- Composed between 1909-10, Debussy’s first book of 12 piano préludes initiated the composer’s final decade of life.
- Rather than serving the traditional purpose of providing a musical introduction to a subsequent piece, Debussy’s preludes function more as mini tone poems.
- Each of the 12 pieces illustrates a unique scene. The ellipsis preceding each title was intentional by Debussy, as though to convey what inspired each piece while leaving the door open to alternative interpretation by the performer or listener:1
- … Danseuses de Delphes (Dancers of Delphi)
- … Voiles (“Veils” or “Sails”)
- … Le vent dans la plaine (The wind in the plain)
- … Les sons et les parfums tournent dans l’air du soir (Sounds and scents swirl through the evening air)
- … Les collines d’Anacapri (The hills of Anacapri)
- … Des pas sur la neige (Footsteps in the snow)
- … Ce qu’a vu le vent d’Ouest (What the west wind has seen)
- … La fille aux cheveux de lin (The girl with the flaxen hair)
- … La sérénade interrompue (The interrupted serenade)
- … La Cathédrale engloutie (The engulfed cathedral)
- … La danse de Puck (Puck’s Dance)
- … Minstrels
- The complete first book of préludes was first performed at the Salle Pleyel in Paris in 1911, performed by Jane Mortier (a friend of the composer).2
Sources
- Francis Pott, “Building a Library: Préludes,” BBC Music Magazine Vol. 28, No. 6 (2020), 62-63.
- “Préludes, Livre 1 (Debussy, Claude),” IMSLP, accessed August 14, 2023, https://imslp.org/wiki/Pr%C3%A9ludes%2C_Livre_1_(Debussy%2C_Claude).
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