Schubert has a certain reputation as a composer of attractive ditties such as Die Forelle or Heidenröslein, but for those who wish to deepen their acquaintance with his finest music, the songs which treat of classical themes are as surprising as they are rewarding. There are 33 in total. The lion’s share are by Mayrhofer, followed by Schiller, Goethe and others. Here is a complete list. You will note that many of them date from 1817, the year in which he collaborated closely

"Die Götter Greichenlands", D 677/Schiller/1819. Schubert was quite often selective when it came to choosing the number of verses he wished to set in a particular poem (indeed there are times when one wishes that he hadn't chosen all of them — I refer to many of the strophic Lieder.) The case of "Die Götter Griechenlands" is different in this respect: Schubert sets just one of the sixteen verses in Schiller's ode. (I have a notion that Schubert sometimes simply lost interest

In an earlier blog I wrote about the importance of immersing oneself in the poetry before attempting to learn a song. The single most frequently asked question is this: how on earth do you memorize all those songs? Before embarking on this huge project three years ago, my principle fear was seeing my memory impaired by advancing age. But now, at the age of 54, I find my memory improving. I ascribe this to an increasing attention to reciting the poetry at all stages of the lea