Episode 248: Schubert’s "Erlkonig", Op. 1
Aug 30, 2026 · 13 min · 7 segments
It's almost spooky season, we're getting into it a little early with a spooky tale in this week's episode! Be sure to like and share with a friend! Music…
Aug 30, 2026 · 13 min · 7 segments
It's almost spooky season, we're getting into it a little early with a spooky tale in this week's episode! Be sure to like and share with a friend! Music…
Just as with Der Atlas from our last episode, this lead, or German art song, features lyrics from a poem rather than original lyrics from Schubert himself.
However, it's not even his original idea either.
The idea of the Erlkönig, or the Elfking, or Earl King, actually came from a Danish ballad, Elfskund, from around the late 1600s.
It was going to be part of a singspiel, a play with songs, that was called Die Freischen, or The Fisherwoman.
Schubert then, of course, got a hold of the text and published his lead in 1815 as Opus 1, although he had written other songs prior, and this was just the first published, so it got the monumental Opus 1 title.
Of course, it was a hit, and really elevated Schubert's popularity immediately upon its publication.
The poem itself is quite haunting.
As we'll see as we go through the music, the Elf King is not a nice guy.
The poem is a bit longer, so we won't read it in its entirety right now, but it involves the Erlkönig trying to steal away a child.
Remember, like... elves and fae of folklore were not always the whimsical sparkly friends that they are portrayed in modern media
Just as with Der Atlas from our last episode, this lead, or German art song, features lyrics from a poem rather than original lyrics from Schubert himself.
However, it's not even his original idea either.
The idea of the Erlkönig, or the Elfking, or Earl King, actually came from a Danish ballad, Elfskund, from around the late 1600s.
It was going to be part of a singspiel, a play with songs, that was called Die Freischen, or The Fisherwoman.
Schubert then, of course, got a hold of the text and published his lead in 1815 as Opus 1, although he had written other songs prior, and this was just the first published, so it got the monumental Opus 1 title.
Of course, it was a hit, and really elevated Schubert's popularity immediately upon its publication.
The poem itself is quite haunting.
As we'll see as we go through the music, the Elf King is not a nice guy.
The poem is a bit longer, so we won't read it in its entirety right now, but it involves the Erlkönig trying to steal away a child.
Remember, like... elves and fae of folklore were not always the whimsical sparkly friends that they are portrayed in modern media
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