O du eselhafter Peierl (Mozart)
Encyclopedia
O du eselhafter Peierl, K. 560a, is a canon
composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
. The music, originally in F major
, is set for four singers. The words are probably by Mozart himself.
Johann Nepomuk Peyerl (1761–1800). The canon begins
("Oh, you asinine Peierl; oh you Peierline ass"). Later, the lyrics include "O leck mich doch geschwind im Arsch" ("Oh lick me real quick in the ass (arse)"), a favorite expression in Mozart's scatological works. For further examples and discussion, see this encyclopedia's articles on Mozart's other scatological canons: "Leck mich im Arsch
", "Leck mir den Arsch fein recht schön sauber
", "Bona nox
", and "Difficile lectu (Mozart)
"; as well as Mozart and scatology
.
"O du eselhafter Peierl" was originally intended to be sung immediately following "Difficile lectu". For the tale of how these two canons originated, see "Difficile lectu (Mozart)
".
, in versions that replaced "Peierl" with the names of two other individuals, named Martin and Jakob. There are other minor differences in words and notes.
According to Link (2007), "Martin" was the composer Vicente Martín y Soler
. Mozart scholar Alfred Einstein suggested a different hypothesis, that "Martin" was Philipp Jakob Martin, who served as impresario for Mozart's concerts in the Mehlgrube and in the Augarten
. The lyrics of the revised canon replace "Nepomuk" (see above) with "Lipperl", a German diminutive form of "Philipp".
. The later G major version is also preserved and is currently in the Mozarteum in Salzburg.
versions of the lyrics.
Zaslaw and Cowdury (1990) express admiration for the work, saying "it makes brilliant use of imitative
and hocket
-like devices" and "possesses the clockwork-like vocal interplay of a well-wrought opera buffa
ensemble."
Canon (music)
In music, a canon is a contrapuntal composition that employs a melody with one or more imitations of the melody played after a given duration . The initial melody is called the leader , while the imitative melody, which is played in a different voice, is called the follower...
composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart , baptismal name Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart , was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical era. He composed over 600 works, many acknowledged as pinnacles of symphonic, concertante, chamber, piano, operatic, and choral music...
. The music, originally in F major
F major
F major is a musical major scale based on F, consisting of the pitches F, G, A, B, C, D, and E. Its key signature has one flat . It is by far the oldest key signature with an accidental, predating the others by hundreds of years...
, is set for four singers. The words are probably by Mozart himself.
Origin
The work was written sometime between 1785 and 1787. On 2 September, 1788, Mozart entered it into his personal catalog of works as part of a set of ten canons. Although some of the canons in the set of ten have serious (that is, religious) lyrics, K. 560a was meant for fun, a gesture of mocking, scatological humor directed at a friend of Mozart's, the baritoneBaritone
Baritone is a type of male singing voice that lies between the bass and tenor voices. It is the most common male voice. Originally from the Greek , meaning deep sounding, music for this voice is typically written in the range from the second F below middle C to the F above middle C Baritone (or...
Johann Nepomuk Peyerl (1761–1800). The canon begins
- O, du eselhafter Peierl
- O, du peierlhafter Esel
("Oh, you asinine Peierl; oh you Peierline ass"). Later, the lyrics include "O leck mich doch geschwind im Arsch" ("Oh lick me real quick in the ass (arse)"), a favorite expression in Mozart's scatological works. For further examples and discussion, see this encyclopedia's articles on Mozart's other scatological canons: "Leck mich im Arsch
Leck mich im Arsch
Leck mich im Arsch is a canon in B-flat major composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, K. 231 , with lyrics in German. It was one of a set of at least six canons probably written in Vienna in 1782...
", "Leck mir den Arsch fein recht schön sauber
Leck mir den Arsch fein recht schön sauber
Leck mir den Arsch fein recht schön sauber is a canon for three voices in B-flat major, K. 233/382d, long thought to have been composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart during 1782 in Vienna.-Authenticity:...
", "Bona nox
Bona nox
Bona nox! bist a rechta Ox, K. 561, is a canon in A major for four voices a cappella by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart; Mozart entered this work into his catalogue on as part of a set of ten canons.-Music:...
", and "Difficile lectu (Mozart)
Difficile lectu (Mozart)
Difficile lectu, K. 559, is a canon composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The music, in F major, is set for three singers. The words are probably by Mozart himself....
"; as well as Mozart and scatology
Mozart and scatology
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart displayed scatological humor in his letters and a few recreational compositions. This material has long been a puzzle for Mozart scholarship...
.
"O du eselhafter Peierl" was originally intended to be sung immediately following "Difficile lectu". For the tale of how these two canons originated, see "Difficile lectu (Mozart)
Difficile lectu (Mozart)
Difficile lectu, K. 559, is a canon composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The music, in F major, is set for three singers. The words are probably by Mozart himself....
".
Revised version
Mozart later transposed "O du eselhafter Peierl" into G majorG major
G major is a major scale based on G, with the pitches G, A, B, C, D, E, and F. Its key signature has one sharp, F; in treble-clef key signatures, the sharp-symbol for F is usually placed on the first line from the top, though in some Baroque music it is placed on the first space from the bottom...
, in versions that replaced "Peierl" with the names of two other individuals, named Martin and Jakob. There are other minor differences in words and notes.
According to Link (2007), "Martin" was the composer Vicente Martín y Soler
Vicente Martín y Soler
Vicente Martín y Soler was a Spanish composer of opera and ballet. Although relatively obscure today, in his own day he was compared favorably with his contemporary, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, as a composer of opera buffa. He has been called the Valencian Mozart.He was born in Valencia and studied...
. Mozart scholar Alfred Einstein suggested a different hypothesis, that "Martin" was Philipp Jakob Martin, who served as impresario for Mozart's concerts in the Mehlgrube and in the Augarten
Augarten
The Augarten is a 52.2 hectare public park in Leopoldstadt, the second district of Vienna, Austria. It contains the oldest Baroque gardens of the city....
. The lyrics of the revised canon replace "Nepomuk" (see above) with "Lipperl", a German diminutive form of "Philipp".
Autographs
The autograph (original manuscript copy) of K. 560a has survived; it is a "tiny slip of paper" (Searle) on the reverse side of which is the original of K. 559. For discussion, see Difficile lectu (Mozart)Difficile lectu (Mozart)
Difficile lectu, K. 559, is a canon composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The music, in F major, is set for three singers. The words are probably by Mozart himself....
. The later G major version is also preserved and is currently in the Mozarteum in Salzburg.
Reception
The canon is perhaps the most often performed of Mozart's comic canons; performances have often used bowdlerizedCensorship
thumb|[[Book burning]] following the [[1973 Chilean coup d'état|1973 coup]] that installed the [[Military government of Chile |Pinochet regime]] in Chile...
versions of the lyrics.
Zaslaw and Cowdury (1990) express admiration for the work, saying "it makes brilliant use of imitative
Imitation (music)
In music, imitation is when a melody in a polyphonic texture is repeated shortly after its first appearance in a different voice, usually at a different pitch. The melody may vary through transposition, inversion, or otherwise, but retain its original character...
and hocket
Hocket
In music, hocket is the rhythmic linear technique using the alternation of notes, pitches, or chords. In medieval practice of hocket, a single melody is shared between two voices such that alternately one voice sounds while the other rests.In European music, hocket was used primarily in vocal...
-like devices" and "possesses the clockwork-like vocal interplay of a well-wrought opera buffa
Opera buffa
Opera buffa is a genre of opera. It was first used as an informal description of Italian comic operas variously classified by their authors as ‘commedia in musica’, ‘commedia per musica’, ‘dramma bernesco’, ‘dramma comico’, ‘divertimento giocoso' etc...
ensemble."
Lyrics
o du peierlhafter Esel! du bist so faul als wie ein Gaul, der weder Kopf noch Haxen hat. Mit dir ist gar nichts anzufangen; ich seh dich noch am Galgen hangen. Du dummer Gaul, du bist so faul, du dummer Peierl bist so faul als wie ein Gaul. O lieber Freund, ich bitte dich, o leck mich doch geschwind im Arsch! Ach, lieber Freund, verzeihe mir, den Arsch, den Arsch petschier ich dir Peierl! Nepomuk! Peierl! verzeihe mir! |
o du [Jakobischer|Martinischer] Esel! du bist so faul als wie ein Gaul, der weder Kopf noch Haxen hat. Mit dir ist gar nichts anzufangen; ich seh dich noch am Galgen hangen. Du dummer Paul, halt du nurs Maul, Ich scheiß dir aufs Maul, so hoff' ich wirst doch erwachen. O lieber Lipperl, ich bitte dich recht schön, o leck mich doch geschwind im Arsch! O, lieber Freund, verzeihe mir, den Arsch, den Arsch petschier ich dir. Lipperl! [Jakob|Martin]! Lipperl! verzeihe mir! |