Schoenberg's 'Pierrot Lunaire' in performance

This detailed study of the recorded performance history of Schoenberg‘s 'Pierrot Lunaire' is a key outcome of Manning‘s major AHRC-funded research project. A central aim of the project was to investigate authentic and appropriate performance styles for Schoenberg‘s Sprechstimme. The presentation is copiously illustrated with recorded music examples. It draws on the study of more than 70 performances of the work, from a 1940 recording by the composer conducting an ensemble including Erika Stiedry-Wagner (soprano) to contemporary interpretations including Jane Manning‘s three commercially-available recordings. Many of these recordings are housed in the British Library‘s National Sound Archive. The presentation is thus both a performance history of Pierrot Lunaire and contextualises the author‘s own research through performance of the work.