Richard Strauss (1864-1949) Composed over 200 Lieder between the later decades of the 19th century and the early decades of the 20th. Early Lieder reflect the styles of the mid nineteenth century. In 1885 Strauss left his family in order to compose music that was independent of his father’s influence. Op.10 (e.g. Zueignung, Allerseelen) was his first set of songs after 1885. Strauss produced a set of songs every year until 1891. He typically used lesser known poets from the middle 19^th century.

Strauss was married in 1891 and ceased composing songs for three years. Op. 27 was the first set composed after his marriage (Ruhe, meine Seele!, Cäcilie, Heimliche Aufforderung and Morgen!). Richard and his wife Pauline, a soprano, performed Lieder recitals around the world. They often performed Strauss’s songs and not as complete Opus sets.

The songs after 1891 tend toward more contemporary poets, such as Karl Henckel, John Henry Mackay, Otto Julius Bierbaum and Richard Dehmel. Then near the turn of the century he turned to earlier poets such as Rückert, Goethe and Heine. He also composed a few orchestral songs (typaically labelled Gesänge). Just after 1900, Strauss showed less interest in song composition. His wife retired from singing in 1906.

He wrote no songs until 1918. Die Krämerspiegel (1918), his only legitimate song cycle, used biting, satirical texts by his contemporary Alfred Kerr. Shortly after Krämerspiegel he composed his op.67, which includes three songs of Ophelia and three from Goethe's West-östlicher Divan. All these, with their coloratura, reflect his experience as an opera composer, experience even more evident in the Drei Hymnen (1921) of Hölderlin for voice and orchestra.

Strauss occasionally orchestrated his piano lieder, generally writing arrangements for specific performances. In 1897 four songs were orchestrated for a concert with his wife in Brussels; a few years later three more were arranged for a performance in Berlin. Other singers (such as Elisabeth Schumann) inspired him to orchestrate; for her he arranged five songs in 1918, as well as the newly composed Brentano Lieder op.68. He continued to orchestrate songs off and on until 1948, when he arranged Ruhe, meine Seele! from his wedding songs. At that time he was also composing what was later to be called his Vier letzte Lieder; it has been suggested that the earlier song might well have been intended as part of this orchestral group, which sets poems by Hermann Hesse and Eichendorff. Whatever his original intention, these autumnal, luminescent late songs, which contemplate the meaning of death, are among Strauss's finest works in any genre.

Max Reger (1873-1916) Reger did not generally compose in the large-scale genres that were most popular during his life-time. He was well known for organ music and chorales. He wrote around 100 songs all between 1890-1912.

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Arnold Schoenberg

Anton Webern

Ernst Krenek

Hans Henze

Paul Hindemeth

Carl Orff

Werner Egk

Boris Blancher