"The solar plexus of 20th century music."
- Igor Stravinsky
Pierrot Lunaire
Pierrot Lunaire is a musical work by
Arnold Schoenberg that sets German translations of poems by
Albert Giraud to music. It includes 21 poems in total, in the fashion of a
song cycle. Pierrot, the main character, is a
clown obsessed with the moon. The whole piece is split into three sections, with each section having its own
mood or
theme. It was composed in 1912, before Schoenberg developed his
twelve-tone scale but after he began to work and experiment with
atonality. It is performed by a small musical ensemble and vocalist; the vocals are performed in '
sprechstimme' (speech-singing -- a cross between speech and
recitative).
Pierrot Lunaire was composed towards the end of Schoenberg's Impressionist period. It uses most Impressionist of the characteristics, especially the emphasis on emotion and the stream of consciousness style.
Story
Pierrot, a clown based on '
Pedrolino' from Italian improvised theatre, takes a walk and is completely captivated (some might even say possessed) by the moon. During his
constitutional he expresses several of his fantasies (some of which are of a sexual nature). As the poems progress his thoughts become more and more disturbed and begin to reflect
death and religious themes. His fantasies become even more violent and dangerous before mellowing out and he returns to his home. There are also other characters --
Columbine is the object of Pierrot's affections,
Harlequin is a conceited guy, and
Cassander is a doctor. All four characters were based on characters from
commedia dell'arte -- old Italian theatre.
Structure
The 'song cycle'-like piece is split into three sections, organized by their themes.
Part One
The first part's main themes range from the religious to the sexual. Modenstrunken sets the tone for the rest of the work and alludes to Pierrot's obsession with the moon. His desire for Columbine is also evident, and his thoughts begin to take on religious and sacred tones with pieces like Madonna. Contrasted with Part Two, these themes are pretty tame. This doesn't mean that they're any less important to the piece -- they lay the groundwork that makes Part Two's descent into more violent themes more shocking.
- Mondestrunken (Moondrunk)
- Columbine
- Der Dandy (The Dandy)
- Eine blasse Wäscherin (A Pallid Laundrymaid)
- Valse de Chopin (Chopin's Waltz)
- Madonna
- Der Kranke Monde (The Sick Moon)
Part Two
The work becomes much darker in this section as Pierrot's thoughts are overtaken by thoughts of death and murder. The religious imagery is still present (in Die Kreuze) but is also much more violent than in the previous section. The 'darker' tones are also displayed in a more literal sense in pieces like Nacht. This section has been described as "Pierrot's nightmare."
- Nacht (Night)
- Gebet an Pierrot (Prayer to Pierrot)
- Raub (Theft)
- Rote Messe (Red Mass)
- Galgenlied (Gallow's Song)
- Enthauptung (Beheading)
- Die Kreuze (The Crosses)
Part Three
In this section, Pierrot concludes his walk by returning to his home. His thoughts are no longer ruled by death and violence, and he thinks of the past instead. He once again focuses on the moon's influence on him.
- Heimweh (Nostalgia)
- Gemeinheit (Mean Trick)
- Parodie (Parody)
- Der Mondfleck (The Moon Fleck)
- Serenade
- Heimfahrt (Journey Home)
- O Alter Duft (O Ancient Scent)
(The titles without translations should be obvious enough).
Schoenberg's musical adaptation of Giraud's poems has in turn inspired a
stage musical version of the work and a
ballet. As mentioned earlier, Giraud adapted Pierrot and the other characters in the poems from characters from traditional Italian theatre. These characters also inspired other
artistic works, including
Punch and Judy. And yes, it
is the same Pierrot in
Au Clair de la Lune. Similar characters and themes also appeared in operas such as
I Pagliacci.
Arrangement/Instrumentation
Pierrot Lunaire is performed by one singer (usually a
soprano but
mezzo-soprano vocalists are sometimes used), piccolo,
flute, clarinet, bass clarinet, violin, viola, violoncello, and
piano. The vocals are performed by one singer in "sprechstimme." Schoenberg wrote the vocal parts to be performed between
singing tone and
speaking tone; he gave specific instructions for the singers to hit the notated pitch but to either
rise above or
fall below it almost immediately after hitting it, creating a blend between speech and song. The required pitches are what separates these kind of vocals from
spoken word. Schoenberg also specified what kind of
rhythms were to be used in this kind of speech-singing. One of the biggest misconceptions about sprechstimme is that it gave the singer freedom to speak/sing however they wanted to. The pitches and rhythms were all strictly defined.
Performances
Schoenberg's
Pierre Lunaire was premiered on October 16, 1912. Sources indicate that it received a generally favourable reaction from those present; a small
minority of audience members were unimpressed but people were generally
enthused. Some reviews and articles seem to disagree on exactly how many people were
hissing during the performance (I've never heard of more than three). One thing's clear -- its reaction was much more favourable than the initial reaction of
another certain modernist piece. Schoenberg was pleased with the reaction.
This work is often cited as the first major work to make such major use of sprechstimme. The piece is also an example of the Impressionist themes of emotions.
Resources:
Schoenberg - Pierrot Lunaire: an Atonal Landmark http://www.scena.org/lsm/sm5-7/schoenberg-en.htm 20 June 2004
Schoenberg: Pierrot Lunaire, op. 21 http://www.usc.edu/isd/archives/schoenberg/as_disco/works/021.htm 20 June 2004
ACS Study Module: Pierrot Lunaire in History http://www.colleges.org/~music/modules/pierrot/history.html 20 June 2004
eye - OnStage - 04.27.00 www.eye.net/eye/issue/issue_04.27.00/arts/onstage.htm 20 June 2004