Poèmes d’Amour consists of seven short songs, which may be sung by any voice type and may be performed in any order. The songs are settings of works by the nineteenth-century French poet Paul Verlaine, and may be considered as modern lieder. Each song has a distinct character, using various methods of vocal production: À Clymène features resonated vocalizing into the piano; A Poor Young Shepherd is a shepherd song, sung in a childlike voice; Clair de Lune is a Pierrot Lunaire-style song, with Sprechstimme; the chant En Sourdine is sung into a paper bag; Green is sung cabaret-style; Il Bacio is a spoken declamation of the text; and Mandoline is a serenade. The pianist also produces sounds in various ways, including strumming, plucking, scraping, and striking the piano strings; playing wind chimes or cowbells; and rapping the closed keyboard lid – without ever touching the piano keys.