I Breathed a Gentle Fragrance
Text by Friedrich Rückert
I breathed a gentle fragrance.
In the room stood
a sprig of linden,
a gift
from a dear hand.
How lovely was the fragrance of linden!
How lovely is the fragrance of linden!
That twig of linden
you broke off so gently!
Softly I breathe in
the fragrance of linden,
the gentle fragrance of love.
Gustav Mahler’s song “I Breathed a Gentle Fragrance” endeavors to capture the intoxicating smell of the Linden tree. He wrote it for someone dear to him.
Guests include:
• Thomas Hampson, Foremost Baritone & Opera Star
• Marilyn McCoy, Columbia University, New York
Music used in Episode 2. All titles used with permission.
Rückert Lieder: Ich atmet' einen linden Duft
By Gustav Mahler
Piano arrangement and embellishment
Written and performed by D.D. Jackson
Rückert Lieder: Ich atmet' einen linden Duft
By Gustav Mahler
Sung by Christine Schäfer, accompanied by the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, conducted by Christoph Eschenbach
Courtesy of Naxos of America, Inc.
Capriccio (C5101)
Louise, Act III: “Depuis le jour, ou je me suis donnée”
By Gustave Charpentier
Sung by Olga Guryakova, accompanied by the Philharmonia of Russia, conducted by Constantine Orbelian
Courtesy of Naxos of America, Inc.
Delos (DE3282)
© 2020 Aaron Cohen