Franz Schreker König Tejas Begräbnis

König Tejas Begräbnis (1899) shows how Schreker was influenced by his work with the Döblinger Männergesangverein, of which he was a member. In this work he set a text by Felix Dahn from Dahn’s historical novel, “Ein Kampf um Rom” (1876), which dealt with the collapse of the eastern Goths in the sixth century. The four-verse chorus, “Gebt Raum, ihr Völker, unserm Schritt,” is a verse taken from the last chapter of the novel. It describes how the last surviving Goths bring their fallen King Teja back to the mythical homeland of Thule. It is true, that the majestic work for four men’s voice is accompanied by a large orchestra, however the orchestral means are used sparingly, whether to support the choir, to provide a background (with string tremoli and timpani), or to play fanfares with horns and trombones.