Chapter 4 - Discussion

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Table of contents — Introduction — Chapter 1 — Chapter 2 — Chapter 3 — Conclusion — Bibliography — The Spreadsheet — Summaries of analysed works — Thesis in PDF

As mentioned in chapter 3.1, the data pool was too small to draw conclusions that can be expanded to repertoire beyond the scope of this study. However, the analysis of the results shows that patterns are there, and more data would most certainly mean more satisfying results.

Despite the insufficient results, this study certainly supports the notion that harmony is an essential element of rhetoric. Its understanding, therefore, is invaluable to singers. Being aware of harmony and of significant harmonic moments, regardless of exactly what they mean, allows a singer to significantly enrich their expression.

Clérambault’s cantata “La mort d’Hercule” was not mentioned in the result section, as it presented outlying cases that did not match the conclusions drawn. As such, it presents an excellent example of how an understanding of harmony in general, and this study specifically, can be a useful tool for a singer’s expression.

In chapter 3.2.3, it was shown that Clérambault appeared to strongly correlate the Phrygian half-cadence to sweet and frail things, such as the lovely goddess Flore. Indeed, all recorded instances of that cadence in Clérambault’s cantatas relate to that theme, except one: its use in the opening recitative of the cantata “La mort d’Hercule”. As the narrator describes how Hercules received the centaur Nessus’ poisoned shirt, a Phrygian half-cadence accompanies the words “dons affreux” - terrible gifts.

Figure 1 - Phrygian half-cadence in first recitative of “La mort d’Hercule” ^{1 2}

The scene described is full of suffering and pain—its words have nothing to do with the sweetness that Clérambault normally highlights with this cadence. Indeed, in the above recording the singer Luc Coadou seems to be using the text to inform his interpretation; he sings the words “dons affreux” (terrible gifts) with force, using the consonants in “affreux” to fill the word with horror. However, knowing that this cadence is typically sweet could instead allow a singer to add a layer of meaning to this description. The poisoned shirt, after all, was given to the hero by his wife, Dejanira; perhaps the Phrygian half-cadence is meant to be an echo of past tenderness between them. Almost like a leitmotiv, it could remind the listener of the perpetrator of this atrocity. Or perhaps it foreshadows Hercules’ imminent demise, which will make the strongest hero weak and frail. Finding the correct meaning of the cadence is not essential; simply being aware of how it differs from the explicit meaning of the text gives the singer the opportunity to enrich their interpretation. This could perhaps be just by singing the words softly, instead of with the violence they suggest.

A similar example happens in the same recitative, almost immediately after. The narrator describes how Nessus’ poison enters Hercules’ veins, making him perish to his fate. A V/IV accompanies the words “succomber à son sort.”

Figure 2 - Use of a V/IV in first recitative of “La mort d’Hercule” ^{3 4}

Once more, Coadou emphasizes the meaning of each individual word, giving dramatic weight to the words “succomber” (to succumb) and “rigoureux” (harsh). And yet, results in section 3.3.5 showed that Clérambault associated this chord with pleasure and tenderness, not death. Again, the chord suggests a meaning that the words do not, and being aware of it can entirely change a singer’s interpretation; perhaps by singing more quietly, or by drawing out the syllables of the word “succomber” - to succumb.

In such a way as demonstrated above, the results presented here are a tool for singers of French Baroque to enrich their interpretation of recitative. If more certain conclusions could be drawn, they could be extended also to arias. Eventually this tool could also serve instrumentalists—as they do not have a text, knowledge of harmonic rhetoric could offer new meaning to the lines they play.

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