Leitmotif

A common theme is an artistic means, coupled to a first non-artistic content, can be found in the entirety of the work over again. Depending on the art direction ( music, painting, architecture, or literature) different designs are used and implemented. Thus, colors, moods, symbols, people, sound sequences, sets and much more can be used as a leitmotif. They are then used within this work only with this meaning.

The concept of leitmotif first appeared in 1871 in Frederick William to Jähns ' directory of the works of Carl Maria von Weber. According to other sources of Hans Wolzogen is said to have coined the term. Even in the English and French as well as in other languages ​​could " theme" (often with "f" ) prevail as a technical term of the term.

• 3.1 West Side Story
• 3.2 Les Miserables

Classical music

In music, the leitmotif is usually shorter, characteristic tone formation, at least once, but usually recurs frequently and associative a certain, usually non-musical meaning, for example, a person, an object, an idea or a feeling symbolized. Since it does not specifically musical processing processes, ie the thematic- motivic work is subjected as in a sonata, it typically forms a design element of music-drama, but also in oratorios and symphonic poems. To be recognized for the recipient, especially within a longer work relationship can, it almost always has a concise, definite shape, which is altered only slightly and gently. As musical material for leitmotifs therefore not only characteristic melodies or melodic parts are (but not common formulas and clichés of musical rhetoric ) but also unusual chords such as the diminished seventh chord of Samiel motif in Der Freischütz (1821 ) and, most famously, the Tristan chord.

Weber and Spohr

That Carl Maria von Weber was the first composer to have used leitmotifs, is a mistake, which is mainly due to the fact that the word is mentioned in the Werkverveichnis by Friedrich Wilhelm Jähns probably for the first time. In fact, Weber admired this technique already in Louis Spohr's opera Faust (1816 ): calculated Happy and go right some tunes as softly threads through the whole thing and keep it together. About Nicolas Dalayracs Léhéman ou La Tour de Neustadt ( 1801) he notes: The romance " A pilgrim is wrong " is particularly characterized by their intimate interweaving with the whole of the plot interesting. In the most strained, the most crucial scenes the friendly melody appears as a comforting star and promises the expectant audience rescue his loved ones. In fact, seems the memory motif (initially there was usually only one, partially used as a recognition motif), to have been an invention of the Opéra comique ( André Ernest Modeste Grétry, Richard Cœur de Lion, 1784). A bracket between the overture and the core theme of the play in each case forms a design from the slow introduction to Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Così fan tutte and Il dissoluto punito ossia Il Don Giovanni (only the full title in this case makes clear the way this clip ).

Berlioz and Wagner

In the symphonic poem Hector Berlioz used the concept of the leitmotif as so-called " idée fixe" in the Symphonie Fantastique for orchestra. Perfected and used extensively was the leitmotif technique then Richard Wagner even though he never used in his operas and music dramas, the term, but of " memory motives" spoke. His Ring of the Nibelung is almost crossed by a network of leitmotifs, with these often derive from each other and differ by slight changes in rhythm and note value or in the instrumentation significantly, but are still related in.

Film Music

Leitmotifs are also an important means of composition of film music. It was Max Steiner, who made ​​this technique in the early 1930s used for the film, first in Count Zaroff - Genie of Evil (1932 ) and King Kong (1933 ). Steiner generally known film music, the intense use of the leitmotif technique is the one to Gone with the Wind ( 1939). Also, the film scores to the animated, feature films and documentaries Walt Disney are concentrating a leitmotifs. Other well-known examples are the many recurring themes and motifs in Star Wars ( John Williams) and the Lord of the Rings films ( Howard Shore). A particularly striking example of intensive work leitmotif in the film music Ennio Morricone's music is to play me the song of death dar. also in Pirates of the Caribbean return leitmotifs (eg " He's a Pirate " by Hans Zimmer ) several movies through again and again.

Musical

In the musical, especially in the more serious, dramatic works that closely follow literary sources, are very common leitmotif structures.

West Side Story

In the musical West Side Story by Leonard Bernstein functions as a leitmotif, a combination of intervals and tritone fourth, the fourth for the Sharks, a Puerto Rican street gang of young people, and the tritone for the rival American youth gang the Jets is.

Les Miserables

The musical Les Misérables contains a number of ( rather abstract ) leitmotifs that run through the factory again and again at characteristic points and dramatically members, such as the motif of the legal- normative specification that is used for example by the policeman Javert when he always takes a legal charge:

This design is in contrast to the subject of personally - emphatic emotion / participation, which is used in almost all locations in which a morally upright person complained about their suffering through the current social, societal or personal constellation, for example in Fantine's death aria, exactly as in the final, which in general and in France in the pre-March period is Javert's Conclusion to life in particular in Eponine 's famous ballad " on My Own ".