Degree

Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA)

Department

Music

Document Type

Dissertation

Abstract

The femme fatale, a seductive and dangerous woman, is a popular archetype found in literature, art, and music. In German literature, the character of Lorelei is a well-known example of the femme fatale. She is associated with a steep rock cliff on the Rhine River and, from the cliff, convicted of bewitching men resulting in their murder. This written document focuses on Lorelei as the femme fatale character in German literature as seen in three musical settings by composers Clara Schumann, Franz Liszt, and Alexander Zemlinsky. The document also includes limited musical analyses of and singer’s commentary on those three settings. Finally, the document provides information about the manifestation of the femmefatale in classical vocal music and the sociocultural background of the femme fatale in nineteenth-century Europe.

Date

6-28-2023

Committee Chair

Lori Bade

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