Nirgendland

A lot of musicians and singers, mainly from the genre of the chanson, have been inspired by the laconic urban and linguistically perfect lyricism of Mascha Kaléko (1907–75). Now the decidedly modern composer Martin-Christoph Redel has set to music seven texts by Kaléko in which the poet's typical tone prevails. Verses primarily about parting, loneliness and the passing of time: "So heimatlos wie Sand: / Wohin ich immer reise, / ich komm nach Nirgendland." [As homeless as the sand. / No matter where I travel / I come to Nowhereland.] Timeless melancholy and contemporary musical language are in a fascinating tense relationship to each other.
Nirgendland is part of the repertoire of the 10th International Competition "Franz Schubert und die Musik der Moderne“ 2018 in Graz.