Franz Peter Schubert (31 January 1797 – 19 November 1828) was an Austrian c… Read Full Bio ↴Franz Peter Schubert (31 January 1797 – 19 November 1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical and early Romantic eras. Despite his short life, Schubert left behind a vast oeuvre, including more than 600 secular vocal works (mainly lieder), seven complete symphonies, sacred music, operas, incidental music, and a large body of piano and chamber music. His major works include the art songs Erlkönig, Gretchen am Spinnrade, Ave Maria; the Trout Quintet, the unfinished Symphony No. 8 in B minor, the "Great" Symphony No. 9 in C major, the String Quartet No. 14 "Death and the Maiden", a String Quintet, the two sets of Impromptus for solo piano, the three last piano sonatas, the Fantasia in F minor for piano four hands, the opera Fierrabras, the incidental music to the play Rosamunde, and the song cycles Die schöne Müllerin, Winterreise and Schwanengesang.

Born in the Himmelpfortgrund suburb of Vienna, Schubert showed uncommon gifts for music from an early age. His father gave him his first violin lessons and his elder brother gave him piano lessons, but Schubert soon exceeded their abilities. In 1808, at the age of eleven, he became a pupil at the Stadtkonvikt school, where he became acquainted with the orchestral music of Joseph Haydn, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and Ludwig van Beethoven. He left the Stadtkonvikt at the end of 1813 and returned home to live with his father, where he began studying to become a schoolteacher. Despite this, he continued his studies in composition with Antonio Salieri and still composed prolifically. In 1821, Schubert was admitted to the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde as a performing member, which helped establish his name among the Viennese citizenry. He gave a concert of his works to critical acclaim in March 1828, the only time he did so in his career. He died eight months later at the age of 31, the cause officially attributed to typhoid fever, but believed by some historians to be syphilis.

Appreciation of Schubert's music while he was alive was limited to a relatively small circle of admirers in Vienna, but interest in his work increased greatly in the decades following his death. Felix Mendelssohn, Robert Schumann, Franz Liszt, Johannes Brahms and other 19th-century composers discovered and championed his works. Today, Schubert is ranked among the greatest composers in the history of Western classical music and his work continues to be admired and widely performed.

Wasserflut
Franz Schubert Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Manche Trän aus meinen Augen
Ist gefallen in den Schnee
Seine kalten Flocken saugen
Durstig ein das heiße Weh
Durstig ein das heiße Weh

Wenn die Gräser sprossen wollen,
Weht daher ein lauer Wind,

Und das Eis zerspringt in Schollen
Und der weiche Schnee zerrinnt
Und der weiche Schnee zerrinnt

Schnee, du weißt von meinem Sehnen
Sag, wohin doch geht dein Lauf?
Folge nach nur meinen Tränen
Nimmt dich bald das Bächlein auf
Nimmt dich bald das Bächlein auf

Wirst mit ihm die Stadt durchziehen
Muntre Straßen ein und aus:
Fühlst du meine Tränen glühen

Da ist meiner Liebsten Haus
Da ist meiner Liebsten Haus

Overall Meaning

The song Wasserflut, or "Flood of Water," is part of Franz Schubert's song cycle "Winterreise," which tells the story of a lonely journey through a cold, desolate winter landscape. "Wasserflut" is the fifth song in the cycle and is about the main character's emotional turmoil as he tries to come to terms with the loss of his love. The lyrics illustrate the idea that the singer's tears are melting the snow around him and that the snow symbolizes his longing for his lost love.

The first stanza talks about how tears from the singer's eyes have fallen into the snow and how the snow has absorbed them thirstily, as if it were seeking to alleviate the singer's pain. The second stanza builds on this idea, describing how when the grass begins to grow and the snow begins to melt, the singer sees his tears as a source of water for the melting snow. In the final stanza, the singer speaks directly to the snow, asking where it will go and to follow his tears to his lover's house.

The song is a haunting and emotional piece, conveying the bleakness of the winter landscape and the singer's desolate mental state. The lyrics use vivid imagery to create a sense of coldness, emptiness, and despair.

Line by Line Meaning

Manche Trän aus meinen Augen
Several tears from my eyes

Ist gefallen in den Schnee
have fallen on the snow

Seine kalten Flocken saugen
And its cold flakes soak

Durstig ein das heiße Weh
Thirstily swallows the hot pain

Wenn die Gräser sprossen wollen,
When the grass wants to sprout,

Weht daher ein lauer Wind,
A mild wind blows from there,

Und das Eis zerspringt in Schollen
And the ice breaks into chunks

Und der weiche Schnee zerrinnt
And the soft snow melts away

Schnee, du weißt von meinem Sehnen
Snow, you know about my longing

Sag, wohin doch geht dein Lauf?
Tell me, where does your path lead?

Folge nach nur meinen Tränen
Follow only my tears