Three depictions of women from the perspective of men

 THREE DEPICTIONS OF WOMEN
FROM THE PERSPECTIVE
OF MEN
by
MARCUS SAMUEL MILLER
SUSAN CURTIS FLEMING, COMMITTEE CHAIR
SUSAN E. WILLIAMS
LINDA PAGE CUMMINS
CRAIG P. FIRST
DIANE BOYD SCHULTZ
WILLIAM A. MARTIN
A PERFORMANCE MANUSCRIPT
Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements
for the degree of Doctor of Musical Arts
in the School of Music
in the Graduate School of
The University of Alabama
TUSCALOOSA, ALABAMA
2014
Copyright Marcus Samuel Miller 2014
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
ABSTRACT
The purpose of this manuscript is to set into context a recital that highlights three
categories of songs depicting women from the perspective of men. The recital was held on 01
April 2014. The program and translations of the song texts appear in an appendix at the end of
this manuscript. The selections are from different time periods and locales; the women in these
songs range from the most holy to the most depraved, from the most to least loving. In the first
category, “The Depiction of Women as Ethereal Beings,” women are viewed by men as more
elevated in character or in status, and thus more powerful. “The Depiction of Women as Objects
of Love” presents male expressions of love for women on a more equal level, using images of
nature. “The Depiction of Women with Earthly Passions and Vices” offers the male view of
women of low moral character and values, depicted as bawdy, drunk, insatiable, and possessed
of other earthy traits. This manuscript focuses on the literature, composers, poets, performance,
and thematic elements of the accompanying recital.
ii
DEDICATION
This manuscript and corresponding recital are dedicated to the provider of inspiration, the
composer of the music of the spheres, and the one who sings over me every day, Jesus Christ. In
this work, I echo J.S. Bach’s repeated manuscript dedication in proclaiming “Soli Deo gloria,”
Glory to God alone.
iii
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I am extremely grateful to my major professor, voice teacher, mentor, and friend, Dr.
Susan Curtis Fleming, for every ounce of energy, support, instruction, and wisdom that you have
generously given me during my tenure at the University of Alabama. Your efforts provided the
opportunity to train, learn, and grow, as both performer and teacher, despite challenges.
To my parents, Dr. Mark and Jean Miller, what can I say to thank you? Words cannot
encompass the magnitude of your love, wisdom, and support. I am very thankful for the time
and money you spent to come see numerous performances. Your constant encouragement and
Christ-like example helped me cope with adversity during this time. In addition, thank you for
editing this and several other academic documents that I have written. To the rest of my family,
thank you for your love, for making trips to visit me in Tuscaloosa, and for taking an interest in
my life. Every visit, phone call, and encouraging message helped me take one more step towards
completion of the degree. I love you all.
I am grateful to Dr. Gary Wilson for your mentorship. Thank you for your persistence in
giving me advice, encouragement, and motivation at the precise moments I needed them.
Also, I am indebted to Marie Sanders and the John and Mary Hill family for providing
housing for me while I have lived in Tuscaloosa.
Thank you to Dr. Jennifer Cowgill for three years of vocal training and being a positive
influence.
iv
I am thankful for employment and opportunities for professional development with both
First Presbyterian Church, Tuscaloosa, and University Church of Christ, Tuscaloosa. The
relationships and community fostered through the Church in Tuscaloosa has shaped my life.
Finally, I would like to thank Hannah Franklin for her tireless support and encouragement
as I worked to complete this project and degree. Thank you for quizzing me on my lyrics, editing
my document, and helping me revise it repeatedly. Most of all, thank you for your sacrificial
love. I am a better man because of Christ working through you.
v
CONTENTS
ABSTRACT…………………………………………………………………………………….....ii
DEDICATION……………………………………………………………………………………iii
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS……………………………………………………………………….. iv
LIST OF EXAMPLES………………………………………………………………….……..…vii
INTRODUCTION…………………………………………………………………………………1
CHAPTER 1: The Depiction of Women as Ethereal Beings……………………………………...2
CHAPTER 2: The Depiction of Women as Objects of Love…………………………………… 14
CHAPTER 3: The Depiction of Women With Earthly Passions and Vices…………………….. 20
CONCLUSION…………………………………………………………………………………. 27
BIBLIOGRAPHY……………………………………………………………………………….. 28
APPENDIX 1: SONG TEXTS AND TRANSLATIONS………………………………………..30
APPENDIX 2: RECITAL PROGRAM…………………………………………………………. 38
vi
LIST OF EXAMPLES
Example 1, Music for a While, mm. 1-5…………………………………………………………...3
Example 2.1, La reine de cœur, mm. 10-11……………………………………………………….8
Example 2.2, La reine de cœur, mm. 16-17…………………………………………………….....9
Example 3, An Sylvia, mm. 5-8…………………………………………………………………..10
Example 4, Das Rosenband, mm. 9-12…………………………………………………………..12
vii
INTRODUCTION
Women are perennial subjects of song. Poetry and musical settings in the
Western tradition have, for centuries, held as their subject men’s views of women. In Egyptian,
Babylonian, Greek, Roman, and other cultures, women were often compared to goddesses, and
indeed in those cultures some women were actually believed to be such. In song, they were
viewed as objects of adoration. Women have been loved, cherished, and coveted in song; they
have also been perceived as licentious, base, and bawdy. From the multitude of representations
of women, I have chosen three categories: “The Depiction of Women as Ethereal Beings,” “The
Depiction of Women as Objects of Love,” and “The Depiction of Women with Earthly Passions
and Vices.” The selections presented in each category draw from song traditions in various time
periods and locales. Purcell’s Alecto, Schubert’s Sylvia, and Chausson’s Hébé are among the
women viewed as powerful, lofty, and enchanting; the dearly beloved include Chabrier’s Jeanne
and Chausson’s spouse; and among the bawdy females are Debussy’s gossips of Paris and
Rogers’s lady tramp. The following chapters expound the literature, composers, poets,
performance, and thematic elements of the works from the three selected categories that were
performed in the accompanying recital.
1
CHAPTER 1
The Depiction of Women as Ethereal Beings
Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary defines a goddess in two ways. The first is “a
female god.” The second is “a woman whose great charm or beauty arouses adoration.”1 The
literature chosen in the first segment of the recital highlights women who fit these definitions.
The recital literature features two mythological goddesses, as well as two women whose charm
arouses great adoration. They all hold an elevated status. Most are greatly admired. One is
greatly feared.
Music for a While
In the opening selection, “Music for a While,” composed by Henry Purcell, we catch a brief
glimpse of the goddess Alecto. She is one of the three Furies from Greek mythology. With
serpents for hair and whips made of snakes, these three sisters tormented the wicked on earth,
and in the afterlife.2 In this song, which was created as incidental music for the play Oedipus by
Dryden and Lee in 1692, we perceive the power of music as able to beguile all cares.3 Music, as
described in the lyrics of Purcell’s song, is so powerful that even the ever-raging Fury drops her
whip and releases the dead souls under her charge. This initial portrayal of women in the recital
is intended to display not only the power of this goddess but also the power that music has in this
1
Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary. 11th ed. (Springfield, MA: Merriam-Webster, 2003).
Henry Mulford Tichenor, The Olympian Gods (Appeal Publishing Company, 1921), 19.
3
Peter Holman, et al. “Purcell.” Grove Music Online. Oxford Music Online. Oxford University
Press, accessed January 10, 2014,
http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/subscriber/article/grove/music/41799pg3.
2
2
instance to soothe the great deity. The opening ground bass line slithers throughout the
composition, slowly enchanting the listener.
Example 1:
(Purcell Music for a While, mm. 1-5)
Purcell was a prolific contributor to all the main genres of secular vocal music current in 17thcentury England, but toward the end of his career, he began to develop ground bass songs based
on Italianate techniques; note the ascending sequential harmonic pattern implied by the bass line
(example 1). This particular song represents the composer’s tendency to mimic the pattern of the
da capo aria by modulating during the middle section and returning to the original key when the
original material returns. Purcell effectively uses the shortened note durations above the
repeated word “drop” to depict the hair-snakes consecutively falling victim to the power of
music.
Hébé
Depicted in the second song, the image of the goddess Hébé stands as a stark contrast to
that of Alecto. Coming from drastically different eras and from composers with great contrast in
compositional style, the two songs delve into the subject of enchantment. Alecto is enchanted by
music, and her fury subsides. Hébé herself holds the power of enchantment, and all of the gods
fall under her spell. Alecto was a horrendous monster of a woman who held the power of fear
and death. The beautiful goddess of youth, Hébé, served as cupbearer to the gods in Greek
mythology. Louise Ackermann’s text represents the goddess as an innocent figure that enchants
the gods. The story of Hébé conveys the power the goddess has over the other gods in that she
holds eternal life in her hands and may choose to distribute it to whomever she wishes.
Chausson intertwines the melody between the voice and piano as the cup of youth is passed from
cupbearer to god and back to cupbearer, never to be seen again. The dedication of the song was
to Mlle. Eva Callimaki-Catargi, a French model most likely of Greek heritage.4 It could be
speculated that, just like the innocent goddess Hébé, this young woman represented the beauty
and purity of the divine. Chausson’s composition, written in 1882, reinforces this portrait of
innocence with simple modal harmonies. In fact, the subtitle to the song is: Chanson Greque
dans le mode phrygien (Greek song in the Phrygian mode). The composer’s compositional style
in this song is representative of a philosophy of his, which he stated as: “I believe firmly in the
reality of expressed thoughts, and a thought can only be expressed when it is dressed in a
sufficiently beautiful form.” 5 In Hébé, one is not only exposed to the expression of innocence,
beauty, and enchantment in the text, but also greeted by a vivid depiction of the goddess through
the interwoven melody and choice of harmonies. The melody rises gracefully as she lifts her cup
in offering to the gods. The accompaniment shifts into rushing arpeggiated eighth notes as the
cup quickly passes by. As the tempo slows to what might be considered an unsatisfying final
cadence, the listener hears the last strains of the melody float downward enchantingly.
Lydia
Vladimir Jankélévitch states that “what composers demand from Ancient Greece is
neither dance rhythms nor popular songs, but a geographical dissolution compounded equally of
4
Carol Kimball and Richard Walters, ed. The French song anthology: high voice (Milwaukee:
Hal Leonard Corp., 2001), 74.
5
Jean-Pierre Barricelli and Leo Weinstein, Ernest Chausson: The Composer’s Life and Works
(Norman: The University of Oklahoma Press, 1955), 55.
4
ubiquity and Utopia.”6 This is precisely what Chausson found in Hébé and what Fauré
discovered in Lydia. In an interview with François Crucy, Fauré stated, “I can't deny that pagan
Antiquity has always exerted a strong pull on my imagination.”7 Utilizing the pun on the name
of the central figure, the composer chose to write the piece in the Lydian mode. The tritone from
the tonic pitch to the raised 4th scale degree creates a sense of exoticism, and “the marvelous
postlude dissolves into those ethereal regions even more convincingly than the ascension into the
heavenly heights depicted at the end of Schubert’s Ganymed – it is as if we are breathing the
very air of Parnassus.”8 Charles-Marie-René Leconte de Lisle was the leader of the Parnassian
poets, whose name was derived from the great mountain home of the Greek Muses, Mt.
Parnassus. “The Parnassians stressed restraint, objectivity, and precise description in their
poetry.”9 This poem was Fauré’s first setting of de Lisle and was appropriately set to exemplify
the poet’s ideals. The simple introduction paired with the postlude presents the listener with the
idea of eternity. Lydia emerges from this texture in a vividly romantic but elegant description of
her beauty as the composer gently lifts the melody through the exotic raised 4th scale degree.
The line soars gracefully upwards as the vision of her neck and hair appear. Lydia possesses a
sexual charm over the person speaking. Her power is so strong that he dies and wishes to be
brought to life again so that he can die once more in her love. The lyrics could also be referring
to death as a metaphor for sexual release. Fauré paints this imagery by creating a climactic
melody line that rises to its pinnacle only to suddenly retreat downward above the text, “I love
6
Vladimir Jankélévitch, trans. Carolyn Abbate, Music and the Ineffable (Princeton: Princeton
University Press, 2003), 104.
7
Francois Crucy. “Les grandes figures contemporaines: Gabriel Fauré” [interview]. Le Petit
Parisien (28 April 1922): 1-2.
8
Graham Johnson, Gabriel Fauré: The Songs and their Poets (Burlington: Ashgate Publishing
Company, 2009), 64.
9
Kimball and Walters, 130.
5
you and die, oh my love.” Similar to Hébé, Lydia is a goddess who possesses the power to
charm and give life. However, the life Lydia gives appears to be of a more temporal nature.
According to Kimball and Walters, the composer’s character “presumably referred to Emma
Bardac, with whom Fauré was having an affair at the time he composed the subsequent song
cycle, La bonne chanson (The Good Song).”10
Une Sainte en son auréole
The next song in the first set casts a glow on the central figure that is generally reserved
for those who display lives of great moral character and are now deceased. In fact, the song title
itself conveys the imagery of a saint. Although not a goddess, the woman of Une Sainte en son
aureole (A Saint in her Halo) clearly has ethereal traits. Full of romantic love, the poems of La
bonne chanson were written by Paul Verlaine as a wedding gift for his wife, Mathilde. “The
name came from medieval France; thus the reference to ‘her Carolingian name’ at the end of the
first song.” 11 The text of Une Sainte en son auréole contains depictions of Mathilde as innocent
and chaste in her tower. Through the reference to the dynasty of Charlemagne, Verlaine appears
to imply that there is a holy, even spiritual power that humans can exert, and this power is
contained by Mathilde. Fauré composed the song cycle La bonne chanson between 1892 and
1894, and it contains nine poems by Verlaine. “At the time he composed the cycle, Fauré was
himself embroiled in a love affair with Emma Bardac, who would later marry Claude Debussy,
and dedicated the cycle to her.”12 It is interesting to compare the woman portrayed in Lydia with
the woman depicted in Une Sainte en son auréole and know that the composer most likely was
using both songs to eulogize the same person. The power of Lydia was primarily to give sexual
10
Ibid. John Magnum. “La bonne chanson” accessed February 3, 2014,
http://www.laphil.com/philpedia/music/la-bonne-chanson-gabriel-faure.
12
Ibid. 11
6
satisfaction. The power that the saintly woman possesses is over the heart. The harmonic
language Fauré utilizes in his portrayal of the lady in the tower is unpredictable and unusual. He
chooses primarily to depict the lady through a repeated motive heard in the right hand of the
piano accompaniment at the start. The melody soars higher as the text about the power of grace
and love is sung, as well as when the words describing the triumphant charm of her sweet smile
are heard. The composer chooses to reduce and calm the activity greatly in the accompaniment
as the singer extols the innocence of the woman. The continuous motion actually comes to a
complete stop at the words, “I hear all these things,” before finishing the thought that all things
are found in the sweet lady’s holy name. These two beats of rest found in the accompaniment
might be intentionally planned silence that the composer dedicated to his lover’s bi-syllabic
name, Emma. Even with two different ladies in mind, both composer and author appear to be
unified in this representation of certain women’s use of the holy power of grace and love.
La reine de cœur
The type of ethereal grace, beauty, and charm attributed to a goddess are rarely ascribed
to a human woman. Queens and noblewomen often come close to garnering that recognition.
The poet Maurice Carême’s depiction of the fictional reine de cœur (queen of hearts) might
capture both the regal nature of a queen and the otherworldly charming power of a goddess in the
same person. In the poem written for this next selection in the recital, the listener is introduced
to a powerful woman who can, with a gesture, entrap one in her icy castle. With a poem that is
at once stunningly beautiful and seductive, yet cold and fearful, Poulenc chose to add this to his
song cycle, La Courte Paille (The Short Straw), which was composed to be performed for a
child. Poulenc himself stated about the cycle:
On some charming poems by Maurice Carême, half-way between Francis
Jammes and Max Jacob, I have composed seven short songs for Denise
7
Duval or, more exactly, for Denise Duval to sing to her little boy of six.
These sketches, by turns sad or mischievous, are unpretentious. They
should be sung tenderly. That is the surest way to touch the heart of a
child. 13
In La reine de cœur a child might likely be lulled to sleep by the undulating
accompaniment, languid lines, and primarily soft dynamic markings. Even through this
unpretentious sketch, a child might not be able to appreciate fully the subtle depiction of this
woman. The pulsating eighth notes could depict a heart beating, faster and louder as the queen
takes control. It even skips some beats as the ice castle is brought into view. The composer
utilizes a significant shift in tonality from minor to major mode twice in the piece. The first time
is when the poetry tells of the young dead coming to talk of love.
Example 2.1:
(Poulenc La reine de cœur, mm. 10-11)
The second occurs at the final cadence after the queen successfully lures the subject into her lair.
13
Francis Poulenc, Diary of My Songs, trans. Winifred Radford (London: Victor Gollancz, Ltd.,
1985), 109.
8
Example 2.2:
(Poulenc La reine de cœur, mm. 16-17)
These shifts cast a very interesting light on the idea of death and love. The queen appears to hold
the power to entice someone into a place where there is no escape, but at the moments in the
song when that power is exposed, the composer paints with a lighter color.
An Sylvia
Franz Schubert was nearing the end of his life when he composed the lied entitled
Gesang: An Sylvia (Song: To Sylvia), D891. Schubert had fully matured as a composer by this
time and had expanded his repertoire via form and technique. In contrast to this development,
this is a simple strophic song. The maturity of the composer can yet be seen in the freedom he
gives the singer in each strophe to interpret the text. He unveils a picture of fanfare as the singer
declaims the merits of this woman. Ever the innovator, Schubert sets lyric, legato phrases in the
melody with the joyful pomp in the piano accompaniment, thus creating the regal atmosphere.
With different aspects of the heroine highlighted in each verse, the singer has the opportunity to
bring out different elements of the text through the various aspects of the composition. As is
often the case in his strophic lieder, Schubert does not indicate dynamic markings in the vocal
line and thus leaves these decisions to the singer. The primary decision necessary is what
dynamic markings to apply to each strophe.
9
Example 3:
(Schubert An Sylvia, mm. 5-8)
The text is such that it might indicate that a performer should sing the first verse with a sense of
vibrant pomp. The second verse could be sung at a significantly decreased dynamic level to
accentuate the sweetness and gentleness of the woman. The final verse seems to imply a
grandeur and greatness that could accommodate a dramatic increase of dynamic level. The text
setting lends itself to well-rounded phrases, but choices can be made by the singer and
accompanist as to which musical elements to accentuate based on the text. There exist potential
moments for the playful bass to be brought to the forefront over correspondingly exciting text.
The ensemble has the opportunity to grow and diminish in overall volume as the text grows and
diminishes in exuberance. The words represent Sylvia first as a venerable gift from heaven,
secondly as an unrelenting giver of love and kindness, and finally as the greatest woman in every
human capacity. At this juncture in the recital set, the beauty, laud, and glory of the human
woman comes into primary focus. The lyrics for “An Silvia” are taken from the play The Two
Gentleman of Verona by William Shakespeare. He portrays Sylvia as the primary love interest
of several men, and they comically fawn over the heroine whilst trying to woo her. Schubert
treats Sylvia as a high and sacrosanct woman. In the play this song is sung by a chorus hired to
10
serenade Sylvia. “The composer has decided to give the tenor 'lead' to a single voice, but he is
true to Shakespeare in that the accompaniment suggests more than one musician.”14 Listen for
the echoing statement of the melody at the ends of phrases as if a chorus was joining in to
reiterate the text. Being a genuine human woman, Sylvia does not possess supernatural power
over her suitors. But the fact that they extol her as the greatest of all women indicates a certain
sway.
Das Rosenband
Perhaps one of the most powerful of all possible physical actions is an intent gaze. In
Fredrich Klopstock’s poem, “Das Rosenband” (The Rose Ribbon), the male figure bound the
body of his lover while she slept. When she awoke, the female character bound the lives of the
couple together through her gaze. The power this poem attributes to her far exceeds the physical
power the man exerts over her and indeed borders on the realm of the supernatural. With her
gaze the woman wields power, not over just the body, but also life, love, and happiness.
Schubert’s Das Rosenband was composed 11 years prior to An Silvia but certainly displays the
composer’s expressive ability.
Schubert's arioso, seemingly poised between speech and song, and
certainly experimental in this respect, veers in the direction of prophetic
modernity: out of context one might guess the composer of the
chromatically underpinned line 'mein Leben hing mit diesem Blick an
ihrem Leben' as Schumann rather than Schubert, and the song shares with
that composer a feeling of improvisation on the spur of the moment, where
the poem rules all, rather than a preconceived melody.15
14
Graham Johnson, “Notes about ‘An Sylvia.’” accessed January 25, 2014, accessed February
13, 2014 http://www.hyperion-records.co.uk/dw.asp?dc=W1912_GBAJY8413601&vw=dc.
15
Graham Johnson, “Notes about ‘Das Rosenband.’” (1989), accessed February 13, 2014,
http://www.hyperion-records.co.uk/dw.asp?dc=W2261_GBAJY9000717&vw=dc.
11
The accompaniment is quite simple, “set in a spirit of hymnlike devotion.”16 The atmosphere
created is wrought with emotion and reverence as the man ties the woman with the ribbon, but as
the arpeggiated chords enliven the accompaniment in the second stanza, we see the woman
awake. Schubert indicates suspended rhythmic motion in parallel points of both stanzas where
text and music hang in climactic suspense, as Graham Johnson referenced. It is in these
moments that the composer vividly depicts both the visceral power of the man binding the flesh
of the woman and the transcendent power of the woman binding the man’s heart to her own.
Example 4:
(Schubert Das Rosenband, mm. 9-12)
Conclusion
In conclusion to this first section of the recital, one can deduce that there are a significant
number of compositions which portray women with an otherworldly power or charm. In the
selected songs, these powers are held by either mythological women or real human beings. They
might be used to hold a captive, change a life, seduce a heart, win a lover, or impart grace and
love. In all these selected cases, the women represented are treated with great respect. The
impetus for this respectfulness might be spawned from love, admiration, or perhaps fear, but the
element that the entirety of the selected portrayals share is awe of the power that the women
16
Ibid.
12
wield. The women depicted in the first part of the recital are viewed as elevated in status at the
least and worshiped as supernatural beings at most.
13
CHAPTER 2
The Depiction of Women as Objects of Love
Women have suffered misogynistic objectification by certain societies throughout
history. Some have been constrained as sex objects, household servants, or as pretty trophies to
be displayed by men. When examining the song literature that depicts women as objects of love,
the distinction must be drawn between the objectification of women and their placement as
objects of great admiration. The pieces selected for this portion of the recital do not deal with
the objectification of women. These songs only show an abundant outpouring of love and
adoration. The descriptions of these women are strewn with comparisons to nature and utilize
images of physical attractiveness and eloquent soliloquies of love.
Chanson pour Jeanne
In 1886, Emmanuel Chabrier composed perhaps one of his greatest melodies in Chanson
pour Jeanne (Song for Jean). Though often overshadowed by Chabrier’s more well-known
animal songs, this composition stands out as one “which Ravel so famously admired, and which
he considered important for the evolution of his own musical language.”17 Set to a text by
Catulle Mendés, this song is a poignant picture of a woman compared to the highest beauty in
nature, adored with the sweetest love, and ultimately mourned with melancholy homage.
The contents of the poem and the harmonic means used in the music
locate this song on the border between the romantic and the modernist
17
Graham Johnson, “Notes about ‘Chanson pour Jeanne.’” (2002) accessed February 13, 2014,
http://www.hyperion-records.co.uk/dw.asp?dc=W6615_GBAJY0213403&vw=dc.
14
mode of expression. Typically in a romantic text, an important part is
played by Nature, the state of which changes in accordance with the
extreme transformations of the emotions of the lyrical subject: from loving
delight and ecstasy to death, despair and resignation, embodied by
references to dead flowers and birds. At the end, the beloved is dead and
the hero may only wait, with resignation, for his own funeral.18
From the opening descending harmonic sequence in the accompaniment, the listener is
invited into what is from the start a vivid portrayal of a beloved woman. The flowers burst into
bloom with exquisite text painting in the right hand of the piano as the text indicates the beauty
of the love. As the singer then proclaims that nothing in the world could deserve more attention
than his loved one, the tempo increases and the accompaniment throbs with varying hemiola
rhythms. At the end of the first strophe, the opening vocal line is repeated, and the sequential
introduction is heard again. The second stanza likens the woman’s voice to that of a bird. The
compositional effect is brilliant as Chabrier mimics the actual song of the mésanges (tits) under
the sustained B on the text “you sing” in the vocal line.19 In the second verse, the vocal melody
is very similar to the first. The third stanza is where the composer provides a twist. Leading into
it, Chabrier presents the introductory material in a minor key in which the third verse remains.
As the story is unveiled, the listener discovers that the woman dies and the man is left with
heartache. At this point, Chabrier begins the greatest climax as he presents a major key, with
modal F sharps under the text “Et j’attends.” This is a complete surprise, as the corresponding
part of each strophe has been in a minor key. This compositional choice vividly evokes a feeling
of raw and visceral emotion as the man deals with the loss. The composer chooses to revert to
the original opening phrase, however, which is repeated as closing material, thus possibly
18
Małgorzata Woźna-Stankiewicz, trans. Maja Trochimczyk, “The Poetry of Mendés in the
Songs of Paderewski and French Composers,” Polish Music Journal 4.2 (2011), accessed
February 13, 2014,
http://www.usc.edu/dept/polish_music/PMJ/issue/4.2.01/woznapaderewski.html#1.
19
http://www.oiseaux.net/birds/great.tit.html. 15
indicating a solemn and reverent reminder of the beautiful Jeanne. It stands as a bittersweet
conclusion to a beautiful epitaph of ardent love. Again, the selection of this song as part of the
recital represents only a small sampling of the entire song repertoire concerning the portrayal of
women, but it is undeniable that this piece represents Jeanne with the utmost respect and care.
Cantique à l'épouse
Rarely in song literature does one have such a look into the love bestowed on a wife from
her spouse. In Chausson’s Cantique à l'épouse (Song to the Wife) the listener is privy to a scene
that is highly personal, stunningly beautiful, and deeply loving. In the Albert Jounet text, the
woman is depicted using several terms from nature. Light is the main element that Jounet uses in
depicting the appearance of the woman. The poet uses terms such as mystery and magic as he
describes the love of the man toward her. Chausson highlights these literary elements in the
accompaniment through the use of extended harmonic language. The unfolding sequential
arpeggiated chords from the start create a veiled atmosphere suitable for the intimacy of the
marriage bedroom. “The harmonic world of the composer has developed from the early days
(we can even detect the influence of Chopin in the unfolding chains of harmony), but what can
seem unnecessarily complicated in some works by Chausson, here strikes the ear as rich and
subtle.”20 Filled with long languid lines for the voice, the composer poignantly displays the
overflowing affection of the man for the woman. The intensity builds as the singer expresses
how the eyes of the woman draw him to her. Again, the decision to increase tempo and dynamic
level at this point reflects the great power of a loving glance. Suddenly, the reverent mood of the
first section returns as the focus turns to remembering the loving past of the couple. The song
ends with the text and accompaniment slowly drifting away in silence and rest. As a
20
Graham Johnson and Richard Stokes, A French Song Companion (New York: Oxford
University Press, 2000), 81.
16
representation of an object of love, the woman portrayed in this piece stands apart as someone
cherished on a level much more profound than that of raw passion or sexual desire. The mystery
of true love, which the text describes, is elegantly simple. The man holds his wife as an object of
devotion above all else.
Le Spectre de la Rose
Love or music – which power can uplift man to the sublimest heights? It is
a large question; yet it seems to me that one should answer it in this way:
Love cannot give an idea of music; music can give an idea of love. But
why separate them? They are the two wings of the soul.21
Though there is little known about the elements surrounding the compositional process of
Les nuits d'été (Summer Nights), this quote by Hector Berlioz drives at the heart. Given the fact
that the composer had many major life events which coincided with the writing of the cycle, and
that he was very detailed and explicit about them in his memoirs, it is somewhat odd to find little
information about this process. Berlioz was experiencing marital strife at the time. The
composer eventually orchestrated the song Absence from Les nuits d'été for Marie Recio, a
singer who eventually became his wife but with whom he was having an affair at the time.
Though it is hard to speculate on the effect of these events on the composition of the cycle, there
is no doubt that these songs stand as a banner to the woman depicted in them, whomever that
woman might be. Of all the songs in Les nuits d'été, Le Spectre de la Rose (The Ghost of the
Rose) could be considered the most effective in pinpointing women as objects of love. The poet
and good friend of Berlioz, Théophile Gautier, published his La Comédie de la mort (The
Comedy of the Death) in 1838, and the composer soon afterwards selected from the set of poetry
the six songs of Les nuits d'été, which he personally entitled. Berlioz was known as a highly
21
Hector Berlioz. Memoirs of Hector Berlioz. Translated and edited by David Cairns. (London:
Gollancz, 1969), 515.
17
romantic composer, and the six songs selected for the cycle dramatically depict the love of a
woman through use of typical romantic elements, such as nature and natural images. However,
one of the most romantic elements of the collection is the focus on the loss of a beautiful love.
The poems of Les nuits d'été paint a beautiful picture of love from many perspectives, but
one of the greatest is the image of the death of the rose in Le Spectre de la Rose. The two
primary characters of the song are first that of a rose that has been plucked at the zenith of its
existence, and second that of a woman who wears the dying rose at a ball. The entrancing
opening material, presented in 9/8 time, opens the imaginary doors to the ballroom where the
waltz is being danced. The character of the rose sweetly glows about how it was chosen to be
worn by the woman all night at the festive ball. The second stanza grows both agitated and
excited as the tempo increases and the accompaniment is given heightened complexity. Yet the
seductive nature of the enchanting melody remains constant and indeed encompasses the texture
as the rose explains how its soul will ever be connected to the woman. The third and final verse
is stunningly bittersweet as the rose proclaims that its fate should be envied by all, including
kings, because it was carried for one night on the breast of such a woman. The music becomes
subdued and slowly fades away like the specter it represents. The woman represented in this
song is held as an object of love as great as any. The rose gave the greatest gift possible for her
in its death.
Conclusion
Love can be portrayed as an emotion or an action. In the selected songs that depict
women as the object of love, all of the female characters have been given this gift in both ways.
In Chanson pour Jeanne the man profusely proclaims how wonderful the woman he loves is
through allusion to beautiful nature. Ultimately this love is most greatly evidenced in his
18
grieving of the loss of that woman. Cantique à l'épouse shows one the intensity, depth, and
mystery of love in the context of a marriage. This mystery goes beyond the sensual. The love
given to the woman characterized is this song is based on commitment and grounded in devotion.
Finally, in Le Spectre de la Rose one can see potentially the greatest outpouring of love
imaginable. The gift of life from one to another transcends any carnal desires and is captured in
the portrayal of the love given to this woman and highlighted within the composition by Berlioz.
19
CHAPTER 3
The Depiction of Women With Earthly Passions and Vices
The portrayals of women as virtuous, holy, god-like, or beautiful objects of love lie on a
distant part of the spectrum from the depiction of women in the final section. These women are
painted as completely given to their passions, whether via drink, sex, or a variety of other earthy
desires. These women might be described as “loose” by society, and the composers who set
these depictions in general are just as loose with their settings.
Der Kuss
For a composer of grand works of majestic quality and sacred atmosphere as Beethoven,
it might strike some as odd to stumble upon a song like Der Kuss (The Kiss). Although not as
widely recognized as Schubert for his contributions to lieder, certain songs like this stand out as
gems. Indeed, it is challenging to imagine a composer indulging in bawdy humor who dwelt on
such lofty thoughts as the brotherhood of man. Beethoven did indeed have a sense of humor, as
is evidenced by his reference to being forced to publish smaller scale works in order to make
some money. The composer said, “Were it not that my income brings in nothing I should
compose only operas, grand symphonies, church music or at the outside quartets in addition.”22
In German, this amounts to a humorous pun: “Wäre mein Gehalt nicht ganz ohne Gehalt.”
22
Alexander Wheelock Thayer. The Life of Ludwig van Beethoven. Translated and edited by
Henry Edward Krehbiel. (New York: Beethoven Association, 1921), Vol. 3, 63.
20
With a text by Christian Felix Weisse, Der Kuss also contains a not-so-subtle play on
words. The piece begins with a dance-like introduction, dainty and genteel, with very Classical
embellishments. The text painting is ingenious as Beethoven begins to let the listener in on the
joke. He starts by displaying the increased desire by the man to kiss Chloe as he repeats the
word “schrie (scream)” higher and higher in pitch. The composer repeats this technique under
the text, indicating that Chloe would respond by screaming. This particular line comes to a
sustained climax imitating the scream. As the text continues telling how the man kissed Chloe
anyway despite the potential threat of a scream, Beethoven musically prepares the listener for the
joke by slowing the tempo and action in the accompaniment. It is as though he is preparing
someone for the “punch line” which, in fact, follows this change. Beethoven saves the most
climactic musical moment for the corresponding point in the joke as Chloe finally screams, but
only a long time after she was kissed. The music concludes with a playful, light-hearted finish.
This song contains a huge underlying licentious message, but the main characterization of Chloe
is one of someone who gives in to her carnal desires despite her strongest attempts to deny them.
Reine des mouettes
One of the responsibilities of interpreting song literature is doing so with both its music
and poetry in mind. In Poulenc’s Reine des mouettes (Queen of the Seagulls) the subtle variation
of interpretation could lead to two different performances. The poems for Métamorphoses were
given directly to the composer by his friend, the poet Louise de Vilmorin. Poulenc and his
recital companion, Pierre Bernac, premiered them in 1943. The set of songs was intended to be
performed together. That aspect gives some insight into the interpretation of each, as they build
upon one another.
21
The idea that Reine des mouettes is literally about seagulls and flowers is highly unlikely.
Instead, consider this imagery as it might pertain to a young, beautiful woman who is blushing
due to some deep sadness within her:
Vilmorin plays with various connotations of the words rose and
mousseline. Mousseline, as an adjective in "sous les brumes mousselines,"
suggests a texture, either thin (muslin glass), or foamy (pommes de terre
mousseline, mashed potatoes with cream). Roses mousselines are an
exceptional variety of roses; their fragrance is sweeter and more delicate
than regular roses, and the translucence of their soft pink petals suggests
the fine, thin silk French fabric that inspired their name. They are the
quintessential Victorian garden rose. Rose first takes on the meaning of
blushing (from the verb roser), before referring to the flower itself. An
infamous verse by François de Malherbe (1555-1628), "Et rose, elle a
vécu ce que vivent les roses" (And rose herself, she lived how all roses
live), has given to the word rose the connotation of a woman in all the
splendor of her prime youth and beauty, an allegory that many poets have
since used. Vilmorin saves it for the penultimate line of the poem, "Rose
sous les mousselines."23
The young woman is invited to succumb to the physical comforts of a man and does indeed give
herself to those desires. Unlike the previous song in this recital, Poulenc does not portray this
woman as bawdy nor humorous at all. The composer begins with an excited patter from the man
as he calls to her. Poulenc then alters the rhythmic patter in the vocal texture, pulsating on the
word rougis (blush), and increases in volume to a dramatic forte as the man kisses her and knows
her through that action. Finally, the frantic action in the left hand of the accompaniment shifts to
lyric arpeggios, and the vocal line becomes long and connected as the man describes the woman
as a beautiful rose. Never does the poet or composer overtly state that this text has anything to
do with sexual desires, but the imagery and indications by both at least lend that idea credence.
23
Martin Néron, "Francis Poulenc and Louise de Vilmorin, a Surrealism à fleur de peau," Journal
Of Singing 69, no. 3 (Jan-Feb 2013) 283. CINAHL Plus with Full Text, EBSCOhost (accessed
February 22, 2014).
22
Ballade des femmes de Paris
Again, with the next selection in the recital, one encounters a curt play on words. After
naming several countries and areas of the world, the text states that there is no better “tongue”
than a Parisian one. This is not just referring to the French language, but also the gossips who
speak it. The composer chose this text particularly to jab at the Parisian authors who were
publicizing his recent divorce and subsequent affair with a married woman. Debussy is not
known for composing jovial tunes, and indeed Ballade des femmes de Paris (Ballade of the
Women of Paris) is considered to be “the only comic song of Debussy’s maturity.”24 One
purpose of this setting might have been “to mock all of the Parisian gossips who had done their
best to undermine the happiness of the composer’s new life with wife and child.”25 If this is the
case, the joke becomes even more pointed. Not only does the inference from Debussy imply that
the women of Paris are the best gossipers in the world, but also that the people who mocked him
fall into that category, male and female alike. In essence he is calling the group that mocked him
gossiping women. Although his goal was to put to shame the group that mocked him;
peripherally, this does not bestow the greatest praise on women and portrays them as loosetongued.
The text serves to depict a comparison of the greatest gossips in the world, and the music
vividly supports this. From the start, the accompaniment incessantly chatters underneath the
text. Meanwhile, the vocal line is set to mimic “the rhythms and cadences of French speech,
exaggerated to a point just this side of vulgarity.”26 At points Debussy illustrates the different
groups with embellishments in the accompaniment. “The ‘Napolitaines’ section, a momentary
24
Johnson and Stokes, 100-101.
Ibid.
26
Roger Nichols, “Notes about “Trois Ballades de François Villon, L126” (2003) accessed
February 22, 2014, http://www.hyperion-records.co.uk/dw.asp?dc=W4579_67357&vw=dc).
25
23
swaggering of southern hips, is an example of genuine musical wit.”27 The chatter in the
accompaniment briefly diminishes as the text reflects on the Bretons and Swiss who do not have
the ability to gossip with the rest of the cultures. This is also represented by short, poking
insertions from the voice. The accompaniment completely drops out in a recitative-like moment
when the singer asks himself if he has compiled a list of gossips extensive enough. While the
composer migrates through many wild and unrelated keys in his exposition of gossip from the
different lands, he always returns to the tonal center of E major on the word “Paris.” Debussy is
successful in creating a song more like a caricature than a lifelike characterization of women in
his Ballade des femmes de Paris.
Das Köhlerweib ist trunken
Swiss author Gottfried Keller wrote the texts to a collection of poetry called Alte Weisen
(Old Tunes) in 1846. Originally these poems were published separately. “Each is about a
woman; each offers a portrait of an actual acquaintance or an imagined persona.”28
In any guise, the verses are typically elusive and evocative; the old songs
recall the stirrings of the memory or desire in the poet or his creations.
The musical settings attain vivid and enduring life whenever the character
drawing or scene depiction are at their clearest and most graphic.29
In 1890 Wolf published six songs with texts from Alte Weisen as part of his song set with the
same name. Das Köhlerweib ist trunken (The Charcoal Burner’s Wife is Drunk) is the fifth song
from the set. In it we find a text pitting what appears to be pity against a harsh and manic
accompaniment full of what appears to be mockery. As the scene begins, the listener is
introduced to a drunken charcoal wife singing at the top of her lungs in the woods. She used to
be the most beautiful woman in the land, but after succumbing to the temptation of red wine, she
27
Johnson and Stokes, 101. Eric Sams, The Songs of Hugo Wolf (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1992), 303.
29
Ibid. 28
24
fell to low status. From the beginning, Wolf set this text against a raucous accompaniment full
of merciless jabs at the drunken woman. The introduction sounds like hiccups as she is
stumbling about in her stupor. The vocal line, which is spoken from a narrator’s perspective, is
full of slurs, dramatic peaks and valleys, and loud blaring sounds.
Even the sudden flash-back reminiscence of ‘Sie war die schönste Blume’
(She was the fairest flower) we are not allowed any moment of real regret
or tenderness. Indeed the word ‘Blume’ is allotted the slightly tipsy
rhythm already heard at ‘trunken’ (drunk).30
While the text and music might stand in contrast to each other, both appear to indicate that this
woman gave in to her fleshly desires and, through consequences related to that, found herself a
drunken charcoal wife.
The Lady is a Tramp
At first glance, The Lady is a Tramp appears to be a derogatory statement about a
woman. In modern vernacular, “tramp” generally describes a woman of ill repute. In Rodgers
and Hart’s classic show tune, however, the woman depicted is actually being praised for her
resistance to societal pressure. The song was premiered on Broadway in 1937 in the musical
Babes in Arms, and over time has become a jazz standard covered by singers such as Frank
Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Sammy Davis Jr., Rosemary Clooney, Bing Crosby, Dean Martin, and
numerous others. In the plot of the musical, at the moment this piece is sung, the lead female
character in the show, Billie, makes an announcement to her friends that she is restless and wants
to return to life on the road. This statement evokes a sentiment of “‘Hobohemia’” that is at the
heart of Billie’s character.31 The lyrics are basically a list of all of the things that Billie doesn’t
do. All the items on the list happen to be part of high society in the time the song was written.
30
Ibid, 308.
Thomas S. Hischak, The Rogers and Hammerstein Encyclopedia (Westport: Greenwood Press,
2007), 155. 31
25
Every line on the list ends with “that’s why the lady is a tramp.” This statement is a “tongue-incheek” way of turning the glamor of the upper class on its head, because Billie really doesn’t
care for their lifestyle. Like most jazz standards, the orchestra performs a vital function in
commenting on the text. In fact, at the end of most phrases there is an embellishment that paints
a picture of the lyrics. The song stands as an interesting portrayal of women. Though not
ridiculing Billie in any way, it still depicts her as one given to plebian tendencies.
Conclusion
The picture of a woman given to her passions and vices is one that exists in a much
different realm from that of the others in this program. This image may be perceived as sensual,
funny, or even sad, depending on the perspective of the listener. In the selected songs of this last
segment of the recital, all three could be the case.
26
CONCLUSION
The goal of this particular manuscript and performance was to elucidate literature,
composers, poets, performance, and thematic elements of the three selected categories of
portrayals of women from the male perspective. A thorough understanding of these elements
allows the performer to adequately present a representation of this broad subject. The
explanations and interpretations of the songs given in this manuscript will help others recognize
corresponding perspectives and guide interpretation of these same categories by others. In
addition, this manuscript will serve to encourage others to think about the perspective from
which the performer sings. Finally, other programs might be conceived from consulting this
manuscript that illuminate further possible depictions of women from the male perspective of
which composers approach and singers must be aware.
27
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Barricelli, Jean-Pierre and Leo Weinstein. Ernest Chausson: The Composer’s Life and Works.
Norman: The University of Oklahoma Press, 1955.
Berlioz, Hector. Memoirs of Hector Berlioz. Translated and edited by David Cairns. London:
Gollancz, 1969.
Chimènes, Myriam and Roger Nichols. “Poulenc, Francis.” Grove Music Online. Oxford Music
Online. Oxford University Press, (accessed January 24, 2014,
http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/subscriber/article/grove/music/22202).
Crucy, Francois. “Les grandes figures contemporaines: Gabriel Faure” [interview]. Le Petit
Parisien (28 April 1922).
“Great Tit.” Oiseaux.net. http://www.oiseaux.net/birds/great.tit.html (accessed February 24,
2014).
Hischak, Thomas S. The Rogers and Hammerstein Encyclopedia. Westport: Greenwood Press,
2007.
Holman, Peter et al. “Purcell.” Grove Music Online. Oxford Music Online. Oxford University
Press. (accessed January 10, 2014,
http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/subscriber/article/grove/music/41799pg3).
Jankélévitch, Vladimir. Music and the Ineffable. Trans. Carolyn Abbate. Princeton: Princeton
University Press, 2003.
Johnson, Graham. Gabriel Fauré: The Songs and their Poets. Burlington: Ashgate Publishing
Company, 2009.
——. “Notes about ‘An Sylvia.’” accessed January 25, 2014, (accessed February 13, 2014
http://www.hyperion-records.co.uk/dw.asp?dc=W1912_GBAJY8413601&vw=dc).
——. “Notes about ‘Chanson pour Jeanne.’” 2002. (accessed February 13, 2014,
http://www.hyperion-records.co.uk/dw.asp?dc=W6615_GBAJY0213403&vw=dc).
——. “Notes about ‘Das Rosenband.’” (1989) accessed February 5, 2014, (accessed February
13, 2014,
http://www.hyperion-records.co.uk/dw.asp?dc=W2261_GBAJY9000717&vw=dc).
28
Johnson, Graham and Richard Stokes. A French Song Companion. New York: Oxford
University Press, 2000.
Kimball, Carol and Richard Walters, ed. The French song anthology: high voice. Milwaukee:
Hal Leonard Corp., 2001.
Macdonald, Hugh. “Berlioz, Hector.” Grove Music Online. Oxford Music Online. Oxford
University Press. accessed February 18, 2014,
http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/subscriber/article/grove/music/51424pg4.
Magnum, John. “La bonne chanson” (accessed February 3, 2014,
http://www.laphil.com/philpedia/music/la-bonne-chanson-gabriel-faure).
Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary. 11th ed. Springfield, MA: Merriam-Webster, 2003.
Néron, Martin. “Francis Poulenc and Louise de Vilmorin, a Surrealism à fleur de peau.” Journal
of Singing 69, no. 3 (Jan-Feb 2013) 283. CINAHL Plus with Full Text, EBSCOhost
(accessed February 22, 2014).
Nichols, Roger. “Notes about ‘Trois Ballades de François Villon, L126.’” 2003. (accessed
February 22, 2014, http://www.hyperionrecords.co.uk/dw.asp?dc=W4579_67357&vw=dc).
Poulenc, Francis. Diary of My Songs. Trans. Winifred Radford. London: Victor Gollancz, Ltd.,
1985.
Sams, Eric. The Songs of Hugo Wolf. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1992.
Thayer, Alexander Wheelock. The Life of Ludwig van Beethoven. Translated and edited by
Henry Edward Krehbiel. New York: Beethoven Association, 1921. Vol. 3.
Tichenor, Henry Mulford. The Olympian Gods. Girard, KS: Appeal Publishing Company, 1921.
Woźna-Stankiewicz, Małgorzata, “The Poetry of Mendés in the Songs of Paderewski and French
Composers,” trans. Maja Trochimczyk. Polish Music Journal 4.2.2011. (accessed
February 13, 2014,
http://www.usc.edu/dept/polish_music/PMJ/issue/4.2.01/woznapaderewski.html#1).
29
APPENDIX 1: SONG TEXTS AND TRANSLATIONS
Music for a While
Music for a while
Shall all your cares beguile:
Wond'ring how your pains were eas'd
And disdaining to be pleas'd
Till Alecto free the dead
From their eternal bands,
Till the snakes drop from her head,
And the whip from out her hands.
Hébé
Hébé
Les yeux baissés, rougissante et candide,
Vers leur banquet quand Hébé s'avançait.
Les Dieux charmés tendaient leur coupe vide,
Et de nectar l'enfant la remplissait.
When Hébé, blushing and innocent,
with eyes lowered approached their feast,
the delighted gods, held forth their empty cups,
which the child replenished with nectar.
Nous tous aussi, quand passe la jeunesse,
Nous lui tendons notre coupe à l'envi.
Quel est le vin qu'y verse la Déesse?
Nous l'ignorons; il enivre et ravit.
We also, when youth passes,
offer repeatedly our cup to her.
What is this wine that the goddess pours?
We do not know; it intoxicates and delights.
Ayant souri dans sa grâce immortelle,
Hébé s'éloigne; on la rappelle en vain.
Longtemps encor sur la route éternelle,
Notre oeil en pleurs suit l'échanson divin.
Having smiled with her immortal grace,
Hébé passes on, one calls for her return in vain.
For a long time on the eternal road, our
weeping eyes follow the divine cup-bearer.32
Lydia
Lydia
Lydia sur tes roses joues
Et sur ton col frais et si blanc,
Roule étincelant
L'or fluide que tu dénoues.
Lydia, on your rosy cheeks,
And on your neck, so fresh and white,
Rolls sparkling
The liquid gold which you untie.
32
Bard Suverkrop, translation, IPA Source, LLC. (accessed February 24, 2014,
www.ipasource.com).
30
Le jour qui luit est le meilleur;
Oublions l'éternelle tombe.
Laisse tes baisers de colombe
Chanter sur ta lèvres en fleur.
The day that shines is the best;
Let us forget the eternal tomb.
Let your dovelike kisses
Sing on your flowering lips.
Un lys caché répand sans cesse
Une odeur divine en ton sein:
Les délices comme un essaim,
Sortent de toi, jeune déesse!
A hidden lily unceasingly disperses
A divine fragrance from within your breast:
Delights without number,
Emanate from you, young goddess!
Je t'aime et meurs, ô mes amours !
Mon âme en baisers m'est ravie.
O Lydia, rends-moi la vie,
Que je puisse mourir toujours!
I love you and die, oh my love!
Your kisses have stolen my soul.
Oh Lydia, give me back (my) life,
That I may die again and again!33
Une Sainte en son auréole
A Saint in Her Halo
Une Sainte en son auréole,
Une Châtelaine en sa tour,
Tout ce que contient la parole
Humaine de grâce et d'amour;
A saint in her halo,
a lady in her tower,
All that human words contain
of grace and of love;
La note d'or que fait entendre
Un cor dans le lointain des bois des bois,
Mariée à la fierté tendre
Des nobles Dames d'autrefois;
The golden note of a horn
heard in a distant wood,
joined with the tender pride
of noble ladies from long ago;
Avec cela le charme insigne
D'un frais sourire triomphant
Éclos dans des candeurs de cygne
Et des rougeurs de femme-enfant;
With that, the rare charm
of a sweet triumphant smile
flowering with the innocence of a swan
and the blushes of a woman-child;
Des aspects nacrés, blancs et roses,
Un doux accord patricien:
Je vois, j'entends toutes ces choses
Dans son nom Carlovingien.
With a pearly appearance, white and pink,
a gentle aristocratic harmony:
I see, I hear all these things
in her Carolingian name.34
La reine de cœur
The Queen of Hearts
Mollement accoudée
A ses vitres de lune,
Softly leaning
on her window-panes of moon,
33
34
Ibid.
Ibid. 31
La reine vous salue
d’une fleur d’amandier.
C’est la reine de cœur.
Elle peut, s’il lui plait,
Vous mener en secret
Vers d’étranges demeures
Où il n’est plus de portes,
De salles ni de tours
Et où les jeune mortes
Viennent parler d’amour.
the queen gestures to you
with an almond flower.
She is the Queen of Hearts.
She can, if she wishes,
lead you in secret
into strange dwellings
where there are no more doors,
or rooms, or towers,
and where the young dead
come to talk of love.
La reine vous salue;
Hâtez-vous de la suivre
Dans son château de givre
Aux doux vitraux de lune.
The queen salutes you;
hasten to follow her
into her hoar-frost castle
with smooth stained-glass moon windows.35
An Silvia
To Silvia
Was ist Silvia, saget an,
Daß sie die weite Flur preist?
Schön und zart seh ich sie nahn,
Auf Himmelsgunst und Spur weist,
Daß ihr alles untertan.
Who is Silvia? what is she,
That all our swains commend her?
Holy, fair and wise is she,
The heavens such grace did lend her,
That she might admired be.
Ist sie schön und gut dazu?
Reiz labt wie milde Kindheit;
Ihrem Aug' eilt Amor zu,
Dort heilt er seine Blindheit
Und verweilt in süßer Ruh.
Is she kind as she is fair?
For beauty lives with kindness;
Love doth to her eyes repair,
To help him of his blindness
And being helped, inhabits there.
Darum Silvia, tön, o Sang,
Der holden Silvia Ehren;
Jeden Reiz besiegt sie lang,
Den Erde kann gewähren:
Kränze ihr und Saitenklang!
Then to Silvia let us sing,
That Silvia is excelling;
She excels each mortal thing,
Upon the dull earth dwelling:
To her let us garlands bring!36
Das Rosenband
The Rose Ribbon
Im Frühlingsschatten fand ich sie,
Da band ich sie mit Rosenbändern:
Sie fühlt' es nicht und schlummerte.
I found her in the spring shade,
I bound her there with rose ribbons:
she did not feel it and slumbered on.
35
Translation by Marion Leeds Carroll,
http://web.mit.edu/mlcar/www/personal/performances/translations/courte-paille.html.
36
Suverkrop. 32
Ich sah sie an; mein Leben hing
Mit diesem Blick an ihrem Leben:
Ich fühlt' es wohl und wußt' es nicht.
I looked at her; my life
with that look became a part of hers:
I felt it and yet could not explain it.
Doch lispelt' ich ihr sprachlos zu
Und rauschte mit den Rosenbändern:
Da wachte sie vom Schlummer auf.
Yet I whispered to her without words
and rustled the rose ribbons:
then she awoke from her slumber.
Sie sah mich an; ihr Leben hing
Mit diesem Blick an meinem Leben,
Und um uns ward's Elysium.
She looked at me; her life
with that look became a part of mine,
and all around us was paradise.37
Chanson Pour Jeanne
Song for Jean
Puisque les roses sont jolies,
Et puisque Jeanne l'est aussi,
Tout fleurit dans ce monde ci,
Et c'est la pire des folies
Que de mettre ailleurs son souci,
Puisque les roses sont jolies,
Et puisque Jeanne l'est aussi.
Since the roses are pretty,
and since Jean is also,
all flowers in this world,
and it is the height of folly
to be concerned about other things,
since the roses are pretty,
and since Jean is also.
Puisque vous gazouillez, mésanges,
Et que Jeanne gazouille aussi,
Tout chante, dans ce monde ci
Et les harpes saintes des anges
Ne feront jamais mon souci
Puisque vous gazouillez, mésanges,
Et que Jeanne gazouille aussi!
Since you twitter, tomtits,
and since Jean twitters/sings too,
all the world is singing
and the angel’s holy harps
will never concern me
since you twitter, tomtits,
and since Jean twitters/sings too!
Puisque la belle fleur est morte,
Morte l'oiselle et Jeanne aussi...
Rien ne vit dans ce monde ci!
Et j'attends qu'un souffle m'emporte
Dans la tombe, mon seul souci...
Puisque la belle fleur est morte,
Morte l'oiselle et Jeanne aussi.
Since the beautiful flower is dead,
dead the bird and Jean too…
nothing more lives in this world!
And I await for a breeze to bear me away
to the tomb, my only concern…
Since the beautiful flower is dead,
dead the bird and Jean also.38
Cantique à l'épouse
Song to the Wife
Épouse au front lumineux,
Voici que le soir descend
Et qu'il jette dans tes yeux
Wife with the luminous brow,
now that evening descends
and casts into your eyes
37
38
Ibid.
Ibid. 33
Des rayons couleur de sang.
some blood-colored rays.
Le crépuscule féerique
T'environne d'un feu rose.
Viens me chanter un cantique
Beau comme une sombre rose;
The magical twilight
surrounds you with a pink fire.
Come to me and sing me a song
beautiful like a dark rose;
Ou plutôt ne chante pas,
Viens te coucher sur mon coeur
Laisse moi baiser tes bras
Pâles comme l'aube en fleur.
Or rather do not sing,
come lie on my heart
let me kiss your arms
that are pale like the blossoming dawn.
La nuit de tes yeux m'attire,
Nuit frémissante, mystique
Douce comme ton sourire
Heureux et mélancolique.
The night of your eyes draws me,
mystical, trembling night
sweet like your smile
happy and melancholy.
Et soudain la profondeur
Du passé religieux,
Le mystère et la grandeur
De notre amour sérieux,
And suddenly the depth
of the devout past,
the mystery and the grandeur
of our real love,
S'ouvre au fond de nos pensées
Comme une vallée immense
Où des forêts délaissées
Rêvent dans un grand silence.
Open in our innermost thoughts
like an immense valley
where deserted forests,
dream in a great silence.39
Le Spectre de la Rose
The Ghost of the Rose
Soulêve ta paupière close
Qu'effleure un songe virginal;
Je suis le spectre d'une rose
Que tu portais hier au bal.
Tu me pris encore emperlée
Des pleurs d'argent de l'arrosoir,
Et, parmi la fête étoilée,
Tu me promenas tout le soir.
Open your eyelids
brushed virginal dream!
I am the specter of a rose
that you wore yesterday to the ball.
You took me still pearled
from the tears of silver from the watering can,
and, at the sparkling party,
you wore me all evening.
Ô toi qui de ma mort fus cause,
Sans que tu puisses le chasser,
Toute la nuit mon spectre rose
À ton chevet viendra danser.
Mais ne crains rien, je ne réclame
Ni messe ni De Profundis;
Oh you were the cause of my death,
you will be unable to keep away,
the specter rose which every night
to your bedside will come to dance.
But do not fear anything, I do not demand
neither a Mass nor a de Profundis;
39
Ibid.
34
Ce léger parfum est mon âme,
Et j'arrive du du paradis.
this faint perfume is my soul,
and I come from Paradise.
Mon destin fut digne d'envie,
Pour avoir un trépas si beau,
Plus d'un aurait donné sa vie,
Car sur ton sein j'ai mon tombeau,
Et sur l'albâtre où je repose
Un poète avec un baiser
Écrivit: “Cigît une rose
Que tous les rois vont jalouser.”
My destiny was worthy of envy,
and for such a beautiful fate,
more than one would have given his life,
for on your breast I have my tomb,
and on the alabaster where I lie
a poet with a kiss
has written: “Here lies a rose,
which every king will envy.”40
Der kuss
The Kiss
Ich war bei Chloen ganz allein,
Und küssen wollt' ich sie.
Jedoch sie sprach, sie würde schrein,
Es sei vergebne Müh!
I was completely alone with Chloe,
and I wanted to kiss her.
but she said, she would cry out,
it would be a futile effort!
Ich wagt' es doch und küßte sie,
Trotz ihrer Gegenwehr.
Und schrie sie nicht? Jawohl, sie schrie,
Doch lange hinterher.
I dared it though and kissed her,
in spite of her resistance.
And did she cry out? Oh yes, she cried out,
but long afterwards.41
Reine des mouettes
Queen of the seagulls
Reine des mouettes, mon orpheline,
Je t'ai vue rose, je m'en souviens,
Sous les brumes mousselines
De ton deuil ancien.
Queen of the seagulls, my orphan girl,
I saw you pink, I remember,
beneath the muslin mists
of your former mourning.
Rose d'aimer le baiser qui chagrine
Tu te laissais accorder à mes mains
Sous les brumes mousselines
Voiles de nos liens.
Pink from liking the kiss which vexes
you would surrender yourself to my hands
beneath the muslin mists
veils of our bonds.
Rougis, rougis, mon baiser te devine
Mouette prise aux nœuds des grands chemins.
Blush, blush, my kiss divines you
seagull caught at the junction of the great
pathways.
Queen of the seagulls, my orphan girl,
you were pink surrendered to my hands
pink beneath the muslin
and I remember it.42
Reine des mouettes, mon orpheline,
Tu étais rose accordée à mes mains
Rose sous les mousselines
Et je m'en souviens.
40
41
Ibid.
Ibid.
35
Ballade des femmes de Paris
Ballad of the Women of Paris
Quoy qu'on tient belles langagières,
Florentines, Veniciennes, assez pour estre
messaigières,
Et mesmement les anciennes;
Mais, soient Lombardes, Romaines,
Genevoises,
À mes perils, Piemontoises, Savoysiennes,
Il n'est bon bec que de Paris.
Although one considers them fine talkers,
Florentines, Venetians
enough to be messengers,
and even the old women;
but, be they Lombards, Romans,
Genoese, I say at my peril,
Piedmontese, Savoyards,
There’s no better tongue than a Parisian one.
De beau parler tiennent chayeres,
Ce dit-on Napolitaines,
Et que sont bonnes cacquetières
Allemandes et Bruciennes;
Soient Grecques, Egyptiennes,
De Hongrie ou d'aultre païs,
Espaignolles ou Castellannes,
Il n'est bon bec que de Paris.
They hold chairs for talking,
they say of the women of Naples,
and that they are good chatterers the
Germans and Prussians;
be they Greeks, Egyptians,
from Hungary or another land,
Spaniards or Catalans,
There’s no better tongue than a Parisian one.
Brettes, Suysses, n'y sçavent guèrres,
Ne Gasconnes et Tholouzaines;
Du Petit Pont deux harangères les concluront,
Et les Lorraines, Anglesches ou Callaisiennes,
(ay-je beaucoup de lieux compris?)
Picardes, de Valenciennes...
Il n'est bon bec que de Paris.
Bretons, Swiss, barely know how,
neither Gascons and Tonlousans;
two ranting women on the Petit Pont
would silence them, and the Lorrainers,
English or Claisians,
(have I named enough places?)
Picards, from Valenciennes...
There’s no better tongue than a Parisian one.
Prince, aux dames parisiennes,
De bien parler donnez le prix;
Quoy qu'on die d'Italiennes,
Il n'est bon bec que de Paris.
Prince, to the Parisian ladies
give the prize for fine speech;
whatever they say of Italians,
There’s no better tongue than a Parisian one.43
Das Köhlerweib ist trunken
The Charcoal Burner’s Wife
Das Köhlerweib ist trunken
Und singt im Wald;
Hört, wie die Stimme gellend
Im Grünen hallt!
The charcoal burner’s wife is drunk
and sings in the forest,
hear how her voice shrilly
echoes through the green countryside!
42
Christopher Goldsack, translation, “A Treasury for Mélodie.” accessed February 24, 2014,
http://www.melodie.talktalk.net/song191_Metamorphoses.htm. 43
Suverkrop.
36
Sie war die schönste Blume,
Berühmt im Land;
Es warben Reich' und Arme
Um ihre Hand.
She was once the loveliest flower,
famous in all the land;
rich and poor vied
for her hand.
Sie trat in Gürtelketten
So stolz einher;
Den Bräutigam zu wählen,
Fiel ihr zu schwer.
She walked so proudly about in her
chatelaines;
the bridegroom to choose,
she found choosing a bridegroom too difficult.
Da hat sie überlistet
Der rote Wein Wie müssen alle Dinge
Vergänglich sein!
Then was she outsmarted
by red wine how must all things
how fleeting are all things!
Das Köhlerweib ist trunken
Und singt im Wald;
Wie durch die Dämmrung gellend
Ihr Lied erschallt!
The charcoal burner’s wife is drunk
and sings in the forest;
how through the twilight shrilly
how shrilly her song rings out through the
twilight!44
The Lady is a Tramp
She gets too hungry for dinner at eight,
She likes the theatre but never comes late.
She never bothers with people she hates,
That's why the lady is a tramp.
She doesn't like crap games with Barons and Earls,
Won't go to Harlem in ermine and pearls.
Won't dish the dirt with the rest of the girls,
That's why the lady is a tramp.
She likes the free fresh wind in her hair,
Life without care. She's broke, it's oke,
Hate California, It's cold and it's damp,
That's why the lady is a tramp.
44
Suverkrop.
37
APPENDIX 2: RECITAL PROGRAM
THREE DEPICTIONS OF WOMEN FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF MEN
The Depiction of Women as Ethereal Beings
Music for a While
from Oedipus
Henry Purcell
(1659-1695)
Hébé
Ernest Chausson
(1855 - 1899)
from Sept mélodies
Lydia
Gabriel Fauré
(1845-1924)
Une Sainte en son auréole
from La bonne chanson
…
La reine de cœur
from La Courte Paille
Francis Poulenc
(1899 - 1963)
An Silvia
Franz Schubert
(1797-1828)
Das Rosenband
…
The Depiction of Women as Objects of Love
Chanson pour Jeanne
Emmanuel Chabrier
(1841 - 1894)
Cantique a l'épouse
Ernest Chausson
(1855 - 1899)
Le Spectre de la Rose
from Les Nuits d'Été
Hector Berlioz
(1803 - 1869)
38
The Depiction of Women with Earthly Passions and Vices
Der Kuss
Ludwig van Beethoven
(1770 - 1827)
Reine des mouette
from Métamorphoses
Francis Poulenc
(1899 - 1963)
Ballade des femmes de Paris
from Trois Ballades de François Villon
Claude Debussy
(1862 - 1918)
Das Köhlerweib ist trunken
from Alte Weisen
Hugo Wolf
(1860 - 1903)
The Lady is a Tramp
from Babes in Arms
Richard Rogers
(1902 – 1979)
39