Mendelssohn’s “Venetian Gondola Song,” Op. 30, No. 6: Daniel Barenboim
Felix Mendelssohn’s Venetian Gondola Song, Op. 30, No. 6 for solo piano evokes a dreamy, nocturnal Venetian scene. A quiet, longing melody emerges over a barcarolle rhythm. It suggests gently lapping water, and the hypnotic repetition of the gondolier’s oar. The brief work is set in melancholy F-sharp minor. Its final notes fade suddenly into the night. Composed in 1835, it concludes Book II of Mendelssohn’s collection of Songs Without Words. This …