The cycle of songs constitutes one of the most important genres of nineteenth-century music. There are famous examples, such as the works of Schubert, Schumann or Mahler, which have been the object of particular attention and study. However, many other cycles of equally famous composers of both that century and the twentieth? They have not been. In order to know it in all its breadth, this book introduces a series of key concepts and a broad repertoire with which to outline a history of the genre from Beethoven to the present day. Their chapters explore how these cycles reflect the world around them, and how national traditions and social relationships are present in the composer's choice of texts and musical styles. The author investigates other types of music that have influenced him, from opera and symphonies to popular song. This volume constitutes, then, a complete and suggestive guide that outlines how the interpretative practices, from the concerts to the new recording technologies, have changed the way in which we listen to them.