La Chanson D Eve Poem Analysis

La chanson d’Eve (Eve’s song) is a song cycle composed of 10 songs composed by Gabriel Fauré based on the poetry of Dutch symbolist Charles Lerberghe. The songs represent the psychological journey of the biblical figure Eve and her observance of Creation. As Fauré aged he strayed from traditional, more structured poets and experimented more with free verse poetry. Even in a piece meant to be more reflective and meditative, Fauré’s declining hearing in his later years can be clearly heard in these pieces through the limited range and simple, transparent melody. Gabriel Fauré was a famous French Composer during the time of the Second French Empire. He was born 1845 in southern France, the youngest of six children. At age 9 he was sent to a

The chant-like melody depicts Eve as a vessel of wisdom while creating a solemn feeling that is less florid than earlier romantic pieces. While there are two main themes that recur from time to time, the main way Fauré achieves unity between the songs of the song cycle is through the fact that the text itself has thematic unity. The nature of the song cycle shows the physical torment Fauré was experiencing at the time of its composition; due to sclerosis, he was unable to clearly hear pitches at extreme ends of the pitch spectrum. Instead, extreme high or low pitches sounded very distorted and terribly out of tune. This can be seen in the rather limited range of the melody as well as the muted more introspective tone of the cycle as a

Stylistic change in a media such as music occurs very rapidly. Because of this it can be difficult to categorize Fauré as a composer. In his earlier years he strongly prefers setting the works of structured poets to music. He also enjoyed sudden, abrupt harmonic changes that appear deceptively simple. However, as he aged, Fauré began to simplify and streamline his style. He is sometimes even referred to as a “modern French composer” (Orrey 1945, p. 137). La chanson d’Eve, although simple in comparison to some of his other works, was groundbreaking because of the way it still flows despite the text being free verse.
Fauré was one of the most influential French writers at the turn of the 20th century. He was still composing until his death in 1924. La chanson d’Eve is a prime example of how Fauré’s composition style changed as he aged. The limited pitch ranges and more simplified, streamlined melody show how sclerosis affected his hearing (especially at the high and low extremes). Despite his hindered hearing, Faure was still able to compose the mysterious and mystical La chanson d’Eve song cycle and take the audience through a journey in the Garden of