Was nie verstummt: Die schönsten deutschen Balladen
A representative anthology of German ballad poetry edited by Hans Fromm. It includes timeless works from folk lore and classics such as Goethe and Schiller to modern authors of the 20th century.
"Was nie verstummt" (Translated: What Never Silences) is an anthology compiled with great expertise and a sense of literary aesthetics by the distinguished German philologist and Germanist Hans Fromm. This collection brings a carefully selected cross-section of the most beautiful and most important German ballads, a genre that occupies a special place in German literature because it uniquely combines lyrical expression, dramatic tension and epic narrative.
The book covers a wide historical range – from folk ballads imbued with mysticism, folk traditions and tragedy, through the golden age of German classicism and romanticism, to more modern creations of the 20th century. It contains indispensable masterpieces by greats such as Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Friedrich Schiller, Heinrich Heine, Theodor Fontane and Rainer Maria Rilke. Eternal themes speak through their verses: fate, love, betrayal, supernatural forces, heroism and transience.
With this anthology, Hans Fromm confirmed the status of the ballad as a living and vital literary form whose echoes still reach readers today. The collection provides not only the pleasure of superb poetry but also a valuable insight into the development of the German language, culture, and literary tradition through the centuries.
One copy is available
