Welcome to the Ether Game Weekly Podcast! This week, we're puckering up and celebrating Valentine's Day with some famous "Musical Kisses"! To get you started (or for those of you who just cannot wait for Tuesday nights), you can sharpen your skills with our podcast selection. Remember to keep your ears out for a portion of Tuesday night's Teaser selection. And don't forget to tune into the full show on Tuesday, February 14th (Valentine's Day) at 8:00pm for a chance to win a prize!

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827): DER KUSS (THE KISS)

Olaf Bär, baritone; Geoffrey Parsons, piano. Beethoven Lieder (EMI)

Beethoven is usually not thought of as a great composer of German Lieder. He did write about 80 songs, and besides the song cycle An Die Ferne Geliebte, most are rarely performed. The light-hearted text of "Der Kuss," from poet C.F. Weisse, describes the inner monologue of a man, wondering if he should take the risk and go in for the kiss. Most of Beethoven's songs come from his younger days, with "Der Kuss" being one of the exceptions. He completed it in 1822, and it was the last song he published. He began to sketch the trifle of a song way back in 1798. In fact in 1822, Beethoven revisited many early and unfinished projects. This includes finally writing that setting of Schiller's Ode To Joy he started working on in 1790, which of course, became his famous ninth symphony!