Vallée d’Obermann

Volume I of Liszt’s Années de pèlerinage, entitled Suisse, is based on impressions he gathered during an extended sojourn in Switzerland in 1835/36. The most important piece of the collection, first published in 1841, is undoubtedly Vallée d’Obermann, which offers a vast richness of melodic, harmonic and rhythmic variations on the basis of two contrasting themes.

The technically and artistically demanding composition owes its title not to a scenic valley in Switzerland, but to the epistolary novel of the same name by French poet Étienne de Senancour. Set in Switzerland, it presents an emotionally torn hero who articulates his weltschmerz in a dialogue with nature.

The musical text of this separate edition of Vallée d’Obermann is preceded by an excerpt from Senancour’s novel, which may provide impulses that are just as important for the interpretation as are Francesco Piemontesi’s fingerings.