Afrikaans Art Song Literature

Abstract As the first book of its kind, this “go to” Afrikaans Art Song Literature guidebook concentrates on Afrikaans poetry, translations, phonetic transcriptions, and pronunciation rules, for the non-native speaker. It offers International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) transcriptions of Afrikaans poetry, as well as original and accessible English translations. A concise summary of the history of the Afrikaans language, development of Afrikaans literature, and the rise of the Afrikaans Art Song movement is provided. Information on both influential and lesser-known composers and poets, an insightful glossary, and illuminating footnotes enhance the reader’s comprehension of the unique biodiversity of the Southern African landscape and multicultural distinctiveness of its people. The simplified lyric diction guide facilitates the reader’s comprehension of pronunciation rules of the Afrikaans language. Lists of composers who set specific poems to music, repertoire suggestions by voice category and degree of difficulty, as well as resources for obtaining additional information on composers’ backgrounds, song recordings, and sheet music are given.