On 21 February 1818, Beethoven sent three folksong settings back to George Thomson that he had completed since the beginning of the year. These constitute Group XIII in Barry Cooper’s chronological catalogue. All three are available in YouTube performances.
#Beethoven250 Day 307
Setting of “The Shepherd’s Song” CFS XIII/1 (Opus 108, No. 23), 1818
Joanna Baillie’s shepherd sees and hears everything except that which will give him joy, but then … “Ah no! ‘tis na so!”
#Beethoven250 Day 307
Setting of “Sunset” CFS XIII/2 (Opus 108, No. 2), 1818
Walter Scott wonders why the landscape sunset doesn’t seem quite as beautiful as it once did. “Are they still such as once they were, or is the dreary change in me?”
#Beethoven250 Day 307
Setting of “Enchantress, Farewell” CFS XIII/3 (Opus 108, No. 18), 1818
Walter Scott’s six stanzas seem to involve a similar theme as “Resignation” (Day 306): the silence of one’s muse.