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34-543: The literal meaning of the word in the French language is " melody ". The mélodie is often defined by comparison with the lied . Pierre Bernac provides this comparison in The Interpretation of French Song : Debussy goes on to write that 'clarity of expression, precision and concentration of form are qualities peculiar to the French genius.' These qualities are indeed most noticeable when again compared with

68-701: A Messe solennelle for choir and two organs . He toured Europe and the United States as a concert organist. His students included Nadia Boulanger and Maurice Duruflé . Louis Vierne was born in Poitiers on 8 October 1870, the son of Henri-Alfred Vierne (1828–1886), a teacher, who became a journalist. He was editor-in-chief of the Journal de la Vienne in Poitiers, where he met his future wife, Marie-Joséphine Gervaz. The couple had four children. Louis

102-495: A Chevalier de la Legion d'honneur in 1931. On 2 June 1937, Vierne gave his 1,750th organ recital at Notre-Dame. He completed the main concert, which members of the audience said showed him at his full powers ("as well as he has ever played"), playing his "Stèle pour un enfant défunt" from his Triptyque , Op. 58. The closing section was to be two improvisations on submitted themes. He read the first theme in Braille, then selected

136-653: A U.S. tour of three months with Richepin. In 1928, they spent the summer at a castle in Angers , where he composed Les Angélus , orchestrated Poème d'amour which they premiered in Paris on 1 March 1930), and began his lyrical drama Antigone . After the death of Vincent d'Indy and the conflicts that followed, he left the Schola cantorum for the César Franck School in 1931. The government of France made Vierne

170-608: A blind teacher at the Institut National des Jeunes Aveugles (National Institute for the Young Blind). He was impressed when listening to César Franck playing the organ in 1881: The organ played a mysterious prelude, quite unlike any I had heard at Lille; I was bowled over and became almost ecstatic. ... I could not hold back my tears. I knew nothing; I understood nothing; but my instinct was violently shaken by this expressive music echoing through every pore. Vierne

204-437: A combination of pitch and rhythm , while more figuratively, the term can include other musical elements such as tonal color . It is the foreground to the background accompaniment . A line or part need not be a foreground melody. Melodies often consist of one or more musical phrases or motifs , and are usually repeated throughout a composition in various forms. Melodies may also be described by their melodic motion or

238-480: A powerful tool of communication, melody serves not only as protagonist in its own drama, but as messenger from the author to the audience. Given the many and varied elements and styles of melody "many extant explanations [of melody] confine us to specific stylistic models, and they are too exclusive." Paul Narveson claimed in 1984 that more than three-quarters of melodic topics had not been explored thoroughly. The melodies existing in most European music written before

272-505: A recital together with his wife, as part of the world fair, Exposition Universelle . He held the post until his death in 1937. Although he held one of the most prestigious organ posts in France, the organ of Notre-Dame was in a state of disrepair throughout much of his tenure at the instrument. He eventually undertook a transcontinental concert tour of North America to raise money for its restoration. The tour, which included major recitals on

306-409: A sensitive knowledge of the French language, French poetry, and French poetic diction. Numerous books have been written about the details of French pronunciation specifically for mélodie singers, often featuring IPA transcriptions of songs with further notations for French-specific features like liaison and elision . The mélodie arose just before the middle of the 19th century in France. Though

340-458: A street accident in Paris caused him to badly fracture his leg, and it was briefly thought that his leg would need to be amputated. The leg was saved, but his recovery, and the task of completely re-learning his pedal technique, took a half a year. Vierne obtained a divorce on 4 August 1909, citing the infidelity of his wife. While she became custodian of the younger children, Jacques remained with his father. Vierne taught, as an assistant, at

374-429: A wide variety of timbres and dynamics, the latter may still be an "element of linear ordering." Different musical styles use melody in different ways. For example: Louis Vierne Louis Victor Jules Vierne (8 October 1870 – 2 June 1937) was a French organist and composer . As the organist of Notre-Dame de Paris from 1900 until his death, he focused on organ music , including six organ symphonies and

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408-471: Is a perfect example of a romance that has become a mélodie . Though numerous other composers, such as Massenet , wrote mélodies during Gounod's lifetime, a name that cannot be omitted is that of Gabriel Fauré . He wrote over 100 mélodies and has been called the French Schumann , though their styles and essential temperaments were very different. Fauré is best remembered for his settings of

442-523: Is noted for a particular gift for marrying text and music, while Ravel based a number of his on folk song, in direct contradiction to the common practice for mélodies, transfiguring both forms. Contemporaries of Ravel who were noted mélodie composers include Albert Roussel , Reynaldo Hahn and André Caplet . Though more famous as a composer for the organ, Louis Vierne wrote several collections of mélodies with texts from Baudelaire, Verlaine, and others. Mélodies continue to be composed, though perhaps

476-465: Is still considered an example of the genre. Whatever Berlioz' chronological precedence, Charles Gounod is often viewed as the first distinct composer of mélodies : his compositional style evolves imperceptibly and illustratively from romance to mélodie . He wrote over 200 mélodies , on texts by such poets as Victor Hugo and Lamartine . His setting of Lord Byron 's Maid of Athens , in English,

510-503: Is the more significant, melody or harmony, is futile. Beyond doubt, the means is subordinate to the end. The Norwegian composer Marcus Paus has argued: Melody is to music what a scent is to the senses: it jogs our memory. It gives face to form, and identity and character to the process and proceedings. It is not only a musical subject, but a manifestation of the musically subjective. It carries and radiates personality with as much clarity and poignancy as harmony and rhythm combined. As such

544-473: The baritone and teacher at the Conservatoire Émile-Alexandre Taskin . Vierne proposed to her on 18 July, and they got married on 20 April 1899. Widor was the organist in the church ceremony on 22 April at Saint-Sulpice. Their first son, Jacques, was born on 6 March 1900. On 21 May 1900, Vierne won the competition for the position of titular organist at Notre-Dame de Paris . On 11 September, he gave

578-421: The diatonic scale was still used, the chromatic scale became "widely employed." Composers also allotted a structural role to "the qualitative dimensions" that previously had been "almost exclusively reserved for pitch and rhythm". Kliewer states, "The essential elements of any melody are duration, pitch, and quality ( timbre ), texture , and loudness. Though the same melody may be recognizable when played with

612-433: The lied had reached its peak in the early 19th century, the mélodie developed independently of that tradition. Instead, it grew more directly from the earlier genre of French songs known as the romance . These songs, while apparently quite similar to the mélodie , were then as now viewed as being of a lighter and less specific nature. The text of a mélodie was more likely to be taken from contemporary, serious poetry and

646-412: The stops he would use for the improvisation. He suddenly pitched forward, and fell off the bench as his foot hit the low "E" pedal of the organ. He lost consciousness as the single note echoed throughout the church. He had thus fulfilled his oft-stated lifelong dream — to die at the console of the great organ of Notre-Dame. Maurice Duruflé , another major French organist and composer, was at his side at

680-412: The 20th century, and popular music throughout the 20th century, featured "fixed and easily discernible frequency patterns ", recurring "events, often periodic, at all structural levels" and "recurrence of durations and patterns of durations". Melodies in the 20th century "utilized a greater variety of pitch resources than ha[d] been the custom in any other historical period of Western music ." While

714-768: The Conservatoire for nineteen years, where his students included Joseph Bonnet , Nadia Boulanger , Marcel Dupré and Henri Mulet . He was expected to succeed Guilmant as head of the organ class, but instead, Eugène Gigout was appointed, succeeded in 1926 by Dupré. Vierne taught at the Schola cantorum from 1912. His students uniformly described him as a kind, patient and encouraging teacher. Among his pupils were Augustin Barié , Edward Shippen Barnes , Lili Boulanger , André Fleury , Isadore Freed , Henri Gagnebin , Gaston Litaize , Édouard Mignan , Émile Poillot , Adrien Rougier , Alexander Schreiner , and Georges-Émile Tanguay . In

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748-504: The German genius, excelling as it does in long, uninhibited outpourings, directly opposed to the French taste, which abhors overstatement and venerates concision and diversity. Bernac writes that "the art of the greatest French composers is an art of suggestion", rather than explicit statement of feelings. The mélodie is noted for its deliberate and close relationship between text and melody. To compose or interpret mélodies , one must have

782-606: The famous Wanamaker Organ in Philadelphia and its smaller sister instrument, the Wanamaker Auditorium Organ in New York City, was very successful, although the trip physically drained him. When Vierne's mother died on 25 March 1902, he moved to a larger flat on Rue ses Saints-Pères. A second son, André, was born on 6 January 1903, and a daughter, Collette, was born on 5 January 1907. In 1906,

816-400: The last uncontestedly great composer of them was Francis Poulenc , who died in 1963. He wrote nearly 150 mélodies of all sorts. Melody A melody (from Greek μελῳδία (melōidía)  'singing, chanting'), also tune , voice , or line , is a linear succession of musical tones that the listener perceives as a single entity. In its most literal sense, a melody is

850-405: The music was also generally of a more profound sort. Further, while most composers in this genre were Romantics , at least in chronology, certain features of mélodies have led many to view them as not properly Romantic. Some of the first mélodies were those of Hector Berlioz . He was among the first to use the term to describe his own compositions, and his song cycle Les nuits d'été (1841)

884-481: The organ class and as organist at Saint-Sulpice . Vierne was awarded first prize in the organ class of the Conservatoire in 1894. He remained assistant to Widor in the organ class, and also to his successor Alexandre Guilmant from 1896. In July 1898, Vierne was godfather at a baptism, and Berthe Arlette Taskin the godmother. She was born in 1880, and was a contralto singing who had worked with her father,

918-407: The pitches or the intervals between pitches (predominantly conjunct or disjunct or with further restrictions), pitch range, tension and release, continuity and coherence, cadence , and shape. Johann Philipp Kirnberger argued: The true goal of music—its proper enterprise—is melody. All the parts of harmony have as their ultimate purpose only beautiful melody. Therefore, the question of which

952-491: The poetry of Paul Verlaine , including Clair de lune and the song cycles Cinq mélodies "de Venise" and La bonne chanson . A contemporary of Fauré whose name has become practically synonymous with the mélodie , even though he left only a handful of them, is Henri Duparc . Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel are today best known for their instrumental compositions. However, they both wrote dozens of mélodies that are still closely studied and often performed. Debussy

986-510: The summer of 1913, he was awarded two medals from the Salon des musiciens. With the outbreak of WW1 in 1914, Vierne's son Jacques, still a minor, wished to enlist in the military. Louis Vierne signed the necessary dispensation. Vierne went to Switzerland in 1916 for glaucoma treatment, expecting to be away for only four months, with Dupré deputy organist at Notre-Dame, but due to complications, he returned four years later. In May 1917, Jacques

1020-698: The time of his death. Vierne had an elegant, clean style of writing that respected form above all else. His harmonic language was romantically rich, but not as sentimental or theatrical as that of his early mentor César Franck . Like all of the great fin de siècle French organists, Vierne's music was very idiomatic for his chosen instrument and has inspired most of the great Parisian organist-composers who followed him. His output for organ includes six organ symphonies , 24 Fantasy Pieces (which includes his famous Carillon de Westminster ), and Vingt-quatre pièces en style libre , among other works. There are also several chamber works ( sonatas for violin and cello,

1054-474: Was accepted as a student of the institution in 1881. Franck recommended that he study the organ, and Vierne began lessons with Louis Lebel and Adolphe Marty . He studied harmony privately with Franck, and attended classes at the Paris Conservatoire , admitted as a full-time student in 1890. When Franck died on 8 November 1890, Charles-Marie Widor succeeded him. Vierne became his assistant in

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1088-545: Was born nearly blind due to congenital cataracts . His unusual gift for music was discovered early. When he was only two years of age, he heard the piano for the first time: his neighbor played him a Schubert lullaby, and after he had finished young Louis promptly began to pick out the notes of the lullaby on the piano. From April 1873, his father worked for the Paris-Journal , moving with the family to Paris . At age six, Louis underwent an iridectomy in both eyes. He

1122-526: Was then able to distinguish shapes and people, and could read large letters. He took piano lessons with Madame Gosset in Lille , where his father worked for the Lille Memorial . She transcribed the music on large staves . He also learned Braille . In 1880, the family returned to Paris where his father worked for several newspapers including Le Figaro . Vierne studied the piano with Louis Specht,

1156-901: Was transferred to the 44th Field Regiment as a driver. He committed suicide on 12 November 1917 in Prosne in the Marne . Vierne composed the Piano Quintet , Op. 42, in commemoration. His brother René died at the front on 29 May 1918, remembered in Solitude , a poem for piano. Vierne returned to Paris in 1920. A year later, he met Madeleine Richepin, a young singer for whom he set poems by Baudelaire ( Poème d'amour ) which they performed in concerts together. In June 1922, he toured Switzerland, Italy and Germany . In 1924, he toured England and Scotland, and played in Lyon and Brussels. In 1927, he undertook

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