Astrologie Lunaire

When he wrote the cycle that was to change the musical course of the twentieth century, Arnold Schönberg wanted the 21 melodramas based on Albert Giraud's famous collection of poems to be 'spoken and sung' in the language of the country in which they were set, in keeping with the fledgling Berlin cabaret tradition… In doing so, he may not have appreciated the problems that the exercise would pose. The fate of Albert Giraud's verses is inextricably linked to Otto Erich Hartleben's free translation of them. It was in this version that they were most frequently set to music. Stripped of their rhymes and original metre, they are in fact another poetic work. When Darius Milhaud presented Schönberg with a French version recited by Marya Freund in 1922, the composer was disappointed and went so far as to say that he did not recognise his own work!

Pierrot lunaire, premiered in Berlin in 1912, is a series of twenty-one short melodramas for voice and five instruments on German translations of poems by Albert Giraud. Here the composer first introduces Sprechgesang (speech-song), a technique that revolutionised declamation. Schoenberg wanted the piece to be ironic, at once tender and grotesque, in the manner of cabaret songs.

Dreimal sieben Gedichte aus Albert Girauds "Pierrot lunaire" ("Three times Seven Poems from Albert Giraud's 'Pierrot lunaire'"), commonly known simply as Pierrot lunaire, Op. 21 ("Moonstruck Pierrot" or "Pierrot in the Moonlight"), is a melodrama by Arnold Schoenberg. It is a setting of 21 selected poems from Albert Giraud's cycle of the same name as translated into German by Otto Erich Hartleben. The work is written for reciter (voice-type unspecified in the score, but traditionally performed by a soprano) who delivers the poems in the Sprechstimme style accompanied by a small instrumental ensemble. Schoenberg had previously used a combination of spoken text with instrumental accompaniment, called "melodrama", in the summer-wind narrative of the Gurre-Lieder, which was a fashionable musical style popular at the end of the nineteenth century. Though the music is atonal, it does not employ Schoenberg's twelve-tone technique, which he did not use until 1921.

An original mix of soft progressive and avantgarde atmospheres is the distinctive sound of Pierrot Lunaire, highly regarded among foreign collectors. Still, over the course of their two albums, this band draw from a broad set of influences as diverse as Faust, PFM and Debussy for their eclectic, unpredictable sound.
Pierrot Lunaire's first album contains really beautiful instrumentation. The second ("Gudrun") is one of the most adventurous records of Italian progressive. "Gudrun" is one of those masterpieces where only one classification seems appropriate: extraordinary music. In any case, Pierrot Lunaire's two albums are a must for adventurous listeners.

With Pierrot lunaire we come to Schoenberg at his most taxing, with its vocal writing that combines speech and vocal line. Yet if anyone can convince the listener that it can provide a unique atmosphere it is Jane manning. Her sing-speech brings out the element of irony and darkly pointed wit that is essential. Rattle again proves a natural Schoenbergian, drawing strong, committed performances from the members of the Nash Ensemble.

The Penguin Guide - 1000 Greatest Classical Recordings 2011-12

Découvrez les mystères fascinants de l’astrologie chinoise avec ce guide exhaustif consacré au signe du Cheval. Riches de traditions millénaires et d’une sagesse profonde, les enseignements de l’astrologie chinoise offrent une perspective unique sur la personnalité, les relations et les opportunités de vie. …

Découvrez les mystères fascinants de l’astrologie chinoise avec ce guide exhaustif consacré au signe du Cheval. Riches de traditions millénaires et d’une sagesse profonde, les enseignements de l’astrologie chinoise offrent une perspective unique sur la personnalité, les relations et les opportunités de vie. …