Talk:Leck mich im Arsch/Proposed Compromise
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Leck mich im Arsch is a canon in B-flat major composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, K. 231 (K382c), with lyrics in German. It was one of a set of at least six canons probably written in Vienna in 1782.[1] Sung by six voices as a three-part round, it is thought to be a party piece for his friends. An alternative theory holds that Mozart was actually a time-traveling Internet troll, and created the piece primarily to set up a revert war on the modern English Wikipedia.
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[edit] English translation
A literal translation of the song's title and lyrics into American English would be "Lick me in the ass," while in British English it would be "Lick me in the arse." The correct idiomatic translation in American English is "Kiss my ass" or "Screw you," while in British English it is "Kiss my arse," or "Get stuffed".[2] The scatological title and lyrics have been used as evidence to support the contention that Mozart had Tourette syndrome, although that conjecture is not widely supported by medical professionals.[3]
[edit] Publication and modern discovery
Mozart died in 1791. His widow, Constanze Mozart, sent the manuscripts of the canons to publishers Breitkopf & Härtel in 1799, saying that they would need to be adapted for publication. The publisher changed the title and lyrics of this canon to the more acceptable "Laßt froh uns sein" ("Let us be glad!"), similar to the traditional German Christmas carol, "Lasst uns froh und munter sein".
The original, unbowdlerized manuscript was discovered in 1991 at Harvard University's music library. The previous summer, the library had acquired a 17-volume edition of Mozart works. Included in those volumes were nine original Mozart canons, of which six were signed by Mozart, including K231, and another Mozart work, "Leck mir den Arsch fein recht schön sauber" (American: "Lick my ass nice and clean"/British: "Lick my arse nice and clean", K233; K382d in the revised numbering). All were presumed to be authentic.[4] Later research has indicated that the latter composition is probably the work of Wenzel Trnka (1739-1791).[5][6][7][8]
[edit] American Lyrics
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Leck mich im Arsch! |
Kiss my ass! |
[edit] British Lyrics
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Leck mich im Arsch! |
Kiss my arse! |
[edit] Alternative lyrics
The Complete Mozart edition by Brilliant has the following lyrics printed and sung:[9][10]
[edit] American Alternative Lyrics
|
Leck mich im Arsch! |
Kiss my ass! |
[edit] British Alternative Lyrics
|
Leck mich im Arsch! |
Kiss my arse! |
This is a clear allusion to the line ... er kann mich im Arsche lecken! in Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's drama Götz von Berlichingen; the quote is also mentioned in the article on the historical figure Götz von Berlichingen.
Mozart erred slightly with his source: the line occurs in the third act.[11][12]
[edit] Media
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Leck mich im Arsch Image:Leck mich im Arsch.mid Midi file - Problems playing the files? See media help.
[edit] References
- ^ Eisen, Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians online, Subscription
- ^ Schemann, Hans (1997). English-German Dictionary of Idioms. New York: Routledge. ISBN 0415172543.
- ^ Kammer T (2007). "Mozart in the neurological department - who has the tic?" (PDF). Frontiers of neurology and neuroscience 22: 184–92. doi:. PMID 17495512.
- ^ Kozinn, Allan. "Three Naughty Mozart Texts Are Found", New York Times, 1991-03-02. Retrieved on 2007-09-19.
- ^ Plath, Wolfgang; Bennwitz, Hanspeter; Buschmeier, Gabriele; Feder, Georg; Hofmann, Klaus (1988). Opera incerta. Echtheitsfragen als Problem musikwissenschaftlicher Gesamtausgaben. Kolloquium Mainz 1988. ISBN 3-515-05996-2.
- ^ Silke Leopold (ed.); Jutta Schmoll-Barthel, Sara Jeffe (October 2005). Mozart-Handbuch. Stuttgart: Metzler, p.640, p.653, p.689. ISBN 3-476-02077-0.
- ^ Dietrich Berke, Wolfgang Rehm, Miriam Pfadt (2007). Endbericht (PDF) (German). Neue Mozart Ausgabe. Bärenreiter. Retrieved on 2007-09-10.
- ^ Catherine Carl, Dan Manley, Dennis Pajot, Steve Ralsten, Gary Smith. Koechel List. Mozart Forum. Retrieved on 2007-09-10.
- ^ Brilliant Classics (2006). Mozart Edition, Complete Works. Foreignmediagroup.com. Retrieved on 2007-09-12, 2007.
- ^ integralemozart.info (2007). Mozart Complete Edition (Brilliant), Volume 8: CD 1, Canons (PDF) (German, Italian). Integrale Mozart. Retrieved on 2007-09-12.
- ^ Wikisource. Götz von Berlichingen/3. Akt (unexpurgated)) (German). Wikisource. Retrieved on 2007-09-12.
- ^ Project Gutenberg. Götz von Berlichingen/3. Akt (expurgated) (German). Project Gutenberg. Retrieved on 2007-09-12.
[edit] Sources
- Cliff Eisen, et al.: "Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart", Grove Music Online, ed. L. Macy (Accessed September 9, 2007), (subscription access)
