The most important early example of the prelude being exemplified in the forty eight preludes and fugues of books i and ii of the well tempered clavier of bach, where the prelude served to establish the tonal center of the fugue that followed it. The easiest debussy piano pieces and the most difficult. My analysis of canope debussy preludes for piano, book. Canope, the tenth prelude in book 2, though lightly regarded by many critics, pre. This paper also includes a brief history of preludes as well as possible influences upon debussy and his compositions. The title of the piece may be translated to english as either veils or sails. Several of them look ahead to debussys later style, in which the composers earlier impressionistic, almost romantic poetry was supplanted by a greater concentration upon technique and neoclassical objectivity. One of its significant characteristics is the way in which debussy treats tonality.
Analysis can be a valuable tool for the performer who is seeking solutions to performance problems. Preludes book 2 selections ii for piano claude debussy analysis preludes book 2 nos. Edition peters preludes by claude debussy compositions compositions. The works in debussys second book of preludes 191019 are similar in intent to those of book i 19071910. Claude debussy s preludes are 24 pieces for solo piano, divided into two books of 12 preludes each. The fifth prelude of book 2, entitled bruyeres heather, seems from its simple style to have been one of the earliest preludes that debussy might have written. Agraph of the melody of the prelude, simplified by enharmonic change. I was delighted that he has recorded debussy s preludes books 1 and 2 for dg in 2012 and decided to get them. Steven osborne has already made a name for himself in french music with a disc of alkan and a profoundly moving performance of messiaens vingt regards. Book ii had been reprinted twice, making a total of 4,000 copies. Images usually pronounced in french is a suite of six compositions for solo piano by claude debussy. Debussy preludes, bk 2 by claude debussy, paperback.
This significant compilation of 12 preludes represents debussy s mature writing style and is filled with a great diversity of compositional styles. Play help info if interpreting the movement in light of veils, the eerie, mysterious mood of the a section sounds veiled. Unlike some notable collections of preludes from prior times, such as chopins op. It is meant to depict an ancient egyptian city and egyptian burial urns. Debussy s twentyfour preludes are among the composers last and bestknown works for piano. He developed a highly original system of harmony and musical structure that expressed in many respects the ideals to which the impressionist and.
Not only is the title full of mystery, but the piece itself leaves the listener in awe and wonder. Along with hiroko sasakis very different version on an 1873 erard piano, as well as paul jacobss classic one, this is a cd of debussy s endlessly bountiful preludes thats staying on my shelf. The fifth section will briefly compare the styles of the two composers, and the last section will draw a conclusion resulting from the preceding investigation. Quietly teeming, delicate, and atmospheric, the texture is dominated by sweeping arpeggios that require a high degree of control on the part of the pianist. Interpreting discontinuity in the late works of debussy academic. Gieseking more or less owned these pieces during his lifetime and his. My analysis of canope debussy preludes for piano, book ii. The musical language of bach in the welltempered clavier volume 2. Debussy s book of preludes are some of his most wellknown and last works for solo piano.
Even allowing for book is threeyear start, the discrepancy is worth noting. The titles of the preludes are written at the end of each work, thus allowing the performer to. Helpful english translations of french terms as well as debussy s performance. Harmonic innovations in historical and musical context by ford fourqurean a thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of requirements of the csu honors program for honors in the degree of bachelor of music in music performance college of the arts columbus state university thesis advisor cylx. Not only is the title full of mystery, but the piece. Ilya itin, piano this video was recorded at the golandsky institute international piano festival at princeton university. Scotts analysis a similar study to my own regarding gestural analysis has been conducted by douglas scott on mozarts flute quartet in d, k285. A descriptive analysis of the preludes book 1 of claude debussy. Theyre both still quite the challenge for advanced players only. Both of these preludes seem to recall the beginning of book 1 in their.
Debussy may have contributed the last important evolution to the prelude. For all that variety, which invites players to pick and choose among them, they are also true cycles, and the composer gave some thought to the sequence in each book. Melodic analysis of debussys prelude a lapresmidi dun faune. The article is about the first prelude for piano in book 2. As part of an ma dissertation scott presented his own logicodeductive form of analysis. Playing debussys piano works an amateurs thoughts about. A different approach to analysis of claude debussys music. Walter giesekings magisterial performances of debussy s preludes were first released on cd in 1987 as a single disc, and they have been reissued in various guises many times since. The leaps bring to mind the lefthand octaves in chopins etudelike 16th prelude. This significant compilation of 12 preludes represents debussys mature writing style and is filled with a great diversity of compositional styles. Youtube, youtube channel, video marketing, youtuber, igtv, erika vieira, video, instagram hatecast clint taylor. For 20 years we provide a free and legal service for free sheet music without asking you anything in exchange. Debussys book of preludes is some of his most wellknown and last works for solo piano. Retrospect love of nature leading to love of mankind.
Nontraditional scales extended harmony traditional chords used in nontraditional context harmonic color tonal ambiguity. An analysis of the harmonic unity of debussys prelude a l. Debussys twentyfour preludes are among the composers last and best. Debussys twentyfour preludes are among the composers last and bestknown works for piano. The first book was composed between 1901 and 1905, and the second book was composed in 1907.
Pentatonic scale in debussy s voiles, preludes, book i, no. I provide the original scanned version and the filtered, because the filter does some changes smoothening, sharpening borders and some portions of the scan get lost sometimes when they are too small e. Except for some mild, localized chromaticism and a short pentatonic passage, the entire piece uses the whole. Voiles is a composition by claude debussy for solo piano from 1909. Roy howat delved into debussys use of the golden section in his book, debussy in proportion. One of the easiest pieces in this collection is the girl with the flaxen hair, around a. The first book of preludes is slightly easier than the second, since the second collection features debussy s more mature writing style. Of course, it still needs to be executed in french. If you use and like, thank you to consider support donation.
Analysis of claude debussys preludes 1827 words bartleby. Claude debussy, french composer whose works were a seminal force in the music of the 20th century. Hinsons suggestions for performance and an analysis of each prelude. In these pages ill try to summarize what references i have on the performance of. This blog is dedicated to discussion of the performance of the piano pieces of claude debussy. A descriptive analysis of the preludes book i of claude debussy thesis presented. Im only an amateur pianist, but have been playing debussy s piano works since the late 70s. With this recording pollini is closing the circle of debussy preludes with the long anticipated recording of the 2nd book 18 years after he recorded book 1, which is an evergreen in his discography. Debussy preludes, book 2 by claude debussy 18621918. Musical analysis as a technique for performance decisions in. Ive invested a lot of passion and faith in the future of. By debussys death in march 1918, book i had been reprinted five times, making a total of 8,360 copies.
Debussy s do not follow a strict pattern of key signature. Dg is proud to announce the new album of icon maestro pollini, coinciding with the debussy year 2018. Alexander melnikovs recording of book ii only, on a ca. In the first movement, prelude, debussy introduces a large section based on wholetone harmony ih which the tonal cerite is suspended. The most important early example of the prelude being exemplified in the forty eight preludes and fugues of books i and ii of the well tempered clavier of bach, where the prelude served to. Debussy writes similar leaps for both hands in mirroring movements and builds the. Debussy s piano pieces require deep thought and understanding. These works are distinct from debussy s images pour orchestre. In this prelude we find examples of harmonic procedures commonly used in claude debussy s music like. These preludes are well known for the unique way in which they are titled. The primary purpose of this study is to examine various ways in which analysis can provide solutions to problems that may arise in the performance of debussy s preludes for piano. They were composed and published in two books of twelve.
Prelude 10, titled canope in his book of preludes no. Schooltime continued cliffsnotes study guides book. Unlike other collections of preludes by great composers, debussy s do not follow a strict pattern of key signature. Appendix bapproach to melodic analysis debussys use of sameness and continuity in melody fig. Three years exist between the publication of the first and second book, with the former appearing in 1910. That this was general we can to some extent see from the sales figures quoted by roy howat. They were published in two books series, each consisting of three pieces. Nov 01, 2004 116 of over 3,000 results for debussy preludes book 2. Claude debussys preludes are 24 pieces for solo piano, divided into two books of 12 preludes each. Apr 01, 2016 claude debussy was a leading composer of the early 20th century known for his impressionistic style and use of nontraditional scales and tonalities as well as chromaticism. As a knockon effect of covid19 airfreight prices around the world have soared. Module 5 analysis of piano repertoire lessons 1 and 2 debussy preludes the student must look for the book the piano works of claude debsusy, by e.
A different approach to analysis of claude debussys music with examples from preludes, books 1 and 2. Debussys preludes book one, 1910, book two, 19 are historically important in the literature for piano, and they demonstrate growth and maturation in the. Impressionism piano sheet music by claude debussy to download and print instantly. A descriptive analysis of the preludes book 1 of claude. Debussy s book of preludes is some of his most wellknown and last works for solo piano. The music expresses a vast repertoire of emotions, colors and moods. Bruyeres pascal roge, piano debussy returns to the world of the popular music stage with general lavine eccentric. Reluctantly, we have had to pass on some of this increase in our standard airmail prices. Its followed by another sad prelude, feuilles mortes dead leaves. The third section will make a stylistic analysis of the piano works of debussy. There are several works in which wholetone harmony plays an important role, such as cloches a travers les feuilles,i from images book 1 1905, and voiles, from preludes book 1 1909. Debussys first book of preludes was begun as early as. It is the second piece in a set of twelve preludes published in 1910. The first remarkable change in debussy s piano literature occurs in pour le piano, which was published in 1901.
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