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From:  "Dre de Man" <dredeman@y...>
"Dre de Man" <dredeman@y...>
Date:  Mon Oct 9, 2000  9:00 pm
Subject:  Re: [vocalist-temporary] REP: songs about sirens

Dear Isabelle and co-vocalisters,
 
a very nice one is Hahn's L'Avertimento: It is a warning against a beautiful woman, who has the heart of a 'tigra'.
 
I must say: I love the theme. Aren't women like that often the most interesting ones, at least in art?
 
But, in some respect, almost all women in the romantic literature are 'belle dames sans merci': 'Die schöne Müllerin', the beloved one in 'Die Winterreise' ('in der', to give the Dativ what he wants), and countless other women that cannot be forgotten by the poor romantic sufferers.
 
Don't forget Mozart's Das Veilchen: the flower is a guy! (As Schubert's Die Forelle and Heidenröslein are girls, but now we have definitively left the theme). Let's go back to it and to Mozart: 'Dans un bois solitaire et sombre' comes very close (a variation on the theme) as does Louisa in 'Das Lied der Trennung' (as Mozart could also not forget the real Louisa).
 
I would - if it were my recital - start with real sirens and slowly change to the theme of women you cannot forget, that in a more every day way are the real sirenes. You might need somebody that explains the liberties you take with the theme, but I had in my recital I had such a person anyway (a charming girl) and people liked that very much.
 
By the way: you made a probably typoish mistake with 'Waldesgespräch': that is from Schumanns Eichendorff Liederkreis Opus 39.
 
'Die Lorelei' has also been put to music by Clara Schumann, if I am not very much mistaken.
 
I'll try to think about some other examples. The problem with this theme is, that most songs have been written for men. But most women don't seem to care about seeing songs as 'Hosenrollen' as DFD critically calls it. Are you thinking of giving the recital yourself, or somebody else, or a group pf people?
 
Best greetings,
 
Dre
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