Assignment 5 3604B Analysis of Romantic Music

Professor Emily Adamowicz

Dan Luong

In both Hugo Wolfs In dem Schatten meiner Locken and Johannes Brahmss Immer Leiser wird
mein Schlumme, the use of chromatic-harmonic devices create tonal ambiguity. This tonal ambiguity
helps to portray image of the character in the lied. In Wolfs lied, the character is singing in a seductive
manner and expresses that she wishes to wake her beloved. Although she expresses this on three
separate occasions, she never follows through. This conflict within the character is shown through the
tonicization of distantly-related key areas. Within the first 10 measures, Hugo explores 3 keys that are
related by a major third, B-flat major, D major, and G-flat major. The transitions between the different
keys are also unprepared, but musical coherence is still achieved through the use of motivic repetition.
The opening motive of Tonic-Subdominant motion in B-flat major could also be enharmonically
reinterpreted as a Dominant-Tonic motion in E-flat major. Along with tonal ambiguity, Hugo sets the
music in a way that lacks direction. There are a lot of instances within the lied where the character
expresses an idea and there would be a slight pause before the music picks itself up again. The
ambiguity in tonality and lack of direction throughout the lied helps to portray the character as someone
who has trouble making decisions or someone lost in their thoughts.
While Brahms Immer Lesier wird mein Schlumme is much more solemn, he uses similar devices
to achieve tonal ambiguity. The lied is set in C-sharp minor and expresses a somber mood throughout.
Instances of tonal ambiguity can be seen in measures 13-19 and measures 41-47. In measures 14-19,
Brahms explores E major, G major, D, major, F major, and C major. While it may seem like these keys
have no relation to one another, Brahms actually used both the major second and minor third division of
the octave to go from key to another. The first pair of keys, E major and G major, acts as a pair related
by minor third. D major and F major is the second pair thats related by a minor third. Disregarding G
major and F major, we can now see that E major, D major and C major are all related by a major second.
This advanced use of the symmetrical division technique helps to achieve tonal ambiguity which
accentuates important phrases within the text. In this lied, the character sings about her somber and
expresses her yearning for her loved one. Both instances of the use of symmetrical division technique
set the text in a dreamlike manner, expressing a sense of hope. At the end of the lied, when the
character sings if you wish to see me once more, come, o come soon!, Brahms uses the symmetrical
division technique to go through E major, G major, B-flat major, and finally ending on D-flat major. It is
also interesting to note that D-flat major is the parallel major to the original key, C-sharp minor. This
gradual shift in tonality towards the parallel major throughout the song could perhaps be linked to the
title, which translates to, My slumber grows ever more peaceful.