauss followed suit. The journalists, who must have been having a fun time with this one, named one 

“Abendblätter”, the other “Morgenblätter”. If they had been after a bit of discord, they would have 

been disappointed at the ball: Offenbach did not come. 

Strauss’s waltz found its way into literature: Thomas Hardy mentions it in his poem, "At a Seaside 

Town in 1869"; it must have been popular to be listed alongside sunlit cliffs, meetings on the 

promenade, and the band – sans umlaut to boot. 

Text: 

The boats, the sands, the esplanade, 

The laughing crowd; 

Light-hearted, loud 

Greetings from some not ill-endowed; 

The evening sunlit cliffs, the talk, 

Hailings and halts, 

The keen sea-salts, 

The band, the Morgenblatter Waltz. 



Tritsch Tratsch (Chitchat), Op. 214 


Arr. Gerald Wirth 

Text: Tina Breckwoldt 

Tritschtratsch (Chitchat) is the title of a vaudeville by Johann Nestroy, first performed in 1833. In 

1858, Viennese journalists created a satirical newspaper by the same name; Tritsch-Tratsch poked fun 

at famous people. On 21 March 1858, the paper printed a humorous portrait of Johann Strauss, 

speculating about his yearly visits to Russia. Strauss spent the summers in Pawlowsk with his 

orchestra, performing for the holidaymakers there. The paper obliquely hinted at an affair with a 

Russian woman, and the gossip spread through Vienna like wildfire. Strauss penned the polka as an 

answer. 

Tritsch Tratsch was composed between August and November of 1858 and was first performed in a 

public house called ‘The Great Siskin’ in the Spittelberg area of Vienna on 24 November. The 

Viennese media printed notices about the piece’s composition, its first performance and also its 

publication; a most unusual amount of publicity for a short piece of music – nineteenth century hype. 

There are a number of texts for Tritsch Tratsch. The text sung by the Vienna Boys Choir deals with 

gossip mongering and what it can do to people, ending with a tongue-in-cheek bow to Plato. 

The cheerful polka has sometimes been put to unexpected use: it features in the James-Bond-movie 

Moonraker, where it accompanies Bond alias Roger Moore, gliding across St Marc’s Square in a 

hovercraft. 

The Vienna Boys Choir has performed this popular piece – a signature tune for Austrian musicians - 

twice at the New Year’s Day Concert of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, in 1988 and in 1998, and 

the boys performed it again on 1 January 2012. 

Text: 

Er ist – man sagt – (Ach, Klatsch - und Tratsch) 

Man hat sich schon beschwert 

Er fragt – man klagt (Wir sind - empört) 

Das ist doch unerhört. 

Er meint – es scheint (Nur Klatsch - und Tratsch) 

Er stellt sich gern zur Schau 

Man glaubt – man meint (Wie schön - ist das) 

Ich weiss es nicht genau. 

Gerüchte brodeln ganz ungeniert 

raffiniert, kommentiert 

auf einmal fühlt man sich exponiert 

wie es denn das nur passiert? 



Das hat man noch nie vernommen! 

Ist das schon mal vorgekommen? 

Wie sind wir hierher gekommen, 

hier an diesen Punkt? 

Das Gehirn geht im Kreis 

Der Verstand liegt auf Eis 

während sie die Mär verbreiten 

Trio 

Wenn sie kleine Erbsen zählen 

Um die anderen zu quälen 

Zwischen Schwert und Worten wählen 

wollen sie nur zeigen 

dass sie tüchtig sind. 

Treiben sie es auf die Spitze, 

feixen, frozzeln, reissen Witze, 

reden sich in Dauerhitze, 

um sich zu beweisen, 

dass sie wichtig sind. 

Wir kommen jetzt so richtig erst in Fahrt 

Inzwischen geht es wirklich hart auf hart 

Wir streiten um des alten Kaisers Bart 

Ja, um des Kaisers Bart. 

Coda 

Es ist ein Gerücht. 

Was weiss man denn? Man weiss doch nichts. 

Das weiss ich! 

Translation: 

He is – they say (That’s gossip - more gossip) 

They have already complained 

He asks – they moan (We are - outraged) 

This is simply not on! 

He says – it seems (Just gossip - more gossip) 

He likes to show off and pose 

They believe – they surmise (How nice - that is) 

I don’t exactly know. 

Rumours fly about shamelessly 

Tricky, annotated, 

And all of a sudden you feel utterly exposed 

How did that happen? 



This is totally unheard of 

Has something like this happened before 

How did we get here, 

To this point? 

The mind walks in circles 

Brain totally numb 

While they continue to spread tales 

Trio 

When they get worked up over peanuts, 

Just to torture others, 

Choose between sword and words, 

They only want to show 

How efficient they are. 

When they carry on 

Smirking, taunting, cracking jokes, 

Blathering on forever, 

They want to prove to themselves 

That they are important. 

We are just getting started 

Now we are really talking 

We fight over nothing, 

Yes, over nothing. 

Coda 

It is merely a rumour. 

What do you know? We know nothing. 

That I do know! 

Programme notes (c) Tina Breckwoldt

VIENNA BOYS CHOIR Wiener Sängerknaben

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