Debussy-Clair de Lune

"Clair de lune"

The third and most famous movement of Suite bergamasque is "Clair de lune," meaning "moonlight" in French.

Debussy-La Mer

Interpretation

La mer is a masterpiece of suggestion and subtlety in its rich depiction of the ocean.
As a young boy, Debussy's parents had plans for him to join the navy. Debussy himself even commented on his fond childhood memories of the beauties of the sea. However, as an adult composing "La mer," he rarely visited the sea, spending most of his time far away from large bodies of water. Debussy drew inspiration from art, "preferring the seascapes available in painting and literature..."^[2] to the physical sea. This influence lends the piece its unusual nature.


The modern band, Nine Inch Nails, remade Debussy's "La Mer".  Listen here:

Debussy- Prelude to the Afternoon of a faun

Background

The composition was inspired by the poem L'après-midi d'un faune by Stéphane Mallarmé. Debussy's work later provided the basis for the ballet Afternoon of a Faun, choreographed by Vaslav Nijinsky. It is one of Debussy's most famous works and is considered a turning point in the history of music; Pierre Boulez has said he considers the score to be the beginning of modern music, observing that "the flute of the faun brought new breath to the art of music."^[3]

Debussy- Songs from his famous Children's Corner Suite

Children's Corner Suite (via Wikipedia.org)-edited

Dedication

It is dedicated to Debussy's daughter, Claude-Emma (known as "Chou-Chou"), who was three years old at the time.^[1] The pieces are not intended to be played by children; rather they are meant to be evocative of childhood and some of the toys in Claude-Emma's toy collection.
Claude-Emma was born on 30 October 1905 in Paris, and is described as a lively and friendly child who was adored by her father. She died of diphtheria on 14 July 1919, scarcely a year after her father's death.

Structure

There are six pieces in the suite, each with an English-language title. This choice of language is most likely Debussy's nod towards Chou-Chou's English governess. The pieces are:

1. Doctor Gradus ad Parnassum
2. Jimbo's Lullaby
3. Serenade for the Doll
4. The Snow is Dancing
5. The Little Shepherd
6. Golliwogg's Cakewalk

The pieces

Doctor Gradus ad Parnassum

This piece is actually a rather ingenious study in finger independence. In the middle, the pianist slows down and tries his material in other keys for exercise. Debussy's Doctor Gradus Ad Parnassum is of intermediate difficulty and requires experienced fingers. The pianist gets wilder toward the end and finishes the piece with a bang.

Jimbo's Lullaby

This work describes an elephant, Jumbo, who came from the French Sudan and lived briefly in the Jardin des Plantes in Paris around the time of Debussy's birth. It is a beautiful lullaby.

Serenade of the Doll

This piece... is a description of an Oriental porcelain doll and features the Chinese pentatonic scale throughout. Debussy notes that the entire piece should be played with the soft pedal. Some pianists contend that Debussy really meant "Serenade For the Doll".

The Snow is Dancing

Thanks to the composer's remarkable color effects, it manages to describe snow - not rain - and muted objects seen through it.

The Little Shepherd

The Little Shepherd depicts a shepherd with his flute.

Golliwogg's Cakewalk

At the time of its composition, Golliwoggs were in fashion. They were stuffed black dolls with red pants, red bow ties and wild hair, somewhat reminiscent of the black-face minstrels of the time. The cakewalk was a dance or a strut and the dancer with the most elaborate steps won a cake ("took the cake").

A New Year!!

Hello Piano Families and welcome to 2015!!!

There are going to be some fun things we are doing this year!!
First, we will be having Group Piano in January and February, so practice hard to earn piano dollars!
Second, some of you have been invited to play in the "Monster Concert" in February.  For those of you not performing, we would love to have you come and support the other students.  This concert will take place at Hillcrest High School on February 7th.
Third, some of you have opted to participate in Music Festival in March!!  More to come....
Fourth, in April, we will be playing our End of Year Recital!
Fifth, May is here and we will be having an end-of-year party at Paramount, hopefully watching a great movie!  So save your piano bucks to trade in for yummy treats!

Here are some concerts that you DO NOT WANT TO MISS OUT ON in 2015!!!!

January 30th @ 7:30pm at the Colonial Theatre-7 BRIDES FOR 7 BROTHERS
February13th @ 7:30pm at the Colonial Theatre- THE FIVE BROWNS!!!
Listen to more about them here:

April 24th @ 7:30pm at the Colonial Theatre- TorQ
Listen to more about them here:

Happy 2015!