Without wanting to detract from the genius of Schubert or Schumann, we [Re: Sarah Wegener & Götz Payer] have a different answer: we would have loved to live at the turn from the 19th to the 20th century, "fin de siècle", amidst the transition from Naturalism to Modernism with the currents of Jugendstil and Impressionism. These songs have been part of our lives for many years; among our personal favorites. It is a wonderful feeling to be able to grow and mature in tandem with music we have known and loved for a long time. If we were to write down our own personal experiences associated with Richard Strauss in a book, we would recount precious moments such as the pleasure of performing his orchestral songs under the batons of Mariss Jansons and Vladimir Jurowski.