for medium voice and orchestra

Mahler's songs based on poems by Friedrich Rückert (1788 -1866) are not a cycle. The only link between them is that they were penned by the same poet. Mahler himself presented them in different selections and varying sequences, as well as together with "Wunderhorn" songs. As far as can be reconstructed today, they were written at different times: The oldest draft of "Blicke mir nicht in die Lieder" ("Look not, love, on my work unended") is dated 14 June 1901. This means it was composed during the theatre summer break in 1901 at Mahler's summer residence in Maiernigg by Lake Wörthersee. "Liebst du um Schönheit" ("Lov'st thou but beauty"), which Rückert named "Sicilianisches", was either composed in August 1902 or the summer of 1903, also in Maiernigg, according to Alma Mahler. "Um Mitternacht" ("At midnight hour") was written either in 1899 or 1900. If it was composed in 1899, it would have been in Alt-Aussee and if in 1900, in Carinthia or Val Pusteria. "Ich atmet' einen linden Duft" ("I breathed the breath of blossoms red") was probably also written in the summer of 1901, during the first summer break that Mahler spent in his own villa by Lake Wörthersee. The first draft of "Ich bin der Welt abhanden gekommen" ("O garish world, long since thou hast lost me") is also dated the same year: 16 August 1901. All of the Rückert-Lieder were initially composed as songs for voice and piano and then orchestrated at a later time which was Mahler's usual way of working. (Reinhold Kubik) Universal Edition continues its new study score standard. These completely redesigned scores offer an unparalleled insight into the music of the last hundred years. Great care has been taken to select the best available content for this journey through music history, and every score has been edited according to the latest quality standards.

Contents