- Recording date: December 2018.
- Guitar: Kwakkel Merula.
- Tuning: A=440 Hz.
Abschied von der Sennerin is a folk song arrangement from Mertz’s collection Musikalische Rundschau. With this song I have some doubt if the arrangement is made by Mertz himself, because on the Internet I only find versions of this song after 1850, and Mertz died in 1856. One version that became popular for instance was The Switzer’s Farewell.
Traditionally the Sennerin is a Swiss farmer’s wife that herds the cattle on the Alp Mountain meadows in the summer and helps making dairy products. In the nineteenth century and beyond, this life was strongly romanticized, witness books like Heidi’s years of learning and travel. This song fits that atmosphere seamlessly.
It is a melancholic romantic melody that could be played on a Zither right away. The characteristic slurs from measures 7, 9 and 14 are best played with slides of the fourth finger.