Berlioz, Bizet, D'Indy: Art Songs

Author: Yu Yixuan
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-06-01
Features: As early as the mid-16th century, France had many monophonic solo songs accompanied by the lute (Lute). By the late 16th century, French folk songs were still mostly rigid and strong in format. Under the influence of the Protestant Reformation, in 1539, the famous French poet Clement Marot translated religious poems into rhyming vernacular and set them to music as street songs (Streetsongs). In addition to folk songs and street songs, a polyphonic dance music was also popular. After the introduction of tonal harmony music from Italy in the early 17th century, romances rapidly developed, and solo songs accompanied by the lute, guitar, or harpsichord emerged. The notation of the accompaniment also shifted from numerical bass to standard notation. The main pioneers of French art songs (Melodie) in the 19th century were Swiss-born Adolphe Adam (1802-1861) and Charles Gounod (1804-1841). They adopted romantic poems by Lamartine, Hugo, and Musset, breaking the old rigid and symmetrical patterns of romances and creating highly artistic new songs. Adam's "The Lake" (Lelac) and Gounod's "The Andalouse Girl" (LAndalouse) are all masterpieces. Composing music with romantic poetry naturally brought greater freedom to the creation of French art songs. Due to the varying lengths of the poems, it was inevitable to abandon the old rigid and symmetrical phrasing of romances. In this regard, composers like Adolphe Adam and Charles Gounod played pioneering roles. This book is a selection of art songs by Berlioz, Bizet, and Duparc, featuring works such as pastoral songs, farewells, and compositions for cemeteries.