HANDOUT NO.

2
Music Education 9
3 Trimester, AY 2017-2018
rd

Class no. ________ Name: __________________________________________________________

Gr./Sec.: ________ Teacher: Ms. Josefina Concepcion M. Lector Date: ___________

ART SONGS
Franz Schubert: Erlkonig (Erlking)

The music for this dramatic poem by Goethe was written by Schubert when he
was only 18. The mystic qualities of the supernatural tale are enhanced by music
that differentiates the three characters- the father, the child and the Erlking.

Child: the range of melody if generally higher; loud and pleasing.

Father: strong, comforting tones in a lower range, moderate dynamic level.

Erlking: changes to major key, very soft and enticing.

Handout No. 2 Page 1

Music Education 9
3rd Trimester; A.Y. 2017 – 2018
Ms. Josefina Concepcion M. Lector
 HANDOUT NO. 2
Music Education 9
3 Trimester, AY 2017-2018
rd

In the nineteenth century, an abundant new

literature developed for the solo voice with piano
accompaniment. These works were known in
general sense, as art songs. In France, the
chanson was very important in the works of many
composers. In German-speaking countries, the
development of the lied (pl. lieder) was
particularly intense. The compositional form of
lieder allowed for a variety of lyric expression on a
dramatic, if limited scale. Like most other songs,
the lied combined a poetic text with music, but it
derived its special characteristics from German
Romantic movement of the early nineteenth
century.

The lieder found its major champion in Austrian

composer, Franz Schubert. It was Schubert who
first treated the lied as a major vehicle of musical
expression. There are several reasons for the
sudden, immense development of the lied at the
beginning of the nineteenth century. One
important factor was the continued development
of the piano. Able to perform a variety of tasks to
blend in with and complement the voice to add
lyrical and dramatic support to it - the piano
provided ideal accompaniment. Composers
were quick to make use of this innovative timbre.

Handout No. 2 Page 1

Music Education 9
3rd Trimester; A.Y. 2017 – 2018
Ms. Josefina Concepcion M. Lector
 HANDOUT NO. 2
Music Education 9
3 Trimester, AY 2017-2018
rd

The growth of the lied was also encouraged by the outpouring of lyric poetry
that begun in Germany in the late eighteenth century. Among the well known
poets of the time were von Goethe, von Schiller and Heine. Poetry and music
flourished together in the climate of early German Romanticism.

Lieder are truly compound art forms. Literary nuances deeply influence the
music, while the music enhances and more fully realizes, the emotional
implications of poetic lines. The lied thus vary in structure according to the
emotional requirements of the poems on which they are based. Generally, this
vocal type are written in modified strophic form: the basic melody and
accompaniment are repeated, with some modification in each stanza of poetry.

Just as the lied is a partnership between poetry and music, so also is it a

partnership between the piano and the voice. For the first time, the piano part is
as important as the vocal line. The melody, of course, is presented mainly by the
singer. But, the pianist provides much more than accompaniment. Many lieder
begin with piano introduction that sets the mood and established the basic
rhythm, key and thematic idea. As the song progresses, the piano may contribute
solo passages that are integral to the artistic design, and the end of the lied is
often played by the piano alone. Although the piano sometimes simply
duplicated the melodic line, it usually has a part that is different from the melody
and of equal significance.

Handout No. 2 Page 1

Music Education 9
3rd Trimester; A.Y. 2017 – 2018
Ms. Josefina Concepcion M. Lector
 HANDOUT NO. 2
Music Education 9
3 Trimester, AY 2017-2018
rd

Handout No. 2 Page 1

Music Education 9
3rd Trimester; A.Y. 2017 – 2018
Ms. Josefina Concepcion M. Lector