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"Der Erlkönig" (often called just "Erlkönig") is a poem by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. It depicts the death of a child assailed by a supernatural being, the "Erl King" (widely translated as "Elf King", but see the discussion of the legend below). It was originally composed by Goethe as part of a 1782 ballad opera entitled Die Fischerin.

The poem has been used as the text for lieder (art songs for voice and piano) by many classical composers; a list appears here. Of these, the most famous is undoubtedly the one by Franz Schubert, his op. 1 D. 328 (see section below). It was Schubert's most popular song during his lifetime. There have been many other adaptations, notably by Johann Friedrich Reichardt, Carl Friedrich Zelter, Robert Schumann, Hugo Wolf, and Johann Carl Gottfried Löwe; Beethoven attempted to set it to music but abandoned the effort. More recently, the poem has been reinvented by the German band Rammstein as the song "Dalai Lama". Later contemporary musical interpretations of the poem have been done by other German artists: Christian Brückner, who is a well-known actor and voice in Germany, lent his voice for a track called Earlkings legacy to be found here: which was produced in cooperation with BAD EGGZ in 2002, and Hypnotic Grooves (feat. Jo Van Nelson).

Summary

Goethe's poem begins with a young boy being brought to his home by his father. The meaning is somewhat ambiguous, as the word "Hof" has the rather generic meaning of "yard" or "place." ("Platz" is a synonym.) In this case it could mean a "courtyard" or "farmyard" (though "der Bauernhof" is the literal word for a farmyard). The ambiguity about the father's social rank is quite acceptable because any father would have similar feelings about a son (or daughter) so ill and in pain.

The poem begins by giving the impression that the child is simply dying from a strange disease, and is seeing death as a figment of his imagination. As it proceeds, the poem takes an ever darker twist, and it ends with the death of the child.

One story has it that Goethe was visiting a friend when, late one night, a dark figure carrying a bundle in its arms was seen riding past the gate at high speed. The next day Goethe and his friend were told that they had seen a farmer taking his sick son to the doctor. This incident (along with the legend) is said to have been the main inspiration for the poem.

Text

Wer reitet so spät durch Nacht und Wind?
Es ist der Vater mit seinem Kind;
Er hat den Knaben wohl in dem Arm,
Er faßt ihn sicher, er hält ihn warm.

"Mein Sohn, was birgst du so bang dein Gesicht?"
"Siehst, Vater, du den Erlkönig nicht?
Den Erlkönig mit Kron und Schweif?"
"Mein Sohn, es ist ein Nebelstreif."'

"Du liebes Kind, komm, geh mit mir!
Gar schöne Spiele spiel' ich mit dir;
Manch' bunte Blumen sind an dem Strand,
Meine Mutter hat manch gülden Gewand."

"Mein Vater, mein Vater, und hörest du nicht,
Was Erlenkönig mir leise verspricht?"
"Sei ruhig, bleibe ruhig, mein Kind;
In dürren Blättern säuselt der Wind."

"Willst, feiner Knabe, du mit mir gehn?
Meine Töchter sollen dich warten schön;
Meine Töchter führen den nächtlichen Reihn,
Und wiegen und tanzen und singen dich ein."

"Mein Vater, mein Vater, und siehst du nicht dort
Erlkönigs Töchter am düstern Ort?"
"Mein Sohn, mein Sohn, ich seh es genau:
Es scheinen die alten Weiden so grau."

"Ich liebe dich, mich reizt deine schöne Gestalt;
Und bist du nicht willig, so brauch ich Gewalt."
"Mein Vater, mein Vater, jetzt faßt er mich an!
Erlkönig hat mir ein Leids getan!"

Dem Vater grauset's, er reitet geschwind,
Er hält in Armen das ächzende Kind,
Erreicht den Hof mit Müh' und Not;
In seinen Armen das Kind war tot. Who rides, so late, through night and wind?
It is the father with his child.
He holds the boy well in his arm
He holds him safe, he keeps him warm.

"My son, why are you hiding your face so frightenedly?"
"Can't you, father, see the erl king?
The erl king with crown and tail?"
"My son, it's a wisp of fog."

"You precious child, come, go with me!
Many a beautiful game I'll play with you;
Many a beautiful flower is at that shore,
My mother has many a golden dress."

"My father, my father, and can't you hear,
what the erl king promises me quietly?"
"Be quiet, stay calm, my child;
It's the wind rustling through dry leaves."

"Do you, fine lad, want to come with me?
My daughters shall serve you;
My daughters lead the nightly dance
And cradle you and dance and sing to you."

"My father, my father, and can't you see there,
erl king's daughters in the gloomy place?"
"My son, my son, I see it well:
The old willows seem so gray."

"I love you, I'm enchanted by your lovely figure;
And if you're not willing, I shall use force."
"My father, my father, he's touching me now!
erl king has done me harm!"

The father is horrified, he rides in a hurry,
Holding in his arms the moaning child.
At last he, barely, arrives home;
In his arms, the child was dead.
Original German English Translation

The Franz Schubert composition

Franz Schubert composed his lied Erlkönig in 1815 for solo voice and piano, with text from the Goethe poem. Schubert revised it three times before publishing his fourth version in 1821 as his Opus 1. It was first performed in concert on December 1, 1820, at a private gathering in Vienna and received its public premiere on March 7, 1821, at Vienna's Kärntnertor Theatre.

he four characters — narrator, father, son, and the erlking — are all sung by one vocalist. Schubert has placed each character in a different vocal range; in addition, most vocalists endeavour to use a different vocal colour for each one.

  1. The narrator lies in the middle range and is in minor mode.
  2. The father lies in the low range and sings both in minor mode and major mode
  3. The son lies in a high range, also in minor mode, representing the fright of the child.
  4. The erlking lies in a medium range and major mode, and is typically sung pianissimo, portraying a sneaky persuasiveness.

Erlkönig starts with the piano rapidly playing octaves in triplets to simulate the horse's galloping; this motive reoccurs throughout the piece. Each of the son's pleas grow louder and higher pitched, than the previous ones. Near the very end of the piece the music slows down and the piano stops before the final, "In seinen Armen das Kind war tot." The piece then ends with two dramatic chords.

The piece is regarded as extremely challenging to perform due to the vocal characterization required of the vocalist as well as due to its difficult accompaniment, involving the playing of rapidly repeated chords and octaves to create the effect of drama and urgency indicated in the poetry.

Legend

The legend of the Erlkönig appears to have originated in fairly recent times in Denmark and Goethe based his poem on "Erlkönigs Tochter" ("Erlkönig's Daughter"), a Danish work translated into German by Johann Gottfried Herder. It appeared as 'The Elf King's Daughter’ in his collection of folk songs, Stimmen der Völker in Liedern (published 1778).

The Erlkönig's nature has been the subject of some debate. The name translates literally from the German as "Alder King" rather than its common English translation, "Elf King" (which would be rendered as Elfenkönig in German). It has often been suggested that Erlkönig is a mistranslation from the original Danish ellerkonge or elverkonge, which does mean "elf king".

According to German and Danish folklore, the Erlkönig appears as an omen of death, much like the banshee in Irish mythology. Unlike the banshee, however, the Erlkönig will appear only to the person about to die. His form and expression also tell the person what sort of death they will have: a pained expression means a painful death, a peaceful expression means a peaceful death.

Another interpretation suggests that Erlkönig is based on the legend that whoever is touched by the king of the elves must die.

External links

German poems | Compositions by Franz Schubert | Works of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Erlkönig (Ballade) | Erlkönig | Erlkönig | Król Elfów

 

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the "Der Erlkönig".

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