Klage ("Die Sonne steigt"), song for voice & piano, D. 415

No matter what anyone thinks, no matter how anyone feels, the world is beautiful and life is good. That, at any rate, is the message of Friedrich von Matthisson's poem "Klage" (Lament). In it, the poet acknowledges beauty and goodness, but confesses that these things no longer move him since his lover has gone. This poetic notion is embedded in a two-strophe poem in which each of the verses is in two halves: a joyful opening and a sorrowful close. But while this may be effective as a poetic strategy, it is difficult to make a convincing song that begins happily but ends sadly. Some critics would say that Schubert's setting of "Klage" from April 1816 fails for this very reason: the ecstatic triple time opening in C major with an airborne vocal melody soaring above throbbing triplets in the piano gives way to a common time close in A minor with a darker vocal melody above a handful of dour chords in the piano. Other critics praise the song for the honesty of its emotions and the faithfulness of its setting.