Der Fischer (Goethe)

"Der Fischer" is a ballad by Goethe, written in 1779. Goethe's poem describes an exchange between a fisher and a mermaid who accuses him of luring her brood. As revenge, she enchants him with her song and pulls him into the water.

Musical settings

 * Alphons Diepenbrock
 * Anton Eberl
 * Hans Sommer (1837–1922)
 * Johann Vesque von Püttlingen (1803–1883)
 * Anselm Hüttenbrenner (1794–1868)
 * Fanny Mendelssohn
 * Franz Schubert (1797–1828)
 * Hector Berlioz (1803-1869)
 * Claudio Santoro (1919-1989)

Fine arts
Between 1856 and 1858, Frederic Leighton made the painting The Fisherman and the Syren, which is now on display in the Bristol City Museum and Art Gallery, with explicit reference to Goethe's poem: "Half drew she him, Half sunk he in, And never more was seen."