A farewell walked in the dark, and then—under a linden—the first rest. Paula lets that path unfold without figures: a field that thins to quiet, then gathers around a single, sheltering calm. You sense the sting of the gaze that sent the wayfarer out, and the long stretch of night that follows. Yet in the center there’s a softening—an inward snowfall, the kind that covers grief without denying it. The image holds both truths at once: love and sorrow, world and dream, each returning to balance as if the mind had finally found a place to lie down. Nothing is illustrated; everything is felt. The painting listens for solace the way the song does—by letting stillness do the speaking.
First performance (orchestral version): 16 March 1896 — Berlin Philharmonic; Anton Sistermans (baritone), conducted by Gustav Mahler. (Published 1897.)
Deeper insight
Overview & premiere details — Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen.
Text & translation (“Die zwei blauen Augen…”) — Oxford Song.
Program note: how the Wayfarer songs feed Symphony No. 1 (the linden-tree music returns in the slow movement).
First performance (orchestral version): 16 March 1896 — Berlin Philharmonic; Anton Sistermans (baritone), conducted by Gustav Mahler. (Published 1897.)
Deeper insight
Overview & premiere details — Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen.
Text & translation (“Die zwei blauen Augen…”) — Oxford Song.
Program note: how the Wayfarer songs feed Symphony No. 1 (the linden-tree music returns in the slow movement).
