Achille-Claude Debussy (22nd August 1862 – 25th March 1918) was a French co… Read Full Bio ↴Achille-Claude Debussy (22nd August 1862 – 25th March 1918) was a French composer. He was one of the most important figures in music at the turn of the 20th century; his music represents the transition from late-romantic to 20th century classical.
Debussy's most dramatic contribution to music history was his disregard for traditional chord structures and tonality. He is one of the most important exponents of the whole tone scale in classical music history. His compositions flowed without a strict sense of metre or rhythm, and are considered the pioneering works of the Impressionist genre of classical music, named in comparison with the visual arts movement.
Debussy's impact was far reaching. His free use of harmony, which often altogether disregarded the concepts of tertian harmony, has been cited as an influence on the rise of Jazz music later in the 20th century.
Debussy's most dramatic contribution to music history was his disregard for traditional chord structures and tonality. He is one of the most important exponents of the whole tone scale in classical music history. His compositions flowed without a strict sense of metre or rhythm, and are considered the pioneering works of the Impressionist genre of classical music, named in comparison with the visual arts movement.
Debussy's impact was far reaching. His free use of harmony, which often altogether disregarded the concepts of tertian harmony, has been cited as an influence on the rise of Jazz music later in the 20th century.
Étude Retrouvée
Claude Debussy Lyrics
We have lyrics for these tracks by Claude Debussy:
My Reverie Our love is a dream, but in my reverie I can…
Reverie Our love is a dream, but in my reverie I can…
Suite bergamasque L. 75 No. 1: Prelude INSTRUMENTAL Let your power flow in this place Let your heal…
The lyrics are frequently found in the comments by searching or by filtering for lyric videos
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@arthuradams7966
I learned this piece in college after getting Bavouzet's box set, and then got to meet Roy Howat, who made this score realization from Debussy's sketches, and also met Bavouzet himself a little while after! It was really fun.
One thing that's interesting about this performance is that there are a few subtle differences between Bavouzet's performance and the score (CMaj7 notes this!), which I asked him about when I met him. His answer was essentially that he had his own interpretation of the sketches, that didn't have to be exactly what Howat thought, which I think is actually really thoughtful and shows he has a lot of care for his interpretation.
If you're curious, the differences I know of are at
1:29 (Bar 36), where he plays two half notes of that wide interval instead of the single whole note,
2:11 (Bar 49), where he essentially halves the tempo from Bar 48 (there is a "retenu" listed, but this is a pretty sudden one, but it goes right by because it's a simple ratio),
2:29 (Bar 54), the top notes of the figures starting under the "cédez" in the right hand sound as F and G, rather than staying on the E-flat for a 3rd time then F,
and then of course the arpeggio and held bass note at the end.
Again, these are two different interpretations of the original sketches, so I'm not saying one is more or less correct! I actually think Bavouzet's differences make a lot of sense.
@wholemilky
Arpeggios, the pentatonic scale and the whole tone scale; exactly how I like my debussy.
@ezra6094
Don’t forget polyrhythms!
@thegoldenkeys1289
That sounds weird 🤣
@infinitemusic888
Oh really? Good for you then! :D
Yes, the polyrhythms are also an interesting feature of this piece. :)
@ezra6094
@@jameshorsley8701 🤔
@DeflatingAtheism
As Schoenberg said, Debussy displaced tonality in principle, if not in practice.
@randomchannel-px6ho
This piece was actually initially overlooked by scholars since the manuscript titled "Pour les Arpèges composés" was just assumed to be early sketches of the 11th etude. It wasn’t until 1977 that it was closely examined and discovered to be an almost entirely different piece.
The fact that he kept this means it's quite likely he would've further refined this piece and published it in a later collection of works. Unfortunately his health collapsed and the world was deprived of further genius from him.
Another interesting lost Debussy piece is "Les soirs illuminés par l'ardeur du charbon". During the winter of 1917 in the midst of WW1, Debussy managed to secure a supply of coal, and repayed the merchant by giving him that composition. However, the merchant never sold the piece and it wasn't discovered until 2001. It's probably the last work Debussy ever completed, and to me the composition sounds like Debussy coming to terms with his imminent death.
@DeflatingAtheism
Well, Ab Major is the key of death!
@garyallen8824
@@DeflatingAtheism : Huh? A-flat major is the key of sexual satisfaction.
@lisztomaniac2593
@@garyallen8824 A-flat major is such a magical key. Whenever I hear a piece that sounds beautiful I check the key – and it’s always A-flat.