Sisterly Conflict: Music and Text in Richard Strauss' Elektra (1909)

Abstract

This paper undertakes a careful musical and lyrical analysis of Chrysothemis’ first interaction with her sister (“Elektra!/Ich kann nicht sitzen und ins Dunkel starren”) in Richard Strauss and Hugo von Hofmannsthal’s 1909 opera Elektra. The paper’s fundamental claim is that Chrysothemis is portrayed differently by Strauss and Hofmannsthal: where the text brings the sisters together by means of a cross-pollination of images that emphasizes their shared heritage as daughters of Klytämnestra, the music – through abrupt shifts in style, melodic development, and harmony – prefers to present the sisters in diametrically opposing poles with respect to the family tragedy. By way of exploring the tensions between music and text in Elektra, the paper also investigates the ontological status of Klytämnestra’s leitmotifs as they come into view and argues that proper classification of their role – as well as an understanding of leitmotivic perspectivism – is essential in diagnosing an imbalance of power between Elektra and Chrysothemis vis-à-vis the orchestra.