Summer Nights, Op. 7 (Les nuits d'été): 5. Au Cimitiere: Clair de lune (original key of D) Cover Image

Summer Nights, Op. 7 (Les nuits d'été): 5. Au Cimitiere: Clair de lune (original key of D): High Voice, Orchestra Accompaniment, Conductor Score & Parts

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Summer Nights, Op. 7 (Les nuits d'été): 5. Au Cimitiere: Clair de lune (original key of D) Cover Image
Summer Nights, Op. 7 (Les nuits d'été): 5. Au Cimitiere: Clair de lune (original key of D): High Voice, Orchestra Accompaniment, Conductor Score & Parts

Summer Nights, Op. 7 (Les nuits d'été): 5. Au Cimitiere: Clair de lune (original key of D): High Voice, Orchestra Accompaniment, Conductor Score & Parts

By Hector Berlioz / text by Théophile Gautier

Item: 36-A951990
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Summer Nights, Op. 7 (Les nuits d'été): 5. Au Cimitiere: Clair de lune (original key of D): High Voice, Orchestra Accompaniment, Conductor Score

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The song cycle Les Nuits d'Ete (Summer Nights) is a setting of six poems by composer Hector Berlioz's (1803-1869) neighbor and friend, Théophile Gautier. The text deals in themes of love in all its facets, progressing from youthful innocence to loss and renewal. Originally composed in 1841 for solo vocalist and piano, Berlioz completed orchestration of each of the six songs in 1856. While regrettably neglected for many years, this song cycle was rediscovered in the 20th century and has become one of the composer's most popular works. The songs in the original keys are available from the publisher. Robert Sutherland has edited five of the songs in the cycle and has transposed each in multiple keys to expand the work to more vocalists. Songs completed by Robert Sutherland: 1. "Villanelle" (E, F, G, and A), 4. "Absence" (Db, D, Eb, E, and F-sharp), 5. "Au Cimetière, Clair de lune" (Bb, B, C, and D), and 6. "L'lle inconnue" (D, Eb, E, and F). A transposition of 2. "Le Spectre de la rose" to D and a transposition of 3. "Sur les Lagunes" to G minor is also available from the publisher. "Au Cimetière: Clair de lune" (At the Cemetery: Moonlight) is a lament after the death of a beloved, where the bereaved lover has visited the graveyard and is disturbed by a ghostly vision of the past lover. Instrumentation: 2.0.2.0: 0.0.0.0: Str (9-8-7-6-5 in set): Solo Voice (high voice). Reprint edition.

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Additional Details
Series: Kalmus Vocal Library
Publisher: Keiser Productions, Inc.
UPC: 605258790323
SKU: 36-A951990
Instrumentation: 2.0.2.0: 0.0.0.0: Str (9-8-7-6-5 in set): Solo Voice (high voice)

More about this title

About the Composer: Hector Berlioz

Hector Berlioz (1803-1869) was a French composer who fundamentally expanded the orchestra's expressive range and redefined what instrumental color could accomplish in music. His innovations in orchestration influenced generations of composers and remain central to how we think about balancing voices and creating dramatic effect through timbre.

Berlioz brought the same orchestral imagination to vocal writing. Les Nuits d'Été, composed in 1841 and orchestrated fifteen years later, showcases his gift for setting poetry with both intimacy and grandeur. The cycle remains a cornerstone of the art song repertoire and a proving ground for singers seeking to master French mélodie.

Why we love this

This movement transforms a deeply personal meditation on grief into something universally moving, and the orchestration gives it weight without overwhelming the voice. The transposition to D major opens this haunting moment to more singers, making one of the nineteenth century's finest vocal works accessible beyond a narrow range of voices.

What to expect

The piece inhabits a space between waking and dream, grounded in the melancholy of lost love but touched by something otherworldly. Berlioz's orchestration preserves an almost chamber-like intimacy while the moonlit darkness brings an undercurrent of mystery and unease.

Who it's for

Soloists preparing for competition or festival work will find both the artistic depth and the practical advantage of a proven transposition. Directors can program this as a solo feature alongside orchestral repertoire or as part of a larger French art song sequence with other ensembles.

How to get the most out of it

  • Shape the vocal line with chamber-music sensitivity; the orchestration supports rather than surrounds the singer, so clarity of text and emotional arc matters more than projection
  • Work with your string section to establish the hushed, moonlit atmosphere Berlioz creates through sparse texture and careful voicing in the lower registers
  • Give the singer time to breathe between phrases without rushing; the lament lives in its pauses as much as its song
  • Balance the flute and clarinet passages against the voice, as Berlioz uses them to suggest the supernatural rather than to accompany in traditional ways

How to use it

Schedule this as a solo feature during a concert's second half, where its reflective mood can create necessary contrast with broader orchestral selections. The song's relatively brief duration makes it an excellent pairing with a contrasting vocal work or as an encore that leaves the audience in contemplative silence.

Skills your students will build

  • Sustaining a legit vocal line against sparse orchestral accompaniment
  • Interpreting French text with proper diction and musical phrasing
  • Managing the technical and emotional demands of a Romantic-era lament
  • Responding to orchestral cues when accompaniment is non-traditional or rhythmically subtle

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