A berceuse [bɛʁsøz] is "a musical composition usually in 6
8 time that resembles a lullaby".[1] Otherwise it is typically in triple meter. Tonally most berceuses are simple, often merely alternating tonic and dominant harmonies; since the intended effect is to put a baby to sleep, wild chromaticism would be somewhat out of character. Another characteristic of the berceuse, for no reason other than convention, is a tendency to stay on the "flat side"; noted examples including the berceuses by Chopin, who pioneered the form,[2] Liszt, and Balakirev, which are all in D♭.
Music
- Berceuse pour deux notes qui cornent (for two notes which continue), for organ, JA 7, by Jehan Alain
- Wiegenlied (Brahms), a cradle song, is a berceuse; it is better known in English as Brahms's Lullaby
- Berceuse, by Frank Bridge, for cello and piano
- Compositions by Ferruccio Busoni
- Berceuse (in C major) Op. 2, for piano
- Berceuse (Lullaby), for piano
- Berceuse élégiaque
- Berceuse, for piano by Frédéric Chopin
- "Berceuse for the Infant Jesu" in A Little Suite for Christmas, by George Crumb
- Berceuse Heroique, for piano, by Claude Debussy
- Two compositions by Gabriel Fauré
- Berceuse, Op. 16.
- "Berceuse" section of Dolly Suite for Piano four-hands, Op. 56, No. 1, by Fauré. Sometimes transcribed for violin and piano: not to be confused with the Op. 16 work, above.
- Berceuse for an Unwanted Child (Reginald Foresythe) 1934
- Berceuse de Jocelyn, a lullaby from the opera "Jocelyn" by Benjamin Godard
- Berceuse de Jupiter, also known as the aria "Que Les Songes Heureux" from the opera "Philémon et Baucis", by Charles Gounod
- Grieg Lyric Pieces Op. 38 No. 1
- "Berceuse" from 114 Songs (1922) by Charles Ives
- Berceuse by Armas Järnefelt 1904
- "Berceuse" from 12 Transcendental Études by Sergei Lyapunov
- Berceuse sur le nom de Gabriel Fauré by Maurice Ravel for violin and piano
- One of the excerpts from The Firebird, a ballet by Igor Stravinsky
- Berceuse for Solo Piano in A flat Major, Op. 72, No. 2, by Tchaikovsky
- Berceuse (sur les paroles classiques), from 24 Pieces in Free Style, for organ, by Louis Vierne
- Berceuse for Mallory, a big band jazz composition by Steve Spiegl
Art
- La Berceuse, a series of paintings by Van Gogh
References
- ^ berceuse. (2010). In Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. Retrieved August 8, 2010, from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/berceuse
- ^ Jeremy Siepmann, The Piano: The Complete Illustrated Guide to the World's Most Popular Musical Instrument (1998), p. 67.