6 Lieder, Op. 9 No. 1.

Die Ersehnte
6 Lieder, Op. 9 No 1. Die Ersehnte by Fanny Mendelssohn Hansen is a Romantic Era

(1820-1900) piece. A Romantic Era piece typically covers topics of love, nature, beauty, and the

supernatural. This piece translate to The Longed For, which is clearly about love. The

Romantic Era is also noted for evocative titles for their musical works (as shown by being called

The Longed For instead of just Movement 1), and is typically emotional. This piece is about a

lover longing for their other half to come into their arms and is begging for them to come to

them, which is a very emotional setting.

Romantic Era pieces are also emotional with expansive sound, and Die Ersehnte is

exactly that. It is full of crescendo and descrescendo after certain phrases to give emotion to the

singers voice and to add meaning to the message of the piece. It is, however, unlike many

Romantic Era pieces as it does not contain any other instruments besides a piano. The melody

does reflect this, as it is long, flowing, and emotional. The dynamics shift rapidly from ppp to fff,

which is highly characteristic of the emotional characteristics of the Romantic Era.

The tempo is quite fast being in 12/8 time, but the phrases are quite long and drawn out in

a legato style to increase the emotionality of the piece. The form is a simple strophic (AAA)

form, with all three parts of the song the same notes and time and key signatures but with

different words. This piece is a typical Lieder song, in German by a German and a lyrical song

about love. It evokes an emotion in any listener that suggests the ups and downs and yearning of

love and all that comes with it through its legato form and repetition.