Zes Vlaamse liederen - Avondstemmen, Op. 8/4 Vier Vlaamse liederen - k’En hoore u nog niet, Op. 46/1 Ego Flos, Op. 77 Vijf geestelijke liederen, Op. 44 Liederenkrans, Op. 38 Eerste communielied Smeeklied, Op. 68/3 Zielzuchten, Op. 34
The composer Joseph Ryelandt (1870-1965) published Guido Gezelle, étude littéraire in 1920 with the intention of making the Flemish priest and poet better known in the French-speaking world. Ryelandt considered Gezelle (1830-1899) to have been one of the greatest poets of his time; he had indeed been one of the composer’s principal points of reference during WWI.
Joseph Ryelandt was born, bred, and lived in the city of Bruges and knew Guido Gezelle well. They never became close friends because of the difference in their ages, but there was no lack of respect for each other’s work and personality. Gezelle was the elder of the two and had achieved his greatest success in the 1890s, creating his public image of an affable priest and poet whose ceaseless contemplation of creation resulted in poetic reflections on the mysteries of human existence. Guido Gezelle later came to be regarded as one of the greatest Flemish Catholic poets of his time, particularly after his death in 1899, and his texts were set to music by dozens of Flemish and other composers. Today he is considered as one of the most important Belgian poets of the 19th century.
