From the mid-19th century to the early 20th century is the period of French art song from the beginning, development to prosperity. The names and styles of art songs vary from country to country, with Germany calling it Lied, Russia calling it romance, and France calling it melodie, but in terms of genre attributes, they all belong to the category of art songs, which are a kind of concert solo songs with a more delicate and perfect structure.
Overview As early as the middle of the 16th century, there were many solo songs accompanied by the Ryutte in France. at the end of the 16th century, in addition to folk songs and street songs, there was also a popular dance music accompanied by polyphony. at the beginning of the 17th century, after the importation of dominant harmonic music from Italy, the romances developed rapidly, and coupled with the singing of the minstrels and the spread of the minstrels, the emergence of solo songs with the Ryutte, the guitar, or the harpsichord accompaniment and the accompaniment part also replaced the digital bass with formal notation. There was a wide variety of songs, ranging from delicate courtly love songs, to idyllic and lyrical songs about shepherds, to romances and narrative songs originating from the minstrels, to popular songs based on urban songs, to dance and drinking songs and simple, light-hearted songs, to political and satirical songs. S. Le Camille, M. Barr, and others.
In the 18th century, due to the advocacy of J.-J. Rousseau, songwriting tended to be in the style of folk songs. 18th century, except for a wonderful, mournful "Joy of Love" made by J.P.A. Martini, other composers, such as P.-A. Monsigny, F.A. Philidor, N.-M. Dallairec, A.-E.-M. Gretrie, are seldom known to the listeners of today. At the beginning of the 18th century, chamber oratorio was introduced to France from Italy, and J.-P. Rameau wrote the famous Orpheus with three arias and one recitative, and F. Coupland also wrote some solo songs. The French Revolution at the end of the 18th century produced a lot of excellent revolutionary songs, such as "Let's do it" and "The Marseillaise", etc. In addition, the professional musicians F.-J. Gosek and E.-N.-M. Gretyry wrote a number of songs. In addition, professional musicians F.-J. Gossek and E.-N. Mayur also wrote some patriotic songs.
The main pioneers of French art song in the 19th century were the Swiss-born L. Niedermayer and H. Mompou. They adopted the Romantic poems of A. de Lamartine, V. Hugo, A. de Muse and others, broke through the stereotypical mode of the Romantic (with square and stereotypical phrases), and created a new type of song with a high degree of artistry, such as the former's "The Lake" and the latter's "The Andalusian Girl", both of which are masterpieces. Other composers such as E.L. Allevi and A.L. Clapisson played a pioneering role.
The period of French art song development The real beginning of French art song should be said to begin with H. Berlioz. He was the first to use the word "melodie" to refer to his songs, and as such to distinguish it from the German art song and the kind of "melody is everything" songs. It differs from the early French romances in that its structure is no longer confined to the norms of symmetrical, sectional composition, and the piano accompaniment is more independent and expressive. Although his early songs, such as "The Trouble with Shepherdesses", were still in the traditional romantic form, there was no trace of the romance when he composed nine Irish songs in 1830, using French translations of poems by the English poet T. Moore. Berlioz also composed some of his best songs, such as "The Young Shepherd of Bretagne", "Prisoner of War", "The Field", "I Believe in You", etc. In 1841 Berlioz used T. Gauthier's poems to compose a vocal suite, "Summer Nights", which is his most important songwriting work, among which "People Going to the House" is the most perfect, "The Shallows by the Sea", in which the sad overlapping phrases are touching, and the other four are also characterized by their own characteristics.
Following Berlioz, G. Meyerbeer published a collection of songs in 1849, 40 of which were essentially the product of the influence of German art song.C. Gounod composed more than 200 songs, most of them in the Romantic style of divertimento. His early compositions were the best, with novel, pure and elegant melodies, rich harmonic colors and distinctive personalities. Representative works include "Serenade", "Ah! My Beautiful Rebel," "The First Day of May," and "Come! The Grass is Green".
G. Bizet wrote 48 songs, among which the dramatic "Farewell to the Arabian Mistress", "Sonnet" with distinctive Sicilian rhythms, "Six Strings", "Idylls of Love", "Lullabies" and so on are the most characteristic.
L.Delibe's songs are brightly colored, vibrant and slightly exotic, with masterpieces such as Departure, Myrtle Flower, April and Cadiz Girl.
J. Massenet followed Gounod in his creative style, but was more refined and emotional. He composed in 1866 the Psalm of April, consisting of a prelude and seven songs, and the Idylls, divided into seven sections. He was the founder of the French vocal suite.
The Belgian-born C.-A. Franck's songwriting was not much, and he was strongly influenced by the German art song, which was strongly Romantic and lacked French temperament. Franck's songs include "The Wedding of the Roses," "Nocturne," and "Welcome to the Gods. The "Welcome to God", which expresses the ceremony of celebrating the harvest, is particularly original in its accompaniment, which skillfully uses the modal melody of the hymn "Praise to Heaven".
C. Saint-Saens was a prolific writer in a variety of styles, and though y influenced by Germany, his songs nevertheless have a spontaneous lyrical quality, as well as a colorful imagination and exquisite writing style. His "Cicadas", "Ants", and "The march of the King's army" are all masterpieces, and his 1872 song with oriental overtones is also unique.
Francke's pupil, V. Dandie, whose works were of a serious purpose and slightly darker in musical color, had considerable influence on the French composers of his time. The song he composed for his own poem, "Songs of the Sea," depicts the surging waves of the sea in a very realistic and vivid way. Although these three masters had very different ways of expression, their unique endowments, personalities and styles were of French origin. They all occupy an important position in the history of French art song.
G. Fauré wrote until the 20th century, but his creations still belong to the 19th century. He wrote more than 100 songs in total***, and won a worldwide reputation for his achievements in vocal music. His songs are beautiful and fluent, with a concise and well-proportioned structure, far-reaching and imaginative feelings, and have a refined, delicate, dashing, and ethereal demeanor unique to the French, from content to form. His early works were slightly influenced by Gounod, but he quickly demonstrated a unique and novel approach, for example, in his early masterpiece "Lydia", the use of triplet modulations to develop a melody with ups and downs is an example. He is good at using delicate changes in harmony and rhythmic changes in the accompaniment to emphasize the lyrical melody, and is good at combining the melody and the accent of the tone of the lyrics organically, such as in "By the Water". He is also good at composing common materials into original pictures, such as the song "Moonlight", which is like a painting of ancient characters, and "Mandolin", which is like a watercolor painting of a scenario. Fauré's musical temperament is very much in line with the exquisite and slightly sentimental lyric poems of the poet P. Weiland, and he clearly expresses the wonderful mood of the original poems with his colorful musical language. There are also his masterpieces "After the Dream", "Nell", "Our Love", "The Rose of Isfahan" and the suite "Good Song". By this period, the French art song, in terms of composition, techniques, genres, forms, etc., have had a remarkable development, made new achievements, reached its maturity period.
H. Deepak composed 14 songs between 1868 and 1884. His songs are deep in feeling and rich in artistic influence, such as the nostalgic "Song of Melancholy", "Sighs" full of complaints, and the subtle and deep-rooted "Longing", etc. The latter is somewhat modeled on R. Wagner in terms of harmony. Rothermund's Manor" is a dramatic, strong, distinctive style of work; "Fidelity Lei" is an imitation of the medieval ballad, originally written for mezzo-soprano, the whole song for three sections and a stacked song, stacked song is the dominant motif of the whole song, each time repeated implies that the lady of the castle to wait for her lover and spend the whole night from sunset and moonrise to the dawn. Deepak's most perfect songs are "Invitation to a Journey" and "Olden Life," set to poems by C. Baudelaire, which are full of oriental fantasies and longings for a peaceful life.
C. Debussy mostly used the poems of his contemporaries as lyrics, and some of his songs are not as melodic as Fauré's, and not as passionate as Deepak's in terms of emotional expression, but he was good at making the melodic lines match the ebb and flow of the tone of the lyrics, and organically combining the music with the rhythms and stresses of the French language, so as to make the poetic meaning, the music and the language into a harmonious unity. In his songs, piano accompaniment and vocals are equally important. His early songs include the famous "Beautiful Evening". He composed 18 songs from Weiland's poems, and Mandolin, written in 1882, is his best work. Mandolin" was written before Fauré's work of the same name, and he used the contrasts of staccato and legato, triplet and diphthong, major and minor, light and dark harmonic colors, and strength and weakness of volume to complete this elegant and poetic serenade. The vocal suite "Forgotten Little Arias" was composed in 1888, which includes "Longing" that misses his lover in the summer twilight; "Heart Full of Tears" that listens to the monotonous pattering sound of raindrops by the window; and "The Trojan Horse" that describes a poor and starving man who rides a rotating wooden horse in the playground in a strong and joyful way, in order to forget his loneliness, poverty and troubles. He was also successful in composing three "Songs of the Pyrenees" in the famous prose poem by P. Lois, and in 1910 he composed the "Three Ballads of Fran?ois Villon", which differed from the "Three Ballads of Fran?ois Villon" in that they were written by the same poet. The Three Ballads of Fran?ois Villon, written in 1910, differed from the other works in being more vigorous and dramatic in temperament. Debussy used S. Mallarmé's poems to compose The Ghosts in 1884, and then in 1913 he used his poems to compose Three Poems by Mallarmé. The last of these, A Christmas Song for Homeless Children, set to Debussy's own words, expresses the composer's deep sympathy for the French children displaced by the First World War.
E. Chausson, a disciple of Franck, composed nearly 40 songs. His compositions are often tinged with sentimental moods and romantic influences. Some of his early works include "Butterfly", "Bee" and "Charm". In the name of C.-M.-R. Le Comte. De Lille's poems, "Lille", was composed by C.-M.-R. Nanni, set to a poem by C.-M.R. LeConte de Lille, is Chausson's best work, with its subtle and sincere expression of emotion. His Italian Serenade is in fact neither a serenade nor a ship's song, but a beautiful lyrical song. Although the Nocturne is marked in □ tempo, the piano accompaniment gives the impression of □ tempo, so it is important to keep the tempo accurate and even when singing. Composed in 1898, less than a year before his death, the "Song of Eternity" is full of despair and has an eerie, tumultuous atmosphere.
M. Ravel*** wrote 39 songs, 11 of which were adapted for folk or traditional songs with harmonic accompaniment. Early works such as "The Saints" and "Clément. Two short satirical poems by Clément Moreau", and the suite "Zanzod" all clearly bear a strong influence of Debussy. The latter consists of three songs, the first of which, "Asia", is composed of eleven different pictures; the second, "The Magic Flute", is the most famous, depicting an Oriental maiden and her lover's enchanting flute; and the last, "The Indifferent Man", describes an Oriental maiden who tries hard to attract a young man with her own beauty, and who is once moved by her beauty, but then leaves her indifferently. The other suite, Tales of Nature, consists of five songs: Peacock, Cricket, Swan, Kingfisher, and Bird of Prey, with recitative-rich melodies that match the variations in French tones. The piano accompaniment suggests different animal characteristics. The Five Greek Folk Songs are genuine folk songs with skillful harmonic arrangements. Lavelle composed the final suite, Don Quixote to Dulcinea, in 1932, applying the rhythms of three Spanish dance tunes, consisting of five songs originally composed for the soundtrack of the movie Don Quixote, and sung with the requirement to maintain solemnity and majesty in keeping with the characterization.
A. Russell wrote 35 songs in a unique style. His early compositions had an impressionistic bent, and he was adept at using traditional polyphonic counterpoint and combining refined harmonies with complex rhythms. The melodic lines of his compositions are often interrupted by long rests, making up for the sound with the silence, which is better than the sound. Among his successes are The Garden in the Rain, The Bachelor of Salamanca, Salabande, The Heart in Danger, and three songs composed in translations of Chinese poems: To a Gentleman of Years, Separated Couples and Replies from a Virtuous Wife.
F. Poulenc composed 146 songs in 40 years*** in a wide variety of styles. The 10-song set "Such a Day, Such a Night" is his best suite. The other suite, "Chanson des Animales" (also known as "The Attendants of Orpheus"), was composed in 1919. He used a poem by G. Apollinaire as the lyrics, depicting lively images of camels, goats, grasshoppers, dolphins, shrimps, carp, etc., and accompanied by the piano, as well as flutes, clarinets, tubas, and stringed instruments. He also composed Five Poems, Cool and Hot and The Painter's Work from poems by P. Eluard, and two suites, The Whimsical Engagement and Changes, from poems by L. de Vilmorin. Poulenc's songs have an easy rhythm, and the melodies are often composed of notes of equal time value. There are few tempo changes in his songs, and changes in intensity are only contrasted from line to line, and the singing emphasizes the use of contrapuntal singing, rarely in a narrative manner.
The above mentioned Deepak, Debussy, Poulenc and other people's original intention, exquisite strokes, unique and diversified vocal works, greatly enriched the treasure trove of French art song.
Contemporary composers such as O. Messiaen and Daniel Le Sueur have also written songs, such as the former's Three Songs, Songs of the Land and the Sky, and the latter's Light as Day, all of which are very distinctive French art songs.
Singing Characteristics
The main characteristics of French art songs: ① French national character does not love excessive exaggeration, love to simple and diverse structural forms to express the delicate, implicit feelings, the French art songs of refinement, elegance is the reflection of its national character. French poets and composers in the song is often some of the mood, mood, hints, impressions, or symbolic unclear hazy feelings or slightly melancholic sadness, seldom for the Romanticism of the outbreak of violent feelings, and therefore require strict control of the voice on the singing, not only do not indulge in unrestrained, but also to be natural and smooth, not only implicitly inherent but also rich in enthusiasm, not only fine, pure and not flowing from the weak; the musical division and structural levels to be clear. The division of phrases and the structure of the hierarchy should be clear.
②French people love beauty, and therefore also pay attention to the beauty of the form of music, the pursuit of soft, coherent sound, refined harmony, concise compositional structure, smooth transposition, colorful effects, precise pitch, rhythm, beautiful melodic lines, and so on.
3 French language features: French includes 4 nasalized sounds, 15 vowels and 3 semi-vowels, some linguists still use the original 16 vowels, together with his unique intonation, nasalized sounds and chanting, making the French language has a complex and rich musicality. The melody of French art songs is basically created with the rise and fall of French intonation, so before singing, you must recite the lyrics over and over again to master the rhythm, tone, flavor and mood of the words. Special attention should be paid to the fact that the use of continuous recitation is different from the usual speaking or singing of folk songs, it is used in a much more elaborate way, which is closely related to the style of performance, mood, clauses and cultural literacy.
4 French art song basically has no connection with the folk song tradition, popular popular songs, it often carries a kind of aristocratic elegance and the intellectual class of cultural literacy and little rustic flavor. In short, everything must be in moderation, any excesses and deficiencies (voice over-control, bite too exaggerated, tone is not friendly enough, expression too cold, flat or fiery, etc.) are different from the French art song's delicate, elegant singing style.