Page "Arnold Schoenberg" Paragraph 12

Another of his most important works from this atonal or pantonal period is the highly influential Pierrot Lunaire, Op.

21, of 1912, a novel cycle of expressionist songs set to a German translation of poems by the Belgian-French poet Albert Giraud.

Utilizing the technique of Sprechstimme, or melodramatically spoken recitation, the work pairs a female vocalist with a small ensemble of five musicians.

The ensemble, which is now commonly referred to as the Pierrot ensemble, consists of flute ( doubling on piccolo ), clarinet ( doubling on bass clarinet ), violin ( doubling on viola ), violoncello, speaker, and piano.