The Lighter Classics in Music by David Ewen

Prix he already revealed his independence of thought and unorthodoxy of style. After returning from Rome to Paris he became influenced not only by the Impressionist movement in French art and the Symbolist movement in French literature but also by the iconoclastic musical approaches and idioms of Erik Satie. Debussy now began to develop his own techniques and mannerisms and to crystallize his highly personal style. His first masterworks appeared between 1892 and 1893: the orchestral prelude, _The Afternoon of a Faun_ (_L’Après-midi d’un faune_), and his string quartet. With later works for orchestra and for solo piano—and with his remarkable opera, _Pelleas and Melisande_, introduced at the Opéra-Comique on April 30, 1902—he brought musical Impressionism to its highest technical development and to its most advanced stage of artistic fulfillment. He became the musical poet of the most subtle suggestions, elusive moods, and delicate impressions. A victim of cancer, Debussy suffered severely in the closing years of his life. He died in Paris on March 25, 1918, on a day when the city was being bombarded by the Germans during World War I. Because of the war, his death passed unnoticed except by a handful of friends. Debussy’s greatest works are, to be sure, too complex in technique and too subtle in style to enjoy ready consumption by the general public. But a few of his compositions have a wide appeal because their charm and sensitivity are easily comprehended, even at first hearing. One of these is the delightful piano suite, _Children’s Corner_ (1908) written by the composer for the delight of his little daughter, Chou-Chou. In it Debussy evokes the imaginative world of the child; but he also produces unsophisticated descriptive music that is readily appreciated by the very young. Debussy used English rather than French titles for this work because he wished to suggest the kind of stories and games that involve an English governess and a French child. André Caplet’s orchestration of this suite is famous. There are six brief movements. The first, “Doctor Gradus ad Parnassum,” is a satire on young pianists and their struggles with five-finger exercises. This is followed by “Jimbo’s Lullaby,” a tender lullaby crooned by a child to his toy elephant named Jimbo. In the third movement, “Serenade for a Doll,” the child turns from his pet elephant to his pet doll to croon to it a sensitive serenade. “The Snow Is Falling” is a tone picture of a snowfall, seen by a child from his window. “The Little Shepherd” is a pastoral piece of music. The most famous movement of the suite is the last one, “Golliwogg’s Cakewalk” in which the composer exploits the style and rhythm of a Negro dance popular in America in the 19th century, the cakewalk. In this movement, the composer maliciously interpolates a fragment from the Prelude of Wagner’s _Tristan and Isolde_. The beloved _Clair de Lune_ (_Moonlight_) is probably the composer’s most celebrated melody. This is a poetic, sensitive evocation of the peace and beauty of a moonlight light. It comes from his _Suite bergamasque_ for piano (1890), where it can be found as the third of four movements. Orchestral transcriptions have made this piece of music world-famous. _The Girl With the Flaxen Hair_ (_La Fille aux cheveux de lin_) is an exquisite portrait, in the composer’s most felicitous impressionist style. It is the eighth number of his Preludes for the piano, Book I (1910), and like _Clair de lune_ is often heard in various orchestral transcriptions; Arthur Hartmann’s adaptation for violin and piano is also familiar. The _Petite Suite_ (_Little Suite_) for piano duet (1889) is early Debussy, more in the Romantic vein of Delibes than in the provocative idiom Debussy later made famous. As orchestrated by Henri Busser it is in the repertory of many salon and pop orchestras. There are four short movements. The first, “_En Bateau_” (“_In a Boat_”) is particularly popular. In the orchestration a gentle barcarolle melody for flute suggests the gentle course of the boat in a placid lake. This is followed by turns by a vigorous episode and a passionate section, both of them for the strings. The flute then restores placidity, and the opening sensitive melody returns in the violins. “_Cortège_” (“March”) is a pert little march tune shared by the woodwind and strings. “_Menuet_” is of classic grace while the finale, “_Ballet_,” has a compelling rhythmic vigor. _Rêverie_ (1890) is a brief, atmospheric piece for the piano which has became a favorite with Americans because in 1938 it was adapted into the popular song, “My Reverie.” Léo Delibes Léo Delibes was born in St. Germain-du-Val, France, on February 21,