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Viennese composer Hugo Wolf (1860-1903) wrote hundreds of songs, setting pre-existing German poems to music. By the late nineteenth century, this genre, known as the Lied, had a sizable pre-existing repertoire. Wolf avoided setting poetry that had been set by other composers unless he felt that the poetry had been misinterpreted. Wolf's contemporaries also had a strong, well-developed view on the ... read moreartistic value of the Lied relative to the wider classical music tradition; because song traditionally toed the line between popular and serious music, and was a small form, the genre was held in low esteem when compared to large-scale instrumental works. As a former music critic, Wolf was very much aware of this hierarchy, and was admittedly self-conscious about his perceived artistic worth.
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The songs he chose to re-set had been set by composers that were also well known for their symphonic works, including Franz Schubert, Robert Schumann, and Johannes Brahms. Wolf rarely composed in these large forms, and his reputation rests solely on his songs; therefore, I propose that his re-setting of poetry is a means of challenging these other composers on his own terms, in order to establish himself in the classical music tradition. In my thesis, I explore the cultural politics of the late nineteenth century as they relate to classical music, and perform comparative analyses of selected songs set by Wolf and others to explore the means in which he uses composition as criticism, giving new meaning to the Lied in the process.read less
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