A comparative musical-stylistic study of selected poems by Paul Veraine set to music by various composers of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries

Abstract

In the year 1916, there appeared an article by G. Jean-Aubry in "La musique française d'aujourdhui" which placed Paul Verlaine in proper historical perspective. Jean-Aubry states: Even if we consider only its musical aspect, the history of the lied in France must include the name and work of Paul Verlaine. Of course, this poet did not, alone, determine the remarkable movement which, in about 1867, transformed the romantic melody into the lied, as we understand the form today; but the publication of Fêtes galantes, La bonne chanson, and Romances sans paroles, offered musicians poems which were excellently, and indeed uniquely suited to this melodic form. In view of his historical significance, the author will examine representative poems of Paul Verlaine which have been given musical settings by various composers of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Within this framework a biographical overview will be presented together with a discussion of Verlaine's poetic style, relating wherever possible events of his life to contemporary developments in literature and the fine arts. His contribution to French literature will be evaluated by the examination of his "Art Poétique" and other personal statements, as well as by comments about his poetry by noted critics of French literature during and after his lifetime. Verlaine's relationships to and with other poets such as the Parnassians, Baudelaire, and Rimbaud will be investigated in order to determine their influence upon his style. His own role as leader of and/or contributor to the literature of the contemporary schools of Parnassianism, Symbolism, Impressionism, and Decadence will be examined. These four schools of thought together with the Naturalist and Romantic schools will also be explored in some depth and placed in historical perspective. For purposes of assessing Verlaine's contributions to French music and poetry, it will be necessary to determine the specific nature and structure of French verse in the nineteenth century along with the principles promulgated in the previous centuries. The role of stress, meter, rhythm, rime, imagery, color, subject matter, and other structural parameters will be illustrated through the examination of three poems: "La mer est plus belle," "Le Son du cor s'afflige vers les bois," and "L'Échellonement des haies" taken from Verlaine's book of poems entitled Sagesse. To this end, specific songs based upon Verlaine poems will be analyzed in terms of the presence or absence of musico- poetic synthesis involving harmony, tonality, tone-painting, texture, rhythm, and declamation. Representative poems given musical settings will be chosen for analysis from the major collections of the poet's life, namely, Fêtes galantes, La Bonne Chanson, Romances sans paroles, and Sagesse. The focus will be upon poems which are considered mileposts and which have been set by two or more composers. This will facilitate comparison.