Poetry and Persona in the Cinq Poãšmes De Baudelaire And
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Florida State University Libraries Electronic Theses, Treatises and Dissertations The Graduate School 2002 "Lyrical Movements of the Soul": Poetry and Persona in the Cinq Poèmes De Baudelaire and Ariettes Oubliées of Claude Debussy Lori Seitz Rider Follow this and additional works at the FSU Digital Library. For more information, please contact [email protected] THE FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MUSIC “LYRICAL MOVEMENTS OF THE SOUL”: POETRY AND PERSONA IN THE CINQ POÈMES DE BAUDELAIRE AND ARIETTES OUBLIÉES OF CLAUDE DEBUSSY By LORI SEITZ RIDER A Dissertation submitted to the School of Music in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Degree Awarded: Fall Semester, 2002 The members of the Committee approve the dissertation of Lori Seitz Rider defended on November 8, 2002. Douglass Seaton Professor Directing Dissertation Antoine Spacagna Outside Committee Member Charles E. Brewer Committee Member Denise Von Glahn Committee Member The Office of Graduate Studies has verified and approved the above named committee members. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This research could not have been completed without the assistance of staff at various research institutions on both sides of the Atlantic. I would like to thank Mme Christine Daudy at the Bibliothèque François Lang, Abbaye de Royaumont, for allowing me access to the materials housed there, for giving me a tour of the spectacular abbey grounds, and for her kindness and hospitality. The staff of the Département de Musique at the Bibliothèque Nationale de France were of invaluable assistance during my research in Paris. I would also like to thank Mme Sonia Popoff of the Bibliothèque Gustav Mahler in Paris, M. Vincent Giroud and the staff of the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library at Yale University, and Linda Ashton and the staff of the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center at the University of Texas, all of whom assisted me in obtaining access to important materials for my research. In addition, I am grateful to Professor Marie Rolf at the Eastman School of Music for her generous assistance with manuscript materials for the Ariettes oubliées. I am indebted to my committee for their contributions to my work. Charles E. Brewer and Denise Von Glahn provided helpful guidance in musicological matters, and to Antoine Spacagna I offer my thanks for assisting me with an independent study of symbolist poetry and for his patience with my French. This dissertation would not have come about without the guidance and support of my adviser, Douglass Seaton, whose seminar in narratology fueled my interest in the intersections between music and poetry and introduced me to new ways of iii thinking about music. For your enthusiasm, your constant support of my topic and my ideas, and your patience with my endless e-mail questions, I will always be immensely grateful. I have been blessed to find great friends among my student colleagues at Florida State. There is no greater joy than having peers in one’s field with whom one can both discuss ideas and share in life’s lighter moments. I value my musicological friends both as first-rate scholars and as admirable people, and I thank you all for your friendship. The support of my family has been a continual source of encouragement to me for as long as I can remember. I am grateful for their shared love of music, their interest in my education, their financial contributions, and most of all their support of my decision to pursue whatever dreams I had. Many thanks must go especially to my parents for instilling in me the importance of learning and always doing one’s best. I would not have made it this far without them. Finally, I could not have completed my dissertation without the constant love and support of my husband, Todd. He entered my life when I was in the thick of my graduate studies, and he has stood by me through every stage of the dissertation process. For the good of my research, he willingly suffered through my mood swings, accompanied me to Paris (of course, under great duress), offered guidance whenever I got stuck, and kept me company while I worked. Todd, I cannot thank you enough for your advice, your listening ear, your understanding, your support, and, most of all, your desire for me to accomplish all of my goals and dreams. For one human being to love another is perhaps the most difficult task of all; the ultimate, the last test and proof; the work for which all other work is but preparation. —Rainer Maria Rilke, Letters to a Young Poet iv TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Tables.................................................................................................................................vii List of Diagrams...........................................................................................................................viii List of Musical Examples...............................................................................................................ix Abstract ........................................................................................................................................xvi INTRODUCTION........................................................................................................................... 1 Purpose................................................................................................................................ 1 Background and Justification.............................................................................................. 1 State of Research................................................................................................................. 3 Methodology ....................................................................................................................... 7 Chapter Summary.............................................................................................................. 11 1. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND: THE SYMBOLIST MOVEMENT ................................... 14 Forerunners of Symbolism................................................................................................ 14 Decadence ......................................................................................................................... 19 The Birth of the Symbolist Movement.............................................................................. 25 Symbolist Poetry and Music ............................................................................................. 32 Conclusion: Characteristics of Symbolist Poetry.............................................................. 52 2. BAUDELAIRE AND VERLAINE: POETRY AND PERSONA........................................... 55 Charles Baudelaire ............................................................................................................ 55 Paul Verlaine..................................................................................................................... 85 3. DEBUSSY AND SYMBOLISM ........................................................................................... 109 Debussy’s Poetic Experiences......................................................................................... 109 Debussy’s Opinions of Literature ................................................................................... 113 v Symbolist Poetry in Debussy’s Music ............................................................................ 118 Conclusion....................................................................................................................... 138 4. CINQ POÈMES DE BAUDELAIRE ...................................................................................... 140 Background ..................................................................................................................... 140 “Le Balcon”..................................................................................................................... 143 “Harmonie du soir” ......................................................................................................... 168 “Le Jet d’eau”.................................................................................................................. 182 “Recueillement” .............................................................................................................. 208 “La Mort des amants” ..................................................................................................... 226 5. ARIETTES OUBLIÉES........................................................................................................... 243 Background ..................................................................................................................... 243 “C’est l’extase” ............................................................................................................... 246 “Il pleure dans mon cœur” .............................................................................................. 258 “L’ombre des arbres” ...................................................................................................... 276 “Chevaux de bois”........................................................................................................... 286 “Green”............................................................................................................................ 314 “Spleen” .......................................................................................................................... 327 6. CONCLUSION: STYLISTIC AND