Schoenberg: Der Kranke Mond (Pierrot Lunaire)

Schoenberg: Der Kranke Mond (Pierrot Lunaire)

1. Context

   • Expressionism: early 20th century development in music, art, drama and literature
     • distorted images in paintings
     • heightened speech
     • scenes of extreme violence in plays
     • non-naturalistic colours and textures
     • extreme chromaticism and dissonance in music
   • Pierrot Lunaire
     • most famous expressionist work of schoenberg
       • a melodrama- type of dramatic work with spoken words recited to music. Often described as a musical theatre piece
     • Text: german adaptation of a cycle of 50 poems by Albert Giraud in 1884
     • first performance in Berlin
     • a collection of 21 french poems, the 7th piece
   • October 1912
   • Sprechesang
     • composer directions: rhythms are to be strictly observed but pitches: either sing sustained pitches with portamenti reserved for slurred notes or give approximate of pitches with portamenti between notes
     • german translates as spoken singing

2. Tonality and Harmony

   • Atonal
     • All 12 chromatic notes in first 3 bars
     • Within first 6 bars every possible interval played
   • Chromatics
   • Extreme dissonances
   • no functional harmonies
   • no cadences
   • no chords, or progressions

3. Melody

   • Unrelated flute and vocal part- share no melodic material or harmonic functions of each other
   • Angular, disjunct intervals
   • Unpredictable leaps and semitone movement
   • No phrasing
   • Imbalanced
   • abrupt changes of direction
   • extreme dynamic range

4. Structure

   • No traditional or formal structure.
   • Text: 3 stanzas in lines of 8
   • Music cannot be structured- madness of clown is conveyed through lack of structure