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This document explores Franz Schubert’s songs that feature women. These include his
small but significant body of songs by female poets, 12 in all. In order to gain perspective on this
often-overlooked body of songs, I examine the composer’s biographical, musical, and literary
connections with women. Scholars and performers have long celebrated Schubert’s connection to poetry and keen ability to express musically the essence of each poem. (I will explore some of
this research in later chapters, including the work of Susan Youens, Kristina Muxfeldt, and
Michael Hall, among others.) By examining this body of songs as a whole, I aim to highlight
specific ways that Schubert’s gifts lend themselves to the expression of the woman’s voice in
song. |
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