Poem by John Keats set to music by Bernard Herrmann…
MERMELSTEIN, DAVID. “More To This Composer Than Meets the Eye.”The New YorkTimes
(February 11, 2001).
On Thursday evening at the Ethical Culture Society, the Eos Orchestra, conducted by Jonathan
Sheffer, will perform ''Melodram: La Belle Dame Sans Merci,'' an experimental work for radio…
But with the Depression in full swing, he, like many another artist, needed money. Radio, still in
its experimental infancy, seemed a good fit. The wisdom of the match became apparent when
Herrmann, at 23, composed music to accompany the broadcast of a Keats poem, ''La Belle Dame
Sans Merci.'' The score initiated Herrmann's career as a commercial composer, even if he himself
didn't realize it.
“Steven C. Smith, the author of ''A Heart at Fire's Center,'' a 1991 biography of Herrmann, says
that the ''Belle Dame Sans Merci'' music has not been performed since the mid-1930's. Mr.
Sheffer, while including it in the concert for its historical significance, also argues for its musical
value. ''It's a precursor to the full flowering of Herrmann's style in film,'' Mr. Sheffer said. ''You
hear the emphasis on atmospheres and extreme chromatic harmonies, unusual seventh chords,
etc. The music is like the underscoring of an imagined dialogue scene.''
It was followed by Herrmann's Melodram: La Belle Dame Sans Merci, with text by John Keats,
read by actor Michael Wager. Prior to the performance, a recording of the introduction to the
original (1934) radio broadcast was played. (I presume so - the program notes do not mention, or
verify, the source). Much was made by the CBS radio announcer of the experimental nature of the
piece, and the relationship of the microphone, the speaking voice, and the orchestra.
If these relationships were of importance, they were considerably diminished by the mode of
presentation. Mr. Wager's voice was enhanced by the microphone; the orchestra was not. Sound
balance must have been crucial to Herrmann's conception, and I don't think it was successful
here. I was also expecting more of an interplay between music and the spoken word - Walton's
music under Olivier's Shakespearean soliloquies comes to mind as a high achievement in this art -
but Herrmann must have been thinking of an "overall" mood, and in this respect he succeeds.
Herrmann was hired as an assistant to Johnny Green, who conducted, composed, and arranged
music for a CBS radio program titled “Music in the Modern Manner.” His first important
opportunity came when he composed incidental music for the dramatic reading of a Keats poem,
“La Belle Dame Sans Merci.” After that, he was asked to write music for both Green’s show and
for two other programs. He also conducted rehearsals of CBS musicians, including Benny
Goodman and Artie Shaw.
Bernard Herrmann (composer, conductor), David Ross (reader).
“Melodrams” (The ColumbiaWorkshop, 5/14/38).
IN THE MODERN MANNER (WABC, NEW YORK—CBS)
September 21, 1934“La Belle Dame sans Merci”
Bernard Herrmann (composer), David Ross (reader).
THE COLUMBIA WORKSHOP (WABC, NEW YORK—CBS)
[
May 14, 1938“Melodrams”
PERSONNEL: Bernard Herrmann (composer), David Ross (reader).
EXTANT RECORDING
[audio]La Belle Dame sans Merci, from “Melodrams” (The Columbia Workshop, 1938).
MERMELSTEIN, DAVID. “More To This Composer Than Meets the Eye.”The New YorkTimes
(February 11, 2001).
SMITH, STEVEN C. A Heart at Fire’s Center