Born in Prague on December 4, 1875, Rainer Maria Rilke is widely considered one of the greatest poets of the German language. Many do not realize that he actually wrote of number of poems—numbering in the hundreds—in French as well. In honor of the poet's 150th birthday, well enjoy Morten Lauridsen's beautiful song cycle or some of the Rilke's great French-language poems, Les Chansons des Roses, as well as Richard Danielpour's setting for soprano and orchestra of poems drawn from one of the poet's great masterworks, Sonnets to Orpheus, and much more.
You can hear Foley Schuler's musical selections—and stories behind the music—every weekday afternoon from 1 until 4 on Blue Lake Public Radio.