Table of contents
1 Composer
2 Construction
3 The Text

Composer

The Geographical Fugue or Fuge aus der Geographie is the most famous piece for spoken chorus by Ernst Toch. Toch was a prominent composer in 1920s Berlin, and singlehandedly invented the idiom of the "Spoken Chorus".

The piece was a sensation when it was first performed, and remains Toch's most-performed work, although the composer himself has always dismissed it as an unimportant diversion.

Construction

It is written in strict fugal form, and consists of four voices, each enunciating various cites, countries and other geographical landmarks in true contrapuntal fashion. It ends with a climactic finale using the word "Ratibor!" ("Trinidad"), the first word of the subject. Voices enter in the order of: soprano, alto, tenor, bass.

The Text

Translation

Although written originally in German ("Ratibor! Und der Fluss Mississippi und der Stadt Honolulu und der See Titicaca..."), it was later translated into English and received wide aclaim.

The full part text in English is reproduced below.

Sopranos' text

Trinidad! And the big Mississippi and the town Honolulu and the lake Titicaca,
the Popocateptl is not in Canada, rather in Mexico, Mexico, Mexico!
Canada Malaga Rimini Brindisi Canada Malaga Rimini Brindisi
Canada Malaga Rimini Brindisi Canada Malaga Rimini Brindisi
Yes, Tibet, Tibet, Tibet, Tibet, Yokohama, Yokohama.
[pause]
Rimini Brindisi Brindisi Brindisi Brindisi Brindisi Brindisi Brindisi
Brindisi Brindisi Brindisi Brindisi,
Popocateptl is not in Canada, rather in Mexico Mexico Mexico.
Nagasaki, Yo-ko-hama, Nagasaki, Nagasaki, Yokohama, Honolulu
Mississippi, Titicaca
Titicaca Titicaca Titicaca Titicaca Titicaca Titicaca Titicaca Titicaca
Tibet, Tibet, Tibet, Titicaca, Titicaca, Yo-ko-hama, Naga-saki
Trinidad! And the big Mississippi and the town Honolulu and the lake Titicaca,
Trinidad! And the big Mississippi and the town Honolulu and the lake Titicaca,
the Popocateptl is not in Canada, rather in Mexico, Mexico, Mexico!
Canada Canada Malaga Malaga Canada Canada Malaga Malaga
Canada Canada Malaga Malaga Canada Canada Malaga Malaga
Malaga Malaga Malaga Malaga Malaga Malaga, Trinidad!
And the big Mississippi and the town Honolulu and the lake Titicaca,
Mississippi Honolulu Titicaca Titicaca
Canada Malaga Rimini Brindisi
Trrrrrrrrinidad!

Altos' text

Trinidad! And the big Mississippi and the town Honolulu and the lake Titicaca,
the Popocateptl is not in Canada, rather in Mexico, Mexico, Mexico!
Canada Malaga Rimini Brindisi Canada Malaga Rimini Brindisi
Canada Malaga Rimini Brindisi Canada Malaga Rimini Brindisi
Yes, Tibet, Tibet, Tibet, Tibet, Nagasaki, Yokohama, Nagasaki, Yokohama.
Tibet, Tibet, Tibet, Tibet, Nagasaki, Nagasaki
Canada Canada Canada Canada Malaga Malaga Malaga Malaga
Canada Malaga Canada Malaga Canada Malaga Canada Malaga
Tibet, Nagasaki, Yokohama, Nagasaki, Yo-ko-hama
Tibet, Yokohama, Honolulu, Mississippi, Titicaca
Tibet, Tibet, Tibet, Tibet
Trinidad! And the big Mississippi and the town Honolulu and the lake Titicaca,
the Popocateptl is not in Canada, rather in Mexico, Mexico, Mexico!
Yo-ko-hama, Trinidad! And the big Mississippi and the town Honolulu and the :lake Titicaca,
Trinidad! And the big Mississippi and the town Honolulu and the lake Titicaca,
the Popocateptl is not in Canada, rather in Mexico, Mexico, Mexico,
Mexico, Mexico, Mexico, Mexico!
Canada Canada Malaga Malaga Canada Canada Malaga Malaga
Trinidad! And the big Mississippi and the town Honolulu and the lake Titicaca,
and the big Mississippi and the town Honolulu and the lake Titicaca
Mississippi Honolulu Titicaca Mississippi Mississippi Mississippi Mississippi
Canada Malaga Rimini Brindisi
Trinidad! Trinidad! Trinidad! Trinidad! Trinidad! Trinidad! Trinidad!

Tenors' text

Trinidad! And the big Mississippi and the town Honolulu and the lake Titicaca,
the Popocateptl is not in Canada, rather in Mexico, Mexico, Mexico!
Canada Malaga Rimini Brindisi Canada Malaga Rimini Brindisi
Canada Malaga Rimini Brindisi Canada Malaga Rimini Brindisi
Yes, Tibet, Tibet, Tibet, Tibet, Nagasaki, Yokohama, Nagasaki, Yokohama.
Tibet, Tibet, Tibet, Tibet
[pause]
Trinidad! And the big Mississippi and the town Honolulu and the lake Titicaca,
the Popocateptl is not in Canada, rather in Mexico, Mexico, Mexico!
Canada Malaga Rimini Brindisi Canada Malaga Rimini Brindisi
Yokohama, Honolulu, Mississippi, Titicaca
Tibet, Tibet, Tibet, Tibet, Nagasaki, Yo-ko-hama, Tibet, Tibet
the Popocateptl is not in Canada, rather in Mexico, Mexico, Mexico!
Nagasaki, Nagasaki
Canada Malaga Rimini Brindisi Canada Malaga Rimini Brindisi
Canada Canada Canada Canada Malaga Malaga Malaga Malaga
Trinidad! And the big Mississippi and the town Honolulu and the lake Titicaca, :Titicaca.
Trinidad! And the big Mississippi and the town Honolulu and the lake Titicaca,
the Popocateptl is not in Canada, rather in Mexico, Mexico, Mexico!
Canada Canada Malaga Malaga Canada Canada Malaga Malaga
Trinidad! And the big Mississippi and the town Honolulu and the lake Titicaca,
and the big Mississippi and the town Honolulu and the lake Titicaca
Mississippi Honolulu Titicaca Mississippi Mississippi Mississippi Mississippi :Mississippi Mississippi
Canada Malaga Rimini Brindisi, Trinidad! Trinidad! Trinidad! Trinidad! Trinidad! Trinidad!

Bass' text

Trinidad! And the big Mississippi and the town Honolulu and the lake Titicaca,
the Popocateptl is not in Canada, rather in Mexico, Mexico, Mexico!
Canada Malaga Rimini Brindisi Canada Malaga Rimini Brindisi
Yes, Tibet, Tibet, Tibet, Tibet, Na-gasaki, Naga-saki.
[pause]
Nagasaki, Nagasaki, Yokohama, Honolulu, Mississippi
Titicaca, Titicaca, Titicaca, Titicaca, Titicaca, Titicaca
Trinidad! And the big Mississippi and the town Honolulu and the lake Titicaca,
Titicaca, Titicaca, Nagasaki, Naga-saki!
Trinidad! And the big Mississippi and the town Honolulu and the lake Titicaca.
Trinidad! And the big Mississippi and the town Honolulu and the lake Titicaca,
the Popocateptl is not in Canada, rather in Mexico, Mexico, Mexico!
Canada Canada Malaga Malaga
Trinidad! And the big Mississippi and the town Honolulu and the lake Titicaca,
and the big Mississippi and the town Honolulu and the lake Titicaca
Mississippi Honolulu Titicaca Mississippi Mississippi
Mississippi Mississippi Mississippi Mississippi Mississippi Mississippi -sippi
Canada Malaga Rimini Brindisi, Canada Malaga Rimini Brindisi
Canada Malaga Rimini Brindisi, Canada Malaga Rimini Brindisi
Canada Malaga Rimini Brindisi, Trinidad!