Bruch, Max: Trinklied

Max Bruch composed his opus 48 around 1880/81. Trinklied [Drinking Song] No. 2 for four-part men's choir (TTBB) is based on a text by Ludwig Uhland which was set to music by Conradin Kreutzer in 1820 already and in this form included in Allgemeines Deutsches Kommersbuch: The "drunken" singers describe what is flashing through their minds – wild hunt, ocean waves, battles, Last Judgment, and finally pure zest for life. Like Kreutzer, Bruch sets the refrain ("Wir sind nicht mehr am ersten Glas / drum denken wir gern an dies und das“) in vigorous 4/4 time and the verses in a contrasting manner in 6/8 time. With "Brausen" and "Jagen" finding their musical equivalent in melismas and fugato, Bruch's musical setting in its concertante style is much more than a mere drinking song.