How do you describe the music of Debussy?
Achille-Claude Debussy Debussy was among the most influential composers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and his use of non-traditional scales and chromaticism influenced many composers who followed. Debussy’s music is noted for its sensory content and frequent usage of atonality.
What is so special about Debussy?
French composer Claude Debussy’s works were a seminal force in the music of the 20th century. He developed a highly original system of harmony and musical structure that expressed, in many respects, the ideals to which the Impressionist and Symbolist painters and writers of his time aspired.
What did Debussy mean when he said that the rule by which he composed was Mon Plaisir?
So impressionism in music focuses on mood and atmosphere. Debussy created his music by letting his emotion go. When asked what rule he followed when he was composing, he scandalized his harmony teachers by answering: “Mon plaisir” (My pleasure).
When was Claude Debussy most productive?
Their influence is felt in Debussy’s first important orchestral work, Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun (1894). This work established the style of impressionist music and initiated Debussy’s most productive period, which lasted nearly 20 years.
What were the salient features of the music of Debussy?
Debussy’s music is noted for its sensory content and frequent usage of atonality. The prominent French literary style of his period was known as Symbolism, and this movement directly inspired Debussy both as a composer and as an active cultural participant.
When was Debussy’s Jeux written?
Once committed, Debussy wrote the initial draft of Jeux at uncommon speed, in about a month from July to August 1912, telling André Caplet that he needed ‘to find an orchestra “without feet” for this music’.
Is Debussy’s last piece of orchestral music finished?
Five days later, Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes unveiled a work with what turned out to be the last completed orchestral music by Debussy: Jeux.
Is Debussy’s Jeux on piano good?
While the piano duet version of the Rite gives a good flavour of this most percussive of ballets, Jeux on piano is far removed from Debussy’s diaphanous orchestral textures. Matters were not helped by the frantic preparations for the Rite swallowing up rehearsal time.
Why is Nijinsky’s “Jeux” so different from “Debussy”?
In Nijinsky’s defense, it is worth remembering that he did not hear the orchestral score until late in the day. While the piano duet version of the Rite gives a good flavour of this most percussive of ballets, Jeux on piano is far removed from Debussy’s diaphanous orchestral textures.