I recently got to listen to a live performance of Schoenberg's Pierrot Lunaire. I was shocked! It shares several themes with Bloodborne - pale blood, moon drunkenness, and invisible giant black moths to name a few... this is worth the read if you want to gain more insight into the topic!
I can't help but wonder if bloodborne was partially inspired by Schoenberg's piece. A stumbled upon an archived reddit post from 6 years ago with a comment claiming otherwise (https://www.reddit.com/r/bloodborne/comments/37nx8z/bloodborne_vis_a_vis_arnold_schoenbergs_pierrot/). It points out that while several themes are shared between the two, these can also be traced to inspiration from French Symbolism and German Expressionism of the late 19th/early 20 centuries, and their ties to Urban Gothic Romanticism.
While these are definitely inspired by the same roots, I am still unsatisfied; there seem to be far too many similarities between Bloodborne and Schoenberg's piece to ignore it entirely. Surely, if the writers of bloodborne were inspired by urban gothic literature, they would have also found inspiration in the music of that genre? Look at these examples:
- From Mondestrunken (Moon-Drunk): "The writer, so divinely moved, Is greedy for the holy liquid, And skyward he directs his dizzy head, Then reeling, gulps and slurps down the wine which through our eyes we drink."
- From Der Kranke Mond (The Sick Moon): " Your pale blood wrung from torment, Your nocturnal deathsick moon."
- From Nacht (Night): "Black enormous butterflies have blotted out the sun's bright rays. And then earthwards from the sky, Flittering down with massive wingspan, Unperceived, the monstrous creatures, Light on human hearts and settle. Black enormous butterflies."
- From Die Kreuze (The Crosses): "Swords gorged upon corpses, On Parade in blood scarlet!"
- From Rote Messe (Red Mass): "With consecrated bearing He shows the anxious souls The dripping red Host: His heart - in bloodied fingers - For a terrible Last Supper."
It's fascinating to see! The story of Pierrot follows a comedian who flies too close to the moon (so to speak), verges on suicide, but then finds peace in himself. Here is the full text, followed by a complete recording: https://www.oxfordlieder.co.uk/song/2112 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b
... keep reading on reddit ➡
I’m looking to get it on vinyl, there are quite a few and I would like your opinion.
The recording are horrible, but for a short bit you can get a sense of what a Björk performance would sound like:
Björk 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iWsRDn3CtYw
For comparison, a non-Björk version: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=veUJxETj7-c
Björk 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bWNee3BGPbI&feature=relmfu
Title.
I need a contemporary piece to compare to the Schoenberg piece. It's for a school project
I'm looking to put together a program that includes the complete Pierrot Lunaire. But I am having problems finding pieces that balance with it well while also using a similarly limited orchestration. What has everyone seen this piece programed with before? Or does anyone know of a good resource to look through old programs?
Thanks!
I just discovered this recording of Schönberg's Pierrot Lunaire on Youtube and I really don't get it. It is strange and vaguely disturbing; I also find it acoustically irritating. Yet I understand that it is (was?) considered very avant-garde and possibly genius. So what am I missing here? My knowledge of music history is lacking at this point, so that might be a contributing factor.
Your input would be appreciated.
http://arts.unl.edu/music/webcast/schoenberg%E2%80%99s-pierrot-lunaire
UNL's faculty has put together a performance of Arnold Schoenberg's Pierrot Lunaire.... I've had a chance to talk with the vocalist Dr. Harler-Smith and she is paying very close attention to the various sets and rows that are present within each section of the drama... Thought I'd post this here for anyone that would be interested!! I've heard from others that this piece isn't performed live too often so it might be in your best interest to give it a listen....
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