German language and song

Of the European languages, I find the romance languages such as Italian, French and Spanish very attractive in the way they express thoughts and the way they sound when spoken. In contrast, German can sound a little formal and excessively precise.

However, I much prefer to listen to songs in German.  For some reason, the language  seems to fit musical rhythms and sounds.

More than that, I prefer German tenors, especially in romantic songs. I can't explain this, but I think it has something to do with the fact that many classical German singers resist the temptation to "express themselves" and oversell the song, but instead they hang back a bit and let the song itself carry the emotion. The only way I can express this is by a few examples of tenor arias in German operetta.

For example, a famous tear-jerker "You are my heart's delight" from the Operetta "Land of Smiles" by Franz Lehar.

Here is the version by Luciano Pavarotti:



And by the Mexican tenor Rolando Villazon:



Both very good, but here is Richard Tauber singing this, which became his signature song.
This is an old, scratchy recording with poor sound. Tauber is wearing a ridiculous costume and he, poor fellow, is physically slightly ugly.
But I defy you not to be moved by this song, about a nobleman saying goodbye to the only love of his life, because of duty to his country:






and finally, just because I like it, here is Joseph Schmidt singing his signature song:




Poor Joseph Schmidt looks so cheerful here, but his life was a stressful tragedy, as you can guess from the year of his death, 1942.