Lieder Eines Fahrenden Gesellen

Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen ('Songs of a Wayfarer') is Gustav Mahler's first song cycle. While he had previously written other lieder, they were grouped by source of text or time of composition as opposed to common theme. The four-movement cycle, for low voice (but often performed by a female singer), was inspired by the conclusion of Mahler's unhappy love affair with soprano Johanna Richter, whom he met while conductor of the opera house in Kassel, Germany.