Schubert wrote these five little duets for either two singers or two horns, and in fact, two of them have a phrase for horns at the end -- no words. These are not challenging, like the Mozart duets, but they are tuneful and charming. I have never heard of horn players performing these, and I suspect they aren't performed much by singers. After all, there are so many Schubert songs to choose from.
So, we have two Mailied, or May Songs to begin. The first relating to love and the second to enjoying our time on Earth, since we don't know how long it will last. Then Morgenstern, a hymn to the morning star, ending with a plea to flee "this earthly torment" by joining the morning star. The fourth and fifth are hunting songs. Jagerlied could be a Klingon war song, brothers battling joyfully against the tyrants. The last is Lutzow's wilde jagt, more battling against the tyrants but this time with Lutzow, apparently a hero. The refrain is "This is Lutzow's wild, reckless hunting." I hope to do some additional research on the songs. Though the title page describes them as Five Duets, the Deutsch numbers are not consecutive. I also wonder if Schubert wrote them for a particular occasion.
We will be performing these delightful duets at around 4:40 in Suite 801. If you are in the Chicago area, I encourage you to come to the Schubertiade, not just because I'm playing, but it is a fun time. The atmosphere is upbeat, there is the Schubert Cafe where you can have a little snack, and it's in the historic Fine Arts Building, such a cool place! And, of course there's lots of Schubert!
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