Nehmt meinen Dank, K. 383
Aria for soprano with solo flute, solo oboe, solo bassoon, and strings
Program Notes by Martin Pearlman
Mozart wrote the German language aria "Nehmt meinen Dank" ("Accept my Thanks") for the soprano Aloysia Weber Lange, who in 1782 was leaving the Vienna theater where she had been performing German singspiels, and going to one where she would perform Italian comic operas. This gracious aria was her musical farewell to her followers. It is in two verses and is set to an anonymous text.
Several years earlier, she had studied with Mozart, who wrote arias for her to learn, and he had fallen in love with her. By this time, however, she had built a career in Vienna and had married Joseph Lange, while Mozart was about to marry her sister Constanze Weber. Over the years, he continued to write music for his sister-in-law, including the great aria "Vorrei spiegarvi," and she appeared in his operas, including Don Giovanni, in which she sang the role of Donna Anna at the premiere.
Mozart, Nehmt meinen Dank, K. 383
Nehmt meinen Dank, ihr holden Gönner!
So feurig, als mein Herz ihn spricht,
Euch laut zu sagen, können Männer,
Ich, nur ein Weib, vermag es nicht.
Doch glaubt, ich werd' in meinem Leben
Niemals vergessen eure Huld:
Blieb' ich, so wäre mein Bestreben,
Sie zu verdienen, doch Geduld!
Von Anbeginn was stetes Wandern
Der Musen und der Künstler Los:
Mir geht es so, wie allen andern,
Fort aus des Vaterlandes Schoß
Seh' ich mich von dem Schicksal leiten,
Doch glaubt es mir, in jedem Reich,
Wohin ich geh' zu allen Zeiten
Bleibt immerdar mein Herz bei euch.
Accept my thanks, kind patrons!
Men could speak them aloud to you
with the ardor that my heart feels --
but I, who am only a woman, cannot do so.
Yet believe me, never in my life
shall I forget your gracious favor.
Were I to stay, my aim would be
to merit it; but patience!
From the beginning, constant roving
has been the lot of Muses and of artists;
with me it is as with all the others;
I see myself led by Fate
from the bosom of my native land.
Yet believe me, in whatever country
I may be, for all time
my heart will always remain with you.
Boston Baroque Performances
Nehmt meinen Dank, K. 383
December 31, 2014 & January 1, 2015
Sanders Theater, Cambridge, MA
Martin Pearlman, conductor
Soloist:
Sara Heaton, soprano