Debussy works. Claude Debussy: a short biography of the composer, life history, creativity and best works

AU SPO "Khanty-Mansiysk Technological and Pedagogical College"

Faculty of Arts and Culture

Scientific and practical conference

"Study and implementation of modern composers in the performing program of music students"

Chapter "Foreign composers - for children"

Topic"Stylistic features of the work of Claude Debussy"

Prepared by:

Pachganova T.V.,

Concertmaster of the highest category;

Kostyleva K., 3rd year student

year 2013

1. Impressionism in the art of France in the late XIX - early XX centuries.

1. Features of the work of Claude Debussy.
2. Methodological recommendations of the conversation for high school students.

The purpose of the presented work:expanding the artistic and musical horizons of students of secondary educational institutions, introducing them to the world of art, music, aesthetics, familiarizing with beauty and harmony.

Visual aids:1. Portrait of C. Debussy;

2. Paintings by C. Monet “Impression. Sunrise",

O. Renoir "Girl with a fan" (1881);

3. Piano piece "Girl with Flaxen Hair"

1. Impressionism in the art of France in the late XIX - early XX centuries

Impressionism - one of the most striking and interesting trends in French art of the last quarter of the 19th century, was born in a very difficult environment, characterized by variegation and contrasts.

The term impresssionisme comes from the French word impression "impression". This is how K. Monet called his painting - “Impression. Sunrise"

Initially, impressionism manifested itself in painting. Artists adjoining this direction are C. Monet, O. Renoir, C. Pissarro, A. Sisley, E. Degas. In an effort to express their immediate impressions of things as accurately as possible, the Impressionists freed themselves from traditional rules, they created a new method of painting. Its essence was to convey the external impression of light, the shadow of reflexes on the surface of objects with separate strokes of pure colors, which visually dissolved the form in the surrounding light-air environment. The impressionistic method became the maximum expression of the very principle of painting. For an impressionist artist, it is not important what he depicts, but what matters is how he depicts. The object became only an excuse for solving purely pictorial "visual tasks", therefore, impressionism originally had another, later forgotten name - "chromatism" from the Greek chroma - "color".

The Impressionists updated coloring, they abandoned dark, earthy colors, and applied pure, spectral colors to the canvas, almost without mixing them first on the palette. From the workshops they go to the open air (pleinair - "free air").

The creative method of the Impressionists is characterized by brevity, etude. After all, only a short study made it possible to accurately record individual states of nature. The Impressionists believed that reality is a changing sensation of light. Since these sensations change all the time, artists have worked hard to capture these vanishing moments. They achieved completely unprecedented effects of transmission of glare, flicker, play of chiaroscuro, light, harmonious, colorful harmonies. By the 80s and 90s of the 19th century, impressionist artists became exceptional masters of conveying lighting, fog, the play of water, sky, clouds, etc. The main theme of their work is France, its nature, way of life, people.

Landscape became a real revelation in the canvases of impressionist artists. It was in the landscape that their innovative aspirations were revealed in all their

variety and richness of nuances and shades (C. Monet "White Water Lilies" 1889, C. Pissarro "Autumn Morning in Eragny" 1897, A. Sisley "Snowy Landscape with a Hunter" 1873, O. Renoir "On the Lakeshore" ca. . 1880). Thus, interest in nature, impression, plot, color gives rise to a special pictorial language among impressionist artists.

musical impressionismoriginated in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Also, as in painting, it manifested itself primarily in the desire to convey fleeting impressions, halftones, penumbra. These aspirations lead to the fact that sound brilliance comes to the fore, great attention is paid to color, the search for extraordinary orchestral sounds and harmonies. The phenomenon that directly prepared musical impressionism is modern French poetry and pictorial impressionism. The Impressionists build their music on the play of musical chiaroscuro, on an elusive “sound sensation”. Refusing the classical completeness of forms, impressionist composers at the same time willingly turn to the genres of program music, to folk dance and song images, in them they look for ways to update the musical language.

Unlike pictorial impressionism, which was represented by the names of a number of major masters, musical impressionism, to varying degrees, includes such major French composers as P. Dukas, F. Schmitt, L. Aubert, C. Kequelin (in the early period of creativity) , J.-Roger-Ducas, M Ravel, but the most prominent representative is Claude Debussy.

Like impressionists, representatives of musical impressionism manifest themselves in a gravitation towards a poetic spiritualized landscape (for example, such symphonic works as “Afternoon of a Faun”, “Nocturnes”, “Sea” by C. Debussy, piano piece “The Play of Water” by M. Ravel) . Proximity to nature, the sensations arising from the perception of the beauty of the sky, the sea, the forest, are capable, according to Debussy, to excite the composer's imagination, to call to life new sound techniques.

Another area of ​​musical impressionism is fantasy. Composers turn to images of ancient mythology, to medieval legends (“Six Antique Epigraphs” for piano 4 hands, “Pan's Flute” for solo flute by C. Debussy, etc.); they turned to the world of dreams, to sparkling soundscapes, opening up new possibilities for poetic sound writing and new means of musical expression.

An important role in the formation of impressionistic music was played by the preservation and development of classical traditions inherited from previous eras. Debussy was very interested in Gregorian chant, its modes, intonations, listened with enthusiasm to the works of polyphonic masters. In the works of the old masters, he admired the richness of their musical means, where, in his opinion, one can find something important for the development of modern art. So, studying the music of Palestine, Orlando Lasso, Debussy finds many modal possibilities that enrich the sphere of major-minor, rhythmic flexibility, far from traditional squareness. All this helped him in creating his own musical language.

The subtlety of "grasping" the mood, the detailing of the Impressionist writing in music would not have been possible without mastering the ingenious sound technique and miniaturism of the "Preludes", "Nocturnes", "Etudes" by F. Chopin, whom Debussy idolized since childhood. Coloristic finds by E. Grieg, N.A. Rimsky-Korsakov, freedom of voice and M.P. Mussorgsky found an original continuation in the work of Debussy, his passion for Wagner contributed to the search for new harmonic means and forms.

The aesthetics of impressionism influenced all the main genres of music: instead of developed multi-part symphonies, symphonic sketches began to be cultivated - sketches, the romantic song was replaced by a vocal miniature, where recitation with colorful pictorial accompaniment prevailed, free miniature appears in piano music, which is characterized by much greater freedom development than in a romantic miniature, as well as the constant variability of the harmonic language, rhythmic pattern, texture, tempo. All this gives the form of plays the character of improvisation, and also contributes to the transmission of constantly changing impressions.

Thus, the term impressionism later became a generally accepted definition, covering a wide range of musical phenomena at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, both in France and in other European countries.

Picturesque and musical impressionism grew up on the basis of national traditions. In the work of impressionist artists and composers, related themes, colorful genre scenes, portrait sketches are found, but the landscape occupies an exceptional place. There are common features in the artistic method of pictorial and musical impressionism - the desire to convey the first, direct impression of the phenomenon. It is impossible not to note the gravitation of the Impressioniststo miniature forms; Allthis followed from their main artistic method, they appreciated the transience, the transience of living impressions. Therefore, painters do not turn to a large composition or fresco, but to a portrait, sketch; musicians - not to a symphony, oratorio, but to a romance, an orchestral or piano miniature. Most of all, pictorial impressionism influenced music in the field of musical expressiveness. As well as in painting, the search for musicians, mainly Debussy, was aimed at expanding the range of expressive means necessary to embody new images, and, first of all, at the maximum enrichment of the colorful and coloristic side of music. These searches touched on mode, harmony, melody, metro-rhythm, texture and instrumentation, the role of the harmonic language and orchestral style grew, due to their capabilities, they are more inclined to convey picturesque-figurative and coloristic principles.

Debussy's orchestra is very original and original. It is distinguished by the elegance of the drawing and the abundance of details, but each of them is audible. Debussy compares various instrument timbres and various methods of sound production. His orchestra impresses with its timbre variety, iridescent sonority and brilliance of color. So, the composer wrote his symphonic sketches "The Sea" in a seaside town on the Atlantic coast, capturing "from nature" the growing sound of the surf and the mighty sound of the wind. He is related to painting by the desire to create joyful, caressing art that gives people pleasure. Debussy was very fond of nature, he spoke of it as the highest source of inspiration, considered proximity to it as a criterion for creativity. He advocated the creation of a special kind of music in the open air, which would contribute to the merging of man with nature. This also shows the relationship with the Impressionist artists, who refused to work in the atelier and went to the open air - under the open sky, into the air, where they discovered new pictorial motifs, and most importantly - a different vision of forms and colors. Being related to poets and artists, the musicians were looking for their way in a new direction. They borrowed terminology from artists, suggesting new ideas of aesthetic perception; definitions came into use: sound paint, instrumental color, harmonic spots, timbre palette.

Impressionism played a huge role in the development of culture. In painting, he brought new discoveries in the field of technique and composition - work in the open air, subtle observation, picturesqueness, light tone, neglect of detail for the sake of color. Due to the peculiar pictorial manner, the surface of the paintings of the Impressionists seems to tremble and unsteady, thanks to which they managed to convey the brilliance of sunlight, ripples on the water, sensations of air, lightness and weightlessness of objects.

Interest in the work of the Impressionists in our time does not disappear. And today, the paintings of impressionist artists, the music of Debussy strikes with the novelty of the vision of the world, the freshness of the feelings inherent in them, the strength, courage and unusual means of expression: harmony, texture, form, melodics.

2. Features of the work of K. Debussy

Claude Achille Debussy was born on August 22, 1862 in Saint-Germain-en-Laye, on the outskirts of Paris. His father wanted his son to serve in the Marine Corps, his mother was engaged in housekeeping in the house, and both of them did not mind when his aunt took up the upbringing of Claude. At the age of seven, the boy began to play the piano and at the age of ten he entered the conservatory, where he studied (for various reasons)

twelve years old.

At the age of sixteen, Debussy began to compose, mainly in the genre of song and romance, and by the mid-1890screative maturitycomposer, the design of his original style -musical impressionism.

Claude Debussy was one of the most interesting and searching artists of his time, he was always looking for new ways to improve his skills, studied the work of modern innovative musicians: Liszt, Grieg, composers of the Russian school: Borodin, Mussorgsky, Rimsky-Korsakov. In an effort to update French music, Debussy also relied on the experience of its classics, namely the work of Rameau and Couperin. The composer regretted that Russian music had long followed paths that removed it from the clarity of expression, accuracy, composure of form, which, in his opinion, are the characteristic qualities of French musical culture.

Debussy had an extraordinary love of nature. For him, it was a kind of music. “We do not listen to the thousands of noises of nature around us, we do not comprehend enough of this music, so diverse, which is revealed to us with such abundance,” said the composer.

Debussy entered the history of artistic culture as the largest representative of musical impressionism. Often, Debussy's work is identified with the art of impressionist painters, their aesthetic principles extended to the composer's work.

From early childhood, Debussy was in the world of piano music. Mante de Fleurville, a student of Chopin, prepared him for admission to the conservatory. Of great importance, undoubtedly, were the instructions and advice that she received from Chopin and then communicated to her student. At the Conservatory, Debussy studied piano with Professor Marmontel (he was a famous French pianist and teacher). In addition to Debussy, Bizet, Guiraud, d "Andy and others studied with him.

Already in those years, the young Debussy attracted attention with the subtle expressiveness of his performance and excellent sound quality.

In the early period of creativity, next to the vocal (romances) and symphonic works of Debussy, compositions for piano appeared. With the greatest clarity, the original features of the composer's individuality manifested themselves in two "Arabesques" - E-dur and G-dur (1888). They are already characterized by an artistic image, which suggests the grace and "airiness" of the composition. Typical for the subsequent style of Debussy are transparent colors, beauty and plasticity of melodic lines. In 1890 Debussy creates his first piano cycle - "Suite Bergamo", consisting of four parts: Prelude, Minuet, "Moonlight" and Passepier. Two tendencies are already clearly visible here, which will become typical for the composer's subsequent cycles: reliance on the genre traditions of harpsichordists and gravitation towards landscape sketches. Using the genres of early music, Debussy interprets them freely. He boldly applies the harmonic language and texture of the new time.

Since 1901 compositions for piano follow one after another without interruption. Debussy gives them the best moments of inspiration. "Suite for Piano" is already quite a mature Debussy cycle. It consists of three pieces - Prelude, Sarabande and Toccata. In this cycle, Debussy, more than anywhere else in his piano music, showed the features of classicism. They are reflected not only in the choice of genres, but also in the severity of the music, the clarity of the form of each piece and the harmonious symmetry of the entire cycle.

In the series of pieces written after the “Piano Suite”, program-pictorial and impressionistic tendencies are intensified.

1903 is marked by the appearance of the piano cycle "Prints". The very title "Prints" is curious. In "Nocturnes" for orchestra, the title of a piece of music was interpreted in a picturesque aspect. Now the plays get their name from the terminology of painting and graphics. In his works, Debussy embodies emotion-mood in fusion with picturesque impressions, seeks to give an impetus to the perception of the listener, to direct his imagination with the name. Hence the attraction to picturesque titles. And subsequently the composer uses such names as "Sketches", "Paintings".

Within three years (1910-1913), two volumes of the Preludes were performed and published - each with 12 plays, in which Debussy's impressionism was fully manifested. In the preludes appear:

Landscapes - Sails, What the West Wind Saw, Wind on the Plain, Heather, Footsteps in the Snow, Anacapri Hills, Sounds and Aromas in the Evening Air, Mists, Dead leaves”, “Terrace visited by moonlight”;

portraits – “A girl with flax-colored hair”, “As a token of respect to S. Pichvik esk. P.Ch.P.K. ”,“ General Lyavin is an eccentric ”;

legends - "Ondine", "Dance of Peck", "Fairies - lovely dancers", "Sunken Cathedral";

works of art- "Delphian dancers", "Canopa", "Alternating thirds", "Gate of the Alhambra";

Scenes - "Interrupted Serenade", "Minstrelli", "Fireworks".

Even reading the titles of these colorful pieces is almost music, but it is interesting that the composer placed the titles of the pieces not at the beginning, but at the end of each prelude, offering the listener to form an idea of ​​the music himself and only then compare it with the author's associations.

The cycle of 24 preludes is a kind of result of the evolution of the composer's style: the multicolor, extracted by the composer from the black and white keyboard, also absorbed the orchestral experience. (Debussy preferred to compose while sitting at the piano, this led to the opposite effect - piano music on orchestral).

"Preludes" is an encyclopedia of Debussy's art, because here he achieves the highest mastery of figurative and sound characteristics, in the instantaneous "grasping" of an impression in all its variability. In the preludes, such features of impressionism are manifested as fixing fleeting impressions from any characteristic phenomena of reality, conveying an external impression of light, shadow, color, as well as etude and picturesqueness, fixing various states of nature, etc.

Debussy's piano music is very beautiful, interesting, and therefore very popular with both listeners and performers.

In the main works of Claude Debussy:

Opera "Pelleas and Mélisande"

3 ballets (“Games”, “Kamma”, “Toy Box”, the last two in the form of claviers)

5 cantatas (including “Spring”, “Prodigal Son”, “Virgin-Elect”)

Orchestral compositions(symphonic suite "Spring", "Little Suite", Prelude to "Afternoon of a Faun", 3 triptychs - "Nocturnes", "Sea", "Images")

Fantasy for piano and orchestra

Rhapsody for clarinet and orchestra

Piano cycles(“Suite Bergamas”, “For Piano”, “Prints”, “Images”, “Children's Corner”, 24 Preludes, 12 Etudes, “Six Antique Epigraphs” for piano 4 hands”, “In White and Black” for two piano"),program pieces(“The Island of Joy”, “Masks”), other works for piano

87 songs and romancesto the words of French poets

"Songs of Charles d'Orleans" for a cappella choir

Chamber-Instrumental Compositions

Music for the mystery of G. d'Annunzio "The Martyrdom of St. Sebastian"

innovation consisted in the fact that in his music there was " emancipation of sound ”, freeing him from the fetters of the classical functional system (and through this - from the centuries-old tradition of theatrical drama), which brought to the fore the “charm”,self-worth of sound paint. The beauty that saves the world, in his music, has received a convinced admirer and a skilled Master: the Debussy orchestra is magnificent, the harmonic shades are fresh, the melodic lines are unconstrained, and the form carries the listener into its picturesque labyrinths. He, like the Impressionist artists or their fellow poets, became a singer of the ideally beautiful, striving to embody “pure spirituality” beyond the framework of the gross material or primitive psychological. In the spirit of the time, he measured the value of a person primarily with aesthetic categories, and not with the ethical laws of good and evil. This idea of ​​"art for art's sake" also stemmed from the traditional French "aestheticism" - the cult of refined beauty, from the attraction to elegance, subtlety, sophistication. He combined the service of beauty with a complete lack of interest in social issues, so the emotional tone of his works gravitates toward spontaneity, lyricism, whimsical emotions, dreaminess, enchantment and the charm of the moment. “Art is the most beautiful of illusions,” said Claude Debussy. His "velvet musical revolution"- a bold breakthrough into the future, and he himself, according to Lorca, is "a lyrical argonaut who discovered the New World in music."

The topic "Impressionism and Debussy's work" is interesting, unusual and rather complex, therefore it is proposed for extracurricular music classes and at the lessons of the Moscow Art Theater in high school. The proposed chapter provides methodological recommendations and a consistent lesson plan that the teacher should be guided by:

1. What is impressionism.
2. Impressionism and piano works of C. Debussy.

Target: to acquaint children with the work of C. Debussy and such a phenomenon of French culture of the last century as impressionism, its main representatives.

Conduct formclasses - conversation.

Main goals :

1. broaden the horizons of students, cultivate musical and artistic taste, activate perception, develop imagination and figurative thinking. This is facilitated by the creation of search situations, the formulation of problematic tasks, creative tasks;

2. the formation of certain artistic knowledge, the development of the creative imagination of schoolchildren, teaching the analysis of artistic and musical works, the development of musical interest.

Visual aids:portrait of the composer C. Debussy; portraits of artists C. Monet, O. Renoir, C. Pissarro, A. Sisley, E. Degas; reproductions of paintings: C. Monet “Impression. Sunrise" 1872, "White Water Lilies" 1899, "Rouen Cathedral in the Evening" 1894, "Rouen Cathedral at Noon" 1894, as well as a photograph of the Rouen Cathedral, O. Renoir "Girl with a Fan" 1881

Music material:C. Debussy - prelude "Girl with flax-colored hair."

The teacher begins the conversation with a definition of impressionism, talks about the first exhibition of "independent artists", directly about its participants. These artists invented a new painting method. It is important to pay attention to the fact that they were a kind of revolutionaries in painting and all these different artists were united by the struggle against academicism and conservatism in art. The teacher offers to get acquainted with the paintings of impressionist artists.

Questions for students:

1. What is unusual about Impressionist painting?

2. What pictorial genres attracted impressionist artists?

3. What attracts us to their art?

4. How would a realist painter paint Rouen Cathedral?

The teacher may suggest to students the followingcreative tasks:

compare a photograph of the Rouen Cathedral and a painting by C. Monet "Rouen Cathedral at Noon" or "Rouen Cathedral in the Evening". To determine what artistic genres the Impressionist artists turned to.

After the students have received a general idea of ​​pictorial impressionism, they can proceed to the story of impressionism in music and its most prominent representative - C. Debussy, focusing on the composer's biography and listing the genres in which he worked, paying attention to the features of piano work. Schoolchildren should also pay attention to the fact that although C. Debussy was looking for new ways to implement his ideas, he was very sensitive to the heritage of Russian musicians of the 28th century (Ramo, Couperin), highly valued traditions. It is also important to note that C. Debussy was one of the greatest singers of nature in the world of musical art. He captured her most diverse images, at different times of the year, hours of the day, in different lighting, in different weather. We can see this in such works as "Gardens in the Rain" from "Prints" for piano, as well as in the preludes: "Mists", "Heater", "Scents and sounds swirling in the evening air", etc. (total 24 preludes), where he fully manifested composer's impressionism.

C. Debussy was attracted by the piano miniature. A significant difference between the impressionist miniature and the romantic one is greater freedom of development. Further, the teacher talks about the features of melody, harmonic language, rhythmic pattern, texture, etc. - all this gives the work improvisation and a constant change of musical impressions. The teacher asks to listenprelude by C. Debussy "Girl with flax-colored hair",then asks a series of questions:

1. Did you like the music?

2. With what musical colors is this music written?

3. What is the nature of this music?

4. What attracts this music?

5. How would you portray the image of this girl?

At the end of the lesson, in order to consolidate the acquired knowledge of students, it is recommended to ask the following questions: questions:

1. What are the characteristics and features of impressionism?

2. What are the main representatives of artistic impressionism?

3. What features of the piano music of C. Debussy can you name? (the desire for a constant variability of lifestyles, a great interest in musical sketches of various movements, etc.)

4. What impression did you get from the music you listened to?

Homework:Draw illustrations for the prelude you listened to "Girl with flax hair."

FINAL WORD

Thus, having touched upon the issues of impressionism as an important, significant and interesting trend in art, the teacher introduces students to the world of painting and music. Acquaintance with the best examples of this trend will increase their educational level, broaden their horizons.

LIST OF USED LITERATURE

1. Alekseev A.D. French piano music of the late 19th - early 20th

centuries.- M.: Publishing House of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, 1961.

2. Alekseeva L.N., Grigoriev V.Yu. Foreign music of the XX century.- M.:

Knowledge, 1986.

3. Vlasov V.G. Styles in art in 3 volumes. T.I - S. Pb.; Cologne, 1995.

4. Debussy and music of the XX century: Sat. articles. - L .: Music, 1983.

5. Musical literature of foreign countries. Vsh.5 / Ed: B. Levik. - 5th ed.

M.: Music, 1984.

Claude Achille Debussy (1862-1918). Representative of musical impressionism. Famous works - Preludes, among which -"Steps in the Snow", "Girl with Flaxen Hair", Sunken Cathedral", opera "Pelléas et Mélisande" symphonic fantasy "Midday Rest of a Faun".

Claude Debussy was born on August 22, 1862 in the small town of Saint-Germain-en-Pins. He was the first child in the family of the owner of a modest Chinese shop Manuel-Achille Debussy and his wife Victoria. The baby turned out to have a strange forked forehead, which could well be a sign of hydrocephalus. Contrary to the fears of his parents, Achille-Claude Debussy (the boy received such a name at baptism) grew up as a normal child, although the unusual shape of the forehead remained the most remarkable feature of his appearance for the rest of his life.

After some time, the father's financial affairs were completely upset, and the family moved to Paris. Due to health problems, the boy did not go to school, his mother gave him primary education, thanks to her, Debussy had a love for everything refined and refined for life.

Claude and his brothers and sister spent a lot of time in the house of Ashille-Antoine Arosa, a man as cultured as he was rich. He was especially fond of painting and collected paintings. Arosa also provided support to young artists who later became known as the "Impressionists". Debussy could have met some of them personally. The bright colors of the southern nature, where the mansion of a wealthy philanthropist was located, the paintings of the Impressionists and the first musical impressions led to the fact that young Claude could not choose what to do: paint pictures or play the piano. The father was sure that his son would become a military sailor.

Doubts were dispelled by Madame Mote de Fleurville, Debussy's first teacher, with whom he began to study upon his return to Paris. This lady studied with Chopin for some time, was familiar with Wagner, and many musical celebrities of that time willingly visited her salon. The years of study with the famous pianist - from 1870 to 1873 - were overshadowed by events that were a huge test for France. The Franco-Prussian War of 1871 ended with the defeat of the French. The humiliation of the nation resulted in open protest, the townspeople erected barricades and proclaimed a short-lived commune. For two months there were battles on the streets of the city, thousands of people died, others were subsequently shot.

A difficult situation developed in Madame de Fleurville's own house. Her daughter was the wife of Paul Verlaine, who had just introduced seventeen-year-old Arthur Rimbaud into the house. There was a completely open connection between the two poets, in addition, Rimbaud's habits and opinions simply shocked those around him. A hooligan, a libertine, a freethinker and an anarchist - all this coexisted in him with bizarre images of Symbolist poetry. Madame de Fleurville continued to prepare Claude for the exams, despite her daughter's divorce and imprisonment, which threatened her son-in-law, who wounded Rimbaud with a revolver shot.

Entering the conservatory, Debussy falls into the class of Antoine Marmontel, who studied with advanced children. Warm relations connected Debussy with the solfeggio teacher Albert Lavignac. And the composition teacher Ernest Guiro appreciated the fresh ideas of his student so much that they soon became great friends. Under his guidance, Debussy began to realize his own unique talent as a composer.

The years of study at the conservatory - from 1873 to 1879 were filled for Debussy with vivid artistic impressions. From an early age, who loved and understood art, Debussy could not help but visit the first exhibitions of the Impressionists, which were held in 1874 and 1875 in a private salon. Debussy deeply revered the music of G. Berlioz, C. Saint-Saens, admired the rich musical colors of Massenet's operas, and was interested in the work of the Belgian composer Cesar Franck. The frivolous performances at the Opera Comic did not pass by his attention. And during the performance of Lalo's ballet Namuna, he shouted and applauded so much that he was taken out of the theater.

In the summer of 1880, Debussy was given the opportunity to broaden his horizons. Thanks to the recommendation of Marmontel, Debussy met Nadezhda Filaretovna von Meck. The name of this extraordinary woman is associated mainly with the name of P.I. Tchaikovsky, whose patroness she remained for over sixteen years. After the death of her husband, a mining engineer, she inherited a large fortune, which she spent on her great love - music, traveling around Europe with her eleven children, and on a home trio of musicians. According to the contract, Debussy was supposed to spend the summer in her house as a pianist. He lived with the von Meck family for almost three months, during which time he visited Switzerland and the most beautiful cities in Italy: Rome and Florence. And for the next two years, Debussy will spend his summer holidays in the company of the von Meck family - on their estate in the vicinity of Podolsk and traveling around Europe.

Debussy is attracted by a high goal - the Rome Prize, which allows the winner to live and improve his art for three years at the expense of the French government in Rome at the Villa Medici. Only on the second attempt, Debussy reaches his goal - his cantata "The Prodigal Son" was highly appreciated by Charles Gounod - the author of the famous "Faust". Debussy lived in Rome from 1884 to 1887. He enjoyed the treasures of art kept in art galleries and museums, street performances of the commedia dell'arte with timeless images of Harlequin, Colombina and Pulcinella. He listened to the masses of Palestrina and di Lasso in a small church, he was able to personally get acquainted with the musical legends of the 19th century: F. Liszt and D. Verdi. It seemed that the pearl of Renaissance architecture, built in 1557, the Villa Medici, the ancient monuments of the "eternal" city and the society of talented French youth should have created a special creative atmosphere. But Debussy had to be disappointed in his expectations. The living conditions did not suit him, the views and conversations of the environment irritated him. In this mood, he is working on the symphonic poem "Spring", inspired by the painting by Botticelli. This two-movement work for choir without words was the only completed work during his life at the Villa Medici.

Returning to Paris, Debussy was forced to earn his livelihood. He gives private lessons, is engaged in arranging, without stopping writing music: small salon plays and songs based on the verses of the symbolist poets fashionable at that time, with whom he becomes close at meetings in the house of Stefan Mallarmé. Mallarme introduces Debussy to the idea of ​​the synthesis of the arts, which becomes a revelation for him.

During this period, Debussy writes the Five Songs of Baudelaire and finishes the oratorio "The Virgin - the Chosen One" based on the poem by Rosseti, begun in Italy. With her, he goes to London, hoping to interest the British in his new work. The largest city in the world conquered him, but the British then were not at all interested in French music. In 1888 and 1889 Debussy attended performances of R. Wagner's operas in Bayreuth. The semi-religious atmosphere that reigned in the city somewhat cools the enthusiasm of the young Debussy with the work of the great German.

Debussy continues his musical experiments, starting to use the 12-tone chromatic scale instead of the major and minor scales. At this time, he wrote: Two Arabesques, a Little Suite, the Song Cycle "Forgotten Ariettes" on Verlaine's verses, finished Fantasia for Piano and Orchestra, as well as the famous "Bergamas Suite".

A very significant influence on the work of Debussy was the World Exhibition held in Paris in 1889-1890. It shook the capital like an electric discharge: the steel structure of the Eiffel Tower rose above the city, the cultural and material wealth of different countries was demonstrated in numerous tents and pavilions. Genuine Hungarian and Gypsy melodies, folk music of Europe, Africa, and Arab countries sounded. It was also a celebration of Russian music, traditionally considered exotic: "Night on Bald Mountain" by M. Mussorgsky, excerpts from "Prince Igor" by A. Borodin, "Spanish Capriccio" by N. Rimsky-Korsakov. The concerts at which N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov performed as a conductor sounded like a revelation for the Parisians. After that, Debussy devoted almost four years to studying the score of "Boris Godunov" by M. Mussorgsky, in which he was most impressed by the rhythms, reminiscent of the speech of a reciter.

In 1892, Debussy got acquainted with the recently published play by M. Maeterlinck "Pelléas et Mélisande". He immediately realized that this was just the text that would allow him to bring his ideas to life. Debussy immediately sketched out several themes for the planned opera. He also began work on the String Quartet, turning to S. Mallarme's poem "The Afternoon of a Faun". The performance on December 22, 1894 of the Prelude to The Afternoon of a Faun was the composer's first real success. In a short time Faun gained international fame. Finally, at the age of thirty-three, Debussy found his own voice, and his name became known.

Work on Pelléas et Mélisande progressed more and more slowly. Debussy was meticulous about everything he wrote. The first version of the opera was completed in the spring of 1895, in the circle of like-minded people and friends, Debussy himself played the entire score, while singing all the arias. Despite the fact that everyone present showed their admiration for the composer's new creation, he went back to the beginning and reworked almost every line. It required the utmost dedication and two more years of work.

At this time, he met the Spanish composer Albéniz and Maurice Ravel. The long conversations of the three composers were devoted mainly to the technique of playing the piano, which Albeniz had a wonderful command of, and Spanish music. Both Debussy and Ravel could not resist her charms. The names of Debussy and Ravel are often mentioned together, but except for this period, there was never a close relationship between them, and soon their friendship broke off. The skill of Albéniz, the pianist, prompted Debussy to take up in 1896 the composition of the Suite for Piano in three movements.

In 1899 Debussy completed Nocturnes for symphony orchestra with women's choir, which he would later dedicate to his wife. Debussy married a dressmaker from Burgundy, Rosalia Texier. She was economic and practical, the Debussy family affairs came in order for a while. In a small apartment that the young people rented, he was able to arrange an office for himself, which he painted in his favorite green tones, decorated with Chinese silk and decorative cats. There he continued to work on Pelléas et Mélisande.

In 1901 he was able to complete the Piano Suite. The opera "Pelléas et Mélisande" was nearing completion; next year it was planned to be staged at the Opéra-Comique. At the time when work was underway on these works, all three parts of the "Nocturnes" - "Clouds", "Celebrations" and "Sirens" were performed for the first time, enthusiastically received by both the audience and the critics. Debussy, confident that his music would be warmly received, finally allowed himself to be persuaded to give the score of Pelléas et Mélisande to the theater. On January 13, 1902, rehearsals began.

After ten years spent on the creation of the opera, its production seemed to Debussy a lost cause. Conflict with Maeterlinck, offended by Debussy's refusal to take on the performance of the main part of his wife, Georgette Leblanc, financial difficulties that reached the point of litigation. At the premiere, the troubles began already in the second act: laughter, a cat concert. Friends and supporters of Debussy, among whom were Pierre Lalo and Paul Dukas, formed a united front, and high-profile arguments continued until the end of the performance. Gradually, the opera began to be accepted more and more calmly. From performance to performance - there were fourteen of them that summer - the opera gained momentum. The French government awarded him the Cross of Honor.

Debussy now spends the summer at Lily's parents' house in Rabies. Here he began work on his own libretto for the second conceived opera based on Edgar Poe's short story "The Devil in the Bell Tower". The composer still devoted a lot of time to composing piano music: Notebooks of Sketches, Prints and Engravings. Periodically, Debussy is engaged in critical activities, he was able to express his thoughts accurately and concisely. A trip to London to stage a production of Der Ring des Nibelungen across the English Channel, childhood plans for a career as a sailor, and most importantly, a very stylized painting of the sea by the Japanese artist Hokusai, whom Debussy deeply admired, all became a source of inspiration for creating a sound portrait of the sea element - Symphonic sketch "Sea".

Financial problems did not leave Debussy, he was forced to give private lessons, and it was thanks to this that in 1904 a meeting took place that once again dramatically turned his life around. Raoul Bardak, who took lessons from Debussy, introduced him to his mother, Emma Bardak, the wife of a successful banker. Debussy had admired her voice before, when he heard her in the salons of his wealthy friends. From friendship, their relationship grew into something more - at that time Debussy had already finally decided to break with Lily. He spends his summers with Madame Bardac on the island of Jersey, where he writes the piano pieces "Masks" and "Isle of Joy", both inspired by the painting of Antoine Watteau, an 18th-century artist. Desperate, Lily tried to shoot herself. Debussy did not visit her in the hospital, leaving unpaid drug bills. A scandal broke out, many friends and musicians turned their backs on him.

Despite the state of "extreme devastation" caused by the scandal surrounding his divorce, Debussy found the strength to work: Dances ("Sacred" and "Worldly") for harp and orchestra, commissioned by the Pleyel firm in order to demonstrate the possibilities of the new - chromatic - harp, " Three Songs of France" based on the poems of Charles d'Orleans and the second series of "Gallant Festivities" - both series came out with a dedication: "To my little Emma, ​​with gratitude."

Emma was expecting a child, which was for Debussy the happiest moment in this period of his life, full of troubles and financial difficulties. The girl was given the name Claude-Emma, ​​but in the family she was affectionately called Shusha. Shortly thereafter, Emma officially divorced her husband, and her ex-husband had to pay her a significant amount of alimony, and Debussy finally married her. For a short time they were able to afford to live in abundance. Debussy even got himself a cat, an animal whose resemblance to which was often noticed.

More and more Debussy strive for solitude. He was no longer seen in the fashionable cafes and restaurants that he so often visited in the days of his carefree youth, now he was fascinated by the idea of ​​\u200b\u200bmystical immersion in music. In 1905 he wrote the first of two series of piano pieces under the general title Images. Here Debussy experiments with harmony and harmony, avoiding major and minor keys. The first performance of the cycle was a huge success. Debussy finished his second series in 1907, continuing his experiments in the field of piano technique, exploring the "pictorial" possibilities of impressionism. He uses three note bars instead of the traditional two, aiming to further expand his sound range. Debussy draws strength from the family circle - the children's room and Shushu's first steps inspire him to write the piano suite "Children's Corner" in 1906, as a token of tender love for his wife and daughter.

Interest in Debussy's music is rapidly growing in England; he will repeatedly come here with concerts, conducting his own compositions. World fame comes to the composer after productions of "Pelléas et Mélisande" in Germany and Italy, and especially America, where the success was so resounding that the director of the theater came to Paris to buy the rights to stage several more operas that Debussy planned to write, according to rumors , soon. Debussy honestly admitted that these works still exist only in outline, the work is progressing too slowly and, most likely, he will not finish anything by the appointed date, but he was persuaded to accept the advance. Debussy turned out to be right, all these operas remained projects, which, however, he did not forget until the end of his life.

In the summer of 1909, due to severe pain, he was forced to see a doctor. The diagnosis was: stomach cancer. But financial difficulties did not leave Debussy, and he was forced, overcoming pain, to continue working. In the same year, Debussy received a responsible position at the Paris Conservatory - he participates in the work of the jury of competitive exams. And this fascinated him so much that a year later he wrote a Rhapsody for clarinet and piano especially for testing the contestants. In addition, he is working on a series of "Images" for orchestra, which includes, inspired by Spanish motives, "Iberia" and "Spring Dances", based on the motive of a French folk song.

1909 was marked by the first visit of the Russian Ballet to Paris at the Chatelet Theatre. "Polovtsian dances" from Borodin's opera "Prince Igor" performed by the Diaghilev troupe literally blew up the Paris stage. The following year, the Russian Ballet will bring Scheherazade based on the Rimsky-Korsakov suite and The Firebird by the young Russian composer I. Stravinsky. This was the impetus for a whole revolution in the decorative arts and the beginning of the "Russian fever". Entire salons in one evening changed their interior in imitation of the barbaric splendor of scenery by L. Bakst. Women dressed in flowing outfits, tailored according to the pattern of his costumes. The performances of the Russian Ballet shocked Debussy incredibly, and mutual respect arose between Stravinsky and Debussy, which later grew into friendship.

On one of the May days of 1911, the premiere of Debussy's second stage work, the Mystery of the Martyrdom of St. Sebastian, written in collaboration with the Italian poet Gabriele d'Annuzio, was scheduled. This Mystery, the music for which was written by a recognized pagan, and the role of a Christian saint was played by a Jewish dancer - Ida Rubinstein, could not but cause religious discord. Debussy was forced to justify himself. Disappointed Debussy, however, continues to work on stage works - in 1912 he agrees to the production of "Afternoon of a Faun" by Vaclav Nezhinsky, accepts new orders, including the ballet "Games" for the Russian Seasons (the performance will be staged in 1915, but again without success).

The family was for Debussy his little world, where he could completely immerse himself in peace. Daughter Shusha brought the greatest joy, he could listen to her sweet babble for hours and shared all her sweet fun. And now his thoughts were captured by a new script for the ballet, written by Andre Helle based on his own children's book, Toy Box. The music was completed rather quickly, but Debussy asked Andre Caplet to do the orchestration (the ballet was not staged during his lifetime). In 1913, Debussy finished work on the second book of the Preludes (the first one was finished back in 1910). Two cycles of plays - 12 in each - were written following the example of the composer's favorite Chopin and absorbed numerous impressions of recent years. In winter, Debussy goes on his last international tour - a warm welcome in Moscow and St. Petersburg softened the severe Russian frosts, and in February 1914 he received the honorary title of member of the Academy of St. Cecilia in Rome. All these places reminded the composer of his distant youth, where he visited with the von Meck family. The last country that Debussy visited on this trip was Holland, where his concerts were held with no less success. Now he has become famous, and finally the Parisian Academy of Fine Arts noticed this, inviting him to become one of its members. But the elections were postponed, and Debussy's health was rapidly deteriorating.

In the summer of 1914, the first terrible catastrophe of the 20th century broke out. The assassination of the Austrian heir to the throne on June 28, 1914 in the Serbian city of Sarajevo was the impetus for the outbreak of the First World War. Fifty-two-year-old Debussy, stricken with an incurable disease, was extremely upset by his uselessness. Before his eyes, his friends, musicians, voluntarily entered the military service. He takes on the editing of a new French edition of the polonaises and waltzes of Chopin, whom he adores. The main idea was to replace the German editions of classical works. Hatred for the Germans grew along with the sad news from the fronts, the composer's sincere feelings resulted in the "Heroic Lullaby",

Inspired by Chopin, Debussy wrote a series of twelve piano studies. The studies were followed by the Suite "White and Black", the title of which fully corresponds to the gloom and colorlessness that, according to Debussy, has descended not only over Europe, but over all cultural life. Reviving French classical musical traditions, Debussy decides to write six sonatas for various ensembles of instruments. The Sonata for Cello and Piano, the Sonata for Flute, Viola and Harp and the Sonata for Violin and Piano were completed fairly quickly, but the disease began to cause him unbearable suffering, and it was decided to resort to surgical intervention. But even before going to the operation, he finishes the song for the children's choir "Christmas of the children who no longer have shelter" in his own words. The harsh winter of 1915/16 brought news of the devastation of entire villages in Belgium and Northern France. This shocked the composer so much that he poured out his feelings in a sorrowful song. The operation was only partially successful, Debussy, having become practically disabled, spent all the time at home under the supervision of his wife and at that time did not write anything except letters. He died on one of the darkest days of March 25, 1918, when German troops came close to Paris, and enemy shells burst right at the very Debussy house. Only a few colleagues who had come from the front were able to attend his funeral. There was not enough newsprint, so the death of Debussy was only mentioned in French newspapers, most of the condolences came from abroad: England, Spain, Italy, even in German newspapers they honored the memory of the great musician. The widow of Debussy lived for another 16 years, sacredly keeping the memory of him. And his dearly beloved daughter, Shusha, did not long outlive her father: she died during a diphtheria epidemic in 1919.

List of major works:

Orchestral

"Spring"; Prelude to "Afternoon of a Faun"; Nocturnes: "Clouds", "Celebrations", "Sirens"; "Sea"; "Images": "Gigi", "Iberia", "Spring round dances"; Small suite; Rhapsody for saxophone and orchestra (orchestrated by Roger-Ducasse); First Rhapsody for clarinet and orchestra; Scottish march.

stage Opera "Pelleas and Mélisande"; Ballets: "Games", "Toy Box"; The Mystery of the Martyrdom of Saint Sebastian.

Vocal Cantatas: "The Prodigal Son", "Gladiator", "Virgin Chosen One"; Five poems by Baudelaire, "Gallant festivities" two series), "Three songs of France", Three ballads to the words of Francois Villon, Three poems by Stéphane Mallarmé, "Christmas of children who no longer have shelter."

Chamber

WITH string quartet in G minor; Sonata for cello and piano; Sonata for flute, viola and harp; Sonata for Violin and Piano;

Compositions for piano

"Forgotten images"; "Suite Bergamas"; "Prints"; "Images" (two series); "Masks"; "Island of Joy"; "Children's Corner"; Preludes (two notebooks); Etudes (two books); Six antique epigraphs for piano four hands; "White and Black" suite for two pianos, etc.

Debussy with his first wife.

Claude Debussy (fr. Achille-Claude Debussy, 1862-1918) is a famous French composer, one of the brightest representatives of impressionism. His works are notable for their extraordinary musical elegance, poetry, refinement of musical images.

Debussy is often called the father of 20th-century music for his ability to convey the sound of each chord and key in a new way. Debussy's musical talent was so wide that it allowed him to prove himself as an excellent performer, conductor and music critic.

Early biography

Claude Debussy was born on August 22, 1862 in the small town of Saint-Germain-en-Laye into a poor bourgeois family. His father was in the military in his youth and served in the Marine Corps, and later became involved in the faience business. But, having experienced failure in this field, he sold his store and moved his relatives to Paris. There were no hereditary musical traditions in the family, nevertheless, Claude from childhood began to demonstrate great musical abilities. His first teacher was the mother-in-law of the famous poet P. Verlaine Antoinette-Flora Mote, who called herself a student of Chopin.

Under her guidance, the boy showed incredible success and at the age of 11 was enrolled in the Paris Conservatory. Here the young talent was trained by the luminaries of the French musical scene A.F. Marmontel, A. Lavignac and E. Guiraud. Claude studied very diligently and diligently, but he did not stand out in particular. As a student, Debussy worked during the summer season with the pianist N. Von Meck for several years, and also taught music to her children. Thanks to this, he visited Russia and even imbued with an arrangement for the works of the composers of the Mighty Handful.

First takeoff

By the end of a long 11-year study, Claude presented his thesis work - the cantata "Prodigal Son", written on a biblical story. He was later awarded the Great Roman Prize for her. Its creation was inspired by the author's personal appeal to God. After the performance of the work within the walls of the conservatory, Ch. Geno called the 22-year-old Claude a genius. Debussy spent the next few years as a prize winner in Italy at the Villa Medici. Under the terms of the contract, he was supposed to be engaged in musical creativity, but the composer was constantly tormented by deep internal contradictions. Being under the hood of academic traditions, Claude sought to find his own musical language and style. This caused numerous conflicts and even disputes with teachers.

As a result, the Italian period did not become the most memorable in Debussy's work, although it was here that he began working on a poem for voice and orchestra, The Chosen One. In this work, the first features of the composer's own musical style appeared. In the future, the creative development of Debussy was greatly influenced by the Wagner celebrations he attended and the Paris World Exhibition, where he got acquainted with the sound of the Javanese gamelan and was strongly impressed by the works of M. Mussorgsky. In addition, Claude became interested in the work of the French symbolist poet S. Malarme and often visited his circles. Being in this environment and communicating with many poets, Debussy took their poems as the basis of a number of his works - Belgian Landscapes, Moonlight, Mandolin, Five Poems and others.

Time for musical experiments

In 1890, the composer undertook to write the opera "Rodrigue and Jimena", but he could not complete it. The main reason is that he often ran out of inspiration, and he could not find the strength in himself to return to what he started. In 1894, Claude wrote his most famous work, The Afternoon of a Faun. This prelude for a large orchestra was created on the basis of a poem by S. Malarme based on a mythological plot. After some time, this music inspired S. Diaghilev to stage a ballet, choreographed by V. Nezhinsky himself. Having not yet completed the previous work, Debussy set about writing three "Nocturnes" for a symphony orchestra. They were first performed in December 1900 in Paris. True, then only two parts of "Cloud" and "Celebration" were performed, and the third "Nocturne" called "Sirens" was presented only a year later.

The author himself explained that "Clouds" personified the image of a fixed sky with slowly floating clouds. "Celebrations" showed the dancing rhythm of the atmosphere, accompanied by flashes of bright light, and in "Sirens" the image of the sea is presented, where in the midst of moonlit waves, the mysterious singing of sirens is filled with laughter and disappears. In this work, the author's desire to embody life-real images in music was clearly manifested. “Music is just the art that is closest to nature,” Debussy argued.

In the 90s of the 19th century, the composer created the only completed opera, Pellas et Mélisande. It was shown in Paris in 1902 and had a good success with the public, although critics expressed rather negative assessments. The author managed to achieve a successful combination of the psychological refinement of music with inspired poetry, which made it possible to set a new mood for musical expression. In 1903, the musical cycle "Prints" appeared, in which the author tried to synthesize the musical styles of various cultures of the world.

The period of higher creative upsurge

The beginning of the 20th century was the most fruitful time in Debussy's work. He gradually leaves the captivity of symbolism and goes into the genre of everyday scenes and musical portraits. In 1903-1905, Claude wrote the largest of his symphonic works - "The Sea". He decided to write this work based on deep personal impressions received from observing the huge water element. In addition, he was again influenced by the Impressionist painters and the Japanese master of woodcut landscapes Hokusai. “The sea treated me well,” Debussy once said.

The large-scale essay consists of three parts. The first "From Dawn Till Noon at Sea" begins leisurely, but then wooden instruments begin to call to each other, and the movement of the sea waves appears. Further, in the "Play of the Waves" the iridescent mood is preserved, emphasized by orchestral effects and ringing bells. In the third part of the Dialogue of the Wind and the Sea, the sea is shown in a completely different way - stormy and formidable, its appearance is complemented by dramatic images that indicate a gloomy and disturbing mood.

The name Debussy is inseparable from piano music. He not only composed beautifully, but was also a brilliant pianist and even acted as a conductor. The famous pianist M. Long compared Claude's playing with the manner of F. Chopin, in which the smoothness of the performance was guessed, as well as the fullness and density of the sound. Often it was in this lightness that he sought inspiration, being in a long coloristic search.

The composer also tried to find a strong connection with national musical origins. This was confirmed by a series of piano works "Gardens in the Rain", "Evening in Granada", "Island of Joy".

The beginning of the last century was marked by the search for new non-traditional means of musical expression. Many authors were convinced that classical and romantic forms had exhausted themselves. In an attempt to discover new means, composers began increasingly to turn to the origins of non-European music. Among the genres that attracted Debussy's close attention was jazz. It was with his submission that this musical direction became very popular in the Old World.

Late creative period

Despite the onset of a serious illness, this time was remembered by Debussy's most active composing and performing activities. He participates in concert trips around Europe and Russia, where he was received with great honors and scope. Claude personally met with a number of Russian musicians, which is why he began to experience even greater reverence for Russian music.

The author again turns to piano creativity. In 1908 he completed the Children's Corner suite, which he dedicated to his own daughter. In this work, Claude tried to use music to represent the world through the eyes of a child, using recognizable images - a toy elephant, a doll, a little shepherd. In 1910 and 1913, prelude notebooks were created, where the figurative world of Debussy is fully revealed to the listener. In "Delphian Dancers" Claude managed to find a unique combination of the severity of the ancient temple and ritual pagan sensuality, and in the "Sunken Cathedral" the motifs of an old legend clearly echo.

In 1913, Debussy succeeded in expressing his love for the art of ballet. He wrote the music for the ballet "Games", which the troupe of S. Diaghilev presented in London and Paris. During the First World War, the author's creative activity began to decline, he was embraced by deep patriotic feelings. He set himself the task of glorifying beauty in defiance of the massive destruction of the war. This theme can be traced in a number of works - "Ode to France", "Heroic Lullaby", "Christmas of Homeless Children". In 1915, he decided to create Twelve Etudes in memory of F. Chopin, but he failed to complete them.

Claude was extremely depressed by everything that was happening in the country. The horror of war, blood and destruction caused deep spiritual anxiety. The serious illness that struck the composer in 1915 strengthened the difficult perception of reality. However, until his last days, Debussy was faithful to music and did not stop creative searches. The composer died in Paris on March 26, 1918 during the bombardment of the city by German troops.

Personal life

The famous French musician led an active personal life, but was married only twice. His first wife was Lily Tesquier, whom he married in 1899. Their union lasted only five years. Debussy's new passion will be the seductive Madame Bardac, with whose son Claude studied composition. Some time later, the couple had a daughter, Emme.

(1862-1918) French composer

Claude Achille Debussy was born on August 22, 1862 in Saint-Germainan-Laye, near Paris. He has been learning to play the piano since the age of 9. In 1872 he entered the Paris Conservatoire.

At the beginning of 1880, while still a student at the conservatory, Debussy accepted an offer to become a music teacher in the house of the Russian philanthropist N.F. von Meck. He traveled with the von Meck family in Europe and visited Russia twice (1881.1882), where he first became acquainted with the music of Russian composers Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky, Nikolai Andreevich Rimsky-Korsakov, which had a significant influence on the formation of his own style.

Among the works of Claude Debussy of the 80s, the lyric opera The Prodigal Son, which he presented at the final exam at the conservatory, stands out. In 1884, this work was awarded the Prix de Rome. Two piano collections, "Suite Bergamos" and "Little Suite", also gained great fame.

In the early 90s. Claude Debussy became close to the symbolist poets and impressionist painters. The next decade, from 1892 to 1902, is considered the heyday of Debussy's creative activity. At this time, he creates vocal works, the best of them are the cycles "Lyrical prose" on his own texts, "Songs of Bilitis" on the poems of P. Louis. He writes orchestral works, which have occupied almost the main place in the composer's legacy, in particular the symphony-prelude "Afternoon of a Faun", three orchestral nocturnes - "Clouds", "Festivities", "Sirens". The opera Pelléas et Melisande (1902) crowns this list.

At the same time, his music began not only to be widely performed, but also processed. The one-act ballet The Afternoon of a Faun was staged to the music of Claude Debussy, in which Russian dancers M. Fokin and V. Nijinsky danced brilliantly. This ballet was performed during the famous "Russian Seasons" organized in Paris by Sergei Diaghilev.

The next period of the composer's work begins in 1903 and is interrupted only by his death. He continues to work hard and interestingly: he creates three chamber suites and the ballet "Games", the choral cycle "Three Songs of Ch. Orleans", a suite for 2 pianos ("White and Black"). Debussy does not leave vocal cycles either. By this time, his “Three Songs of France”, “Three Ballads by F. Villon”, “Three Songs of Mallarmé”, as well as program orchestral works - symphonic sketches “Sea” and “Images” belong.

Since 1910, Claude Debussy has been constantly performing as a conductor and pianist, performing his own compositions. His posthumous publications also speak of the composer's versatility and efficiency. After his death, such piano collections of his as "Prints", "Children's Corner", 24 preludes and 12 etudes were published, the children's ballet "Toy Box", subsequently orchestrated by A. Kaple (1919), remained in the clavier.

Claude Debussy was also known as a music critic who wrote articles about the events of musical life.

The peculiarity of him as a writer was that instead of the traditional harmony built on a consonant combination of sounds, Debussy used free combinations of sounds, just as an artist chooses colors on a palette. He sought above all to make music free from any laws. Claude Debussy believed that sounds can paint pictures. That is why his compositions are called so - symphonic paintings.

Indeed, before the listeners there are either pictures of a raging sea or a boundless expanse fanned by a light wind, or clouds rushing under the gusts of wind. It was an experiment in music that had never been seen before, similar tasks were set for himself - also in the 20th century - by the Russian composer Alexander Nikolaevich Skryabin, who tried to combine music, sound and color.

No less interesting are the vocal cycles of Claude Debussy, in which he used a flexible and natural melody, close to poetic and colloquial speech; With his work, Debussy laid the foundation for a new direction in the art of music, called impressionism.

Achille-Claude Debussy(fr. Achille-Claude Debussy ; August 22, Saint-Germain-en-Laye near Paris - March 25, Paris listen)) is a French composer and music critic.

Composed in a style often referred to as impressionism, a term he never liked. Debussy was not only one of the most significant French composers, but also one of the most significant figures in music at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries; his music represents a transitional form from late romantic music to modernism in the music of the 20th century.

Biography

He was born on August 22, 1862 in Saint-Germain-en-Laye near Paris in a family of modest means - his father was a former marine, then a co-owner of a faience store. The first piano lessons were given to a gifted child by Antoinette Flora Mote (mother-in-law of the poet Verlaine).

In 1873, Debussy entered the Paris Conservatory, where for 11 years he studied with A. Marmontel (piano) and with A. Lavignac, E. Duran and O. Basil (music theory). Around 1876, he composed his first romances to poems by T. de Banville and P. Bourget. From 1879 to 1882 he spent his summer holidays as a "home pianist" - first at the castle of Chenonceau, and then at Nadezhda von Meck's - in her houses and estates in Switzerland, Italy, Vienna and Russia.

During these travels, new musical horizons opened before him, and acquaintance with the works of Russian composers of the St. Petersburg school turned out to be especially important. In love with the poetry of De Banville (1823-1891) and Verlaine, the young Debussy, endowed with a restless mind and prone to experiments (mainly in the field of harmony), enjoyed a reputation as a revolutionary. This, however, did not prevent him from receiving the Prix de Rome in 1884 for the cantata The Prodigal Son (L "Enfant prodigue").

Debussy spent two years in Rome. There he became acquainted with the poetry of the Pre-Raphaelites and began to compose a poem for voice and orchestra, The Chosen One, based on the text by G. Rossetti (La Demoiselle lue). He took deep impressions from visits to Bayreuth, Wagnerian influence was reflected in his vocal cycle Five Baudelaire Poems (Cinq Pomes de Baudelaire). Among other hobbies of the young composer are exotic orchestras, Javanese and Annamite, which he heard at the Paris World Exhibition in 1889; the writings of Mussorgsky, which at that time were gradually penetrating France; melodic ornamentation of Gregorian chant.

In 1890, Debussy began work on the opera Rodrigue and Chimène (Rodrigue et Chimène) based on a libretto by C. Mendez, but two years later he left the work unfinished (for a long time the manuscript was considered lost, then it was found; the work was instrumented by the Russian composer E. Denisov and staged in several theaters). At about the same time, the composer became a regular visitor to the circle of the symbolist poet S. Mallarme and for the first time read Edgar Allan Poe, who became Debussy's favorite author. In 1893, he began composing an opera based on Maeterlinck's drama Pelléas and Melisande (Pellas et Mlisande), and a year later, inspired by Mallarmé's eclogue, he completed the symphonic prelude The Afternoon of a Faun (Prlude l "Aprs-midi d" un faune).

Debussy was familiar with the main figures of literature of this period from his youth, among his friends were the writers P. Louis, A. Gide and the Swiss linguist R. Godet. His attention was attracted by impressionism in painting. The first concert entirely dedicated to Debussy's music was held in 1894 in Brussels at the Free Aesthetics Art Gallery against the backdrop of new paintings by Renoir, Pissarro, Gauguin and others. In the same year, work began on three nocturnes for orchestra, which were originally conceived as a violin concerto for the famous virtuoso E.Izai. The first of the nocturnes (Clouds) was compared by the author with "a picturesque sketch in gray tones".

By the end of the 19th century Debussy's work, which was considered analogues of impressionism in the visual arts and symbolism in poetry, covered an even wider range of poetic and visual associations. Among the works of this period are the string quartet in G minor (1893), which reflected the fascination with oriental modes, the vocal cycle Lyrical prose (Proses Lyriques, 1892-1893) on their own texts, the Songs of Bilitis (Chansons de Bilitis) based on the poems of P. Louis, inspired by the pagan idealism of ancient Greece, as well as Willows (La Saulaie), an unfinished cycle for baritone and orchestra on verses by Rossetti.

In 1899, shortly after his marriage to fashion model Rosalie Texier, Debussy lost the small income he had: his publisher J. Artmann died. Burdened with debts, he nevertheless found the strength to complete the Nocturnes in the same year, and in 1902 the second edition of the five-act opera Pelléas et Melisande. Staged at the Paris Comic Opera on April 30, 1902, Pelléas made a splash. This work, remarkable in many respects (deep poetry is combined in it with psychological refinement, the instrumentation and interpretation of vocal parts is striking in its novelty), has been assessed as the greatest achievement in the operatic genre since Wagner. The following year brought the cycle of Estampes (Estampes) - it is already developing a style characteristic of Debussy's piano work. In 1904, Debussy entered into a new family union - with Emma Bardak, which almost led to the suicide of Rosalie Texier and caused ruthless publicity of some of the circumstances of the composer's personal life. However, this did not prevent the completion of Debussy's best orchestral work - three symphonic sketches of the Sea (La Mer; first performed in 1905), as well as wonderful vocal cycles - Three Songs of France (Trois chansons de France, 1904) and the second notebook of Gallant Festivities based on Verlaine's verses (Les fêtes galantes, 1904).

Throughout the rest of his life, Debussy had to struggle with illness and poverty, but he worked tirelessly and very fruitfully. Since 1901, he began to appear in the periodical press with witty reviews of the events of current musical life (after Debussy's death, they were collected in the collection Monsieur Croche - antidilettante, Monsieur Croche - antidilettante, published in 1921). During the same period, most of his piano works appear. Two series of Images (Images, 1905-1907) were followed by the Children's Corner suite (Children's Corner, 1906-1908), dedicated to Shush, the composer's daughter (she was born in 1905, but Debussy could only formalize her marriage to Emma Bardak for three years later).

Although the first signs of cancer appeared already in 1909, in the following years Debussy made several trips with concerts in order to provide for his family. He conducted his own compositions in England, Italy, Russia and other countries. Two notebooks of piano preludes (1910-1913) demonstrate the evolution of a kind of "sound-pictorial" writing, characteristic of the composer's piano style. In 1911, he wrote music for the mystery G. d "Annunzio The Martyrdom of St. Sebastian (Le Martyre de Saint Sbastien), the score was made by the French composer and conductor A. Caplet. In 1912, the orchestral cycle Images appeared. Debussy had long attracted ballet, and in 1913 he composed the music for the ballet The Game (Jeux), which was performed by Sergei Diaghilev's Russian Seasons in Paris and London.

In the same year, the composer began work on the children's ballet The Toy Box (La Boîte à joujoux) - its instrumentation was completed by Caplet after the death of the author. This stormy creative activity was temporarily suspended by the First World War, but already in 1915 numerous piano works appeared, including Twelve Etudes (Douze tudes), dedicated to the memory of Chopin. Debussy began a series of chamber sonatas, based to a certain extent on the style of French instrumental music of the 17th and 18th centuries. He managed to complete three sonatas from this cycle: for cello and piano (1915), for flute, viola and harp (1915), for violin and piano (1917). He still had the strength to remake the opera libretto based on the story by E. Poe The Fall of the House of Eschers - the plot had long attracted Debussy, and even in his youth he began work on this opera; now he has received an order for it from J. Gatti-Casazza from the Metropolitan Opera. The composer died in Paris on March 26, 1918.

Letters

• Monsieur Croche - antidillettante, P., 1921; Articles, reviews, conversations, trans. from French, M.-L., 1964; Fav. letters, L., 1986.

Creation

Compositions

• operas:
  • Rodrigo and Jimena (1892, unfinished)
  • Pelléas and Mélisande (1902, Paris)
  • The Fall of the House of Escher (in outline, 1908-17)
• ballets:
  • Kamma (1912, finalized in 1924, ibid.)
  • Games (1913, Paris)
  • Box with toys (children, 1913, post. 1919, Paris)
• Cantatas:
  • lyric scenes The Prodigal Son (1884)
  • Ode to France (1917, completed by M. F. Gaillard)
• Poem for voices and orchestra, The Chosen Virgin (1888)
• For orchestra:
  • divertissement Triumph of Bacchus (1882)
  • symphonic suite Spring (1887)
  • Prelude to The Afternoon of a Faun (1894)
• Nocturnes (Clouds, Celebrations; Sirens - with women's choir; 1899)
• 3 symphonic sketches of the Sea (1905)
• Images (Gigi, Iberia, Spring round dances, 1912)
• Chamber instrumental ensembles - sonatas for cello and piano (1915), for violin and piano (1917), for flute, viola and harp (1915), piano trio (1880), string quartet (1893)
• For piano - Bergamas Suite (1890), Prints (1903), Island of Joy (1904), Masks (1904), Images (1st series - 1905, 2nd - 1907), suite Children's Corner (1908), preludes ( 1st notebook - 1910, 2nd - 1913), sketches (1915)
• Songs and romances
• Music for drama theater performances, piano transcriptions, etc.

Sources

Literature

• Alshwang A. Claude Debussy, M., 1935;
• Alshwang A. Works by Claude Debussy and M. Ravel, M., 1963
• Rosenchild K. Young Debussy and his contemporaries, M., 1963
• Martynov I. Claude Debussy, M., 1964
• Medvedeva I. A. Music encyclopedic dictionary, Moscow. 1991
• Kremlev Yu. Claude Debussy, M., 1965
• Sabinina M. Debussy, in the book Music of the 20th century, part I, book. 2, M., 1977
• Yarotsinskiy S. Debussy, Impressionism and Symbolism, per. from Polish., M., 1978
• Debussy and the music of the 20th century Sat. Art., L., 1983
• Denisov E. On some features of the compositional technique of C. Debussy, in his book: Modern music and problems of evolution of the comp. technology, M., 1986
• Barraque J. Claude Debussy, R., 1962
• Golaa A.S. Debussy, I'homme et son oeuvre, P., 1965
• Golaa A.S. Claude Debussy. Liste complete des oeuvres…, P.-Gen., 1983
• Lockspeiser E. Debussy, L.-, 1980.
• Hendrik Lucke: Mallarmé - Debussy. Eine vergleichende Studie zur Kunstanschauung am Beispiel von "L'Après-midi d'un Faune".(= Studien zur Musikwissenschaft, Bd. 4). Dr. Kovac, Hamburg 2005, ISBN 3-8300-1685-9.
• Jean Barraque, Debussy(Solfèges), Editions du Seuil, 1977. ISBN 2-02-000242-6
• roy howat, Debussy in Proportion: A musical analysis, Cambridge University Press, 1983. ISBN 0-521-31145-4
• Rudolph Reti, Tonality, Atonality, Pantonality: A study of some trends in twentieth century music. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1958. ISBN 0-313-20478-0.
• Jane Fulcher (Editor) Debussy and His World(The Bard Music Festival), Princeton University Press, 2001. ISBN 0-691-09042-4
• Simon Trezise (Editor), The Cambridge Companion to Debussy, Cambridge University Press, 2003. ISBN 0-521-65478-5

Links

• Debussy: Sheet Music at the International Music Score Library Project

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Debussy K. A.- DEBUSSY (Debussy) Claude Achille (22.8.1862, Saint Germain en Les, near Paris, 25.3.1918, Paris), French. composer. He graduated from the Paris Conservatory in the composition class of E. Guiraud and the pianoforte of A. Marmontel (1884). He has performed as a pianist and conductor with... Ballet. Encyclopedia

DEBUSSY, France, Telfrance, 1994, 90 min. Biographical film. Cast: Francois Marsore, Pascal Rocard, Teresa Lyotard, Mars Berman. Director: James Jones. Screenwriter: Eric Emmanuel Schmidt. Operator: Valery Martynov (see MARTYNOV Valery ... ... Cinema Encyclopedia