Mélodie

A ''mélodie'' () is a form of French art song, arising in the mid-19th century. It is comparable to the German '' Lied''. A ''chanson'', by contrast, is a folk or popular French song.

The literal meaning of the word in the French language is " melody".

Nature

The ''mélodie'' is often defined by comparison with the '' lied''. Pierre Bernac provides this comparison in ''The Interpretation of French Song'':

Debussy goes on to write that 'clarity of expression, precision and concentration of form are qualities peculiar to the French genius.' These qualities are indeed most noticeable when again compared with the German genius, excelling as it does in long, uninhibited outpourings, directly opposed to the French taste, which abhors overstatement and venerates concision and diversity.

Bernac writes that "the art of the greatest French composers is an art of suggestion", rather than explicit statement of feelings.

The ''mélodie'' is noted for its deliberate and close relationship between text and melody. To compose or interpret ''mélodies'', one must have a sensitive knowledge of the French language, French poetry, and French poetic diction. Numerous books have been written about the details of French pronunciation specifically for ''mélodie'' singers, often featuring IPA transcriptions of songs with further notations for French-specific features like liaison and elision.

History

The ''mélodie'' arose just before the middle of the 19th century in France. Though the ''lied'' had reached its peak in the early 19th century, the ''mélodie'' developed independently of that tradition. Instead, it grew more directly from the earlier genre of French songs known as the ''romance''. These songs, while apparently quite similar to the ''mélodie'', were then as now viewed as being of a lighter and less specific nature. The text of a ''mélodie'' was more likely to be taken from contemporary, serious poetry and the music was also generally of a more profound sort. Further, while most composers in this genre were Romantics, at least in chronology, certain features of ''mélodies'' have led many to view them as not properly Romantic.

Some of the first ''mélodies'' were those of Hector Berlioz. He was among the first to use the term to describe his own compositions, and his song cycle '' Les nuits d'été'' (1841) is still considered an example of the genre. Whatever Berlioz' chronological precedence, Charles Gounod is often viewed as the first distinct composer of ''mélodies'': his compositional style evolves imperceptibly and illustratively from ''romance'' to ''mélodie''. He wrote over 200 ''mélodies'', on texts by such poets as Victor Hugo and Lamartine. His setting of Lord Byron's '' Maid of Athens'', in English, is a perfect example of a ''romance'' that has become a ''mélodie''.

Though numerous other composers, such as Massenet, wrote ''mélodies'' during Gounod's lifetime, a name that cannot be omitted is that of Gabriel Fauré. He wrote over 100 ''mélodies'' and has been called the French Schumann, though their styles and essential temperaments were very different. Fauré is best remembered for his settings of the poetry of Paul Verlaine, including '' Clair de lune'' and the song cycles '' Cinq mélodies "de Venise"'' and '' La bonne chanson''.

A contemporary of Fauré whose name has become practically synonymous with the ''mélodie'', even though he left only a handful of them, is Henri Duparc.

Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel are today best known for their instrumental compositions. However, they both wrote dozens of ''mélodies'' that are still closely studied and often performed. Debussy is noted for a particular gift for marrying text and music, while Ravel based a number of his on folk song, in direct contradiction to the common practice for mélodies, transfiguring both forms.

Contemporaries of Ravel who were noted ''mélodie'' composers include Albert Roussel, Reynaldo Hahn and André Caplet. Though more famous as a composer for the organ, Louis Vierne wrote several collections of ''mélodies'' with texts from Baudelaire, Verlaine, and others.

''Mélodies'' continue to be composed, though perhaps the last uncontestedly great composer of them was Francis Poulenc, who died in 1963. He wrote nearly 150 ''mélodies'' of all sorts.

References

Bibliography

*Bernac, Pierre: ''The Interpretation of French Song''. New York, Praeger, 1970. ''Reprint'' by Norton, New York, 1978.
* Panzéra, Charles: ''L'amour de chanter''. Bruxelles, H. Lemoine, 1957.
*''Song on Record'' : V. 1 ('' Lieder''); V. 2 (''Song'', including ''mélodie''). Alan Blyth, Editor history of Art Song and its interpretation, with a guide to available recordings.Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1986–1988

{{DEFAULTSORT:Melodie
French styles of music
Song forms