The Dialogue of the Music and the Text in Alfred Schnittke’s “Three Poems by Marina Tsvetayeva”
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Abstract
Alfred Schnittke’s song cycle “Three Poems by Marina
Tsvetayeva” (1965) is one of the earliest works by the composer,
one that has not been studied sufficiently enough. The article
discloses the essence of interaction between music and poetry
and traverses the path towards the profound level of meaninggeneration
in the song cycle. The principles of the musical
composition’s structural organization are examined on three
levels. The first level – the pitch parameter – is marked by a turn
towards micro-serialism, stemming from the initial opposition
of two secundal intonations. The second parameter is connected
with the technique of sonorism, which demonstrates various
timbre sonorities. Certain definite means of sound-generation
form different types of sonoristic textures – the “point,” the
“scattering” and the “spot” (according to Alexander Maklygin’s
classification). The third level is the metrorhythmic opposition
of numbers 2 and 3. All three parameters, interacting with each
other, stipulate the logic of the process of the composition’s
generation of meaning, directed towards the search of the essence
of the Absolute. In order to disclose this constant, it was necessary
to turn towards the poetics of Tsvetayeva’s verses. The dialogic
relatedness of the different systems of world-perceptions of the
poet and composer disclose their extreme closeness according
to their personal types. The poems’ narration reveals motives
that are important for Tsvetayeva’s oeuvres – striving with God,
equal footing with God and androgyne attributes. The profound
substantive layer discloses a special dimension, connected
with the tragic statement by the composer of the absence of the
concepts of Absolute Good and Absolute Evil in the world, with
this conviction of the eternal struggle of opposing elements in the
human being. At the same time, in the finale of the composition
Schnittke is able to reach a frail balance between the opposite
substances, having asserted his system of ethical values.
Keywords: Alfred Schnittke, Marina Tsvetayeva, vocal
cycle, sonoristics
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References
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