Скачать или смотреть "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" for Soprano and Chamber Ensemble | Yuchan Li

The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock is a poem written by T. S. Eliot in 1915, at the age of 27. Although the title features the word “love,” the poem instead portrays Prufrock’s anxiety about rejection. Love becomes a mirror for his insecurity, isolation, and fear—reflections mistaken for affection, yet love itself is nowhere to be found.

The poem is a 140-line dramatic monologue, with coherent logic and a wavering sense of drama. I begin by understanding the emotion behind each line: some confess, some conceal, and some rise quietly from the reader’s own awareness. They guide me greatly in shaping gestures and making structural decisions. Long yet filled with recurring motifs, the poem is remarkably well connected and logically dense. Chromatic scales, a repetitive chord progression, and a dance-like scherzando are the three main musical materials, reflecting the contextual shifts in the poem and conveying its emotional landscape.

Eliot gave form to a tenderness so fragile it becomes almost grotesque, yet unbearably human. Perhaps Prufrock could never utter the love he longed to express. Yet all his inner turmoil was not in vain. One cannot help but share in his sorrow and empathy. May every Prufrock, one day, walk out of the dusk, discover their worth, and find a love that finally answers.

Yuchan Li, Composer
Ricardo Ferro Hernandez, Conductor
Anjali Denis, Soprano