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- Clair de lune, the third segment in Suite bergamasque, a four-movement composition for piano by French composer Claude Debussy, begun in 1890 and revised and published in 1905. The gentle “Clair de lune” provides an elegant contrast to the suite’s sprightly second and fourth movements.
www.britannica.com/topic/Clair-de-lune-by-Debussy
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Clair de lune, the third segment in Suite bergamasque, a four-movement composition for piano by French composer Claude Debussy, begun in 1890 and revised and published in 1905. The gentle “Clair de lune” provides an elegant contrast to the suite’s sprightly second and fourth movements.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
- Debussy’s ‘Clair de Lune’: The Story Behind The Masterpiece
- The Soul of Symbolism
- Can We Hear The Poem in Debussy’s Music?
- Can I Play It? – Featuring A Lesson with Lang Lang
- Debussy’s Own Advice on How to Play ‘Clair de Lune’
- Recommended Recording
Debussy actually wrote three ‘Clair De Lunes’. The idea is from a poem by Paul Verlaine in his collection entitled Fêtes Galantes, themselves inspired by the paintings of Jean-Antoine Watteau (1684-1721). Debussy set six of these poems to music, including this one, first in 1882, then again in 1891. The piano piece dates originally from 1890 and wa...
Watteau’s paintings are stylised, delicate portrayals of courtly life and love in idyllic pastoral settings, the protagonists sometimes costumed for masquerades as Commedia Dell’Artecharacters (Harlequin, Pierrot, Columbine, et al). Verlaine took up this atmosphere of disguise and implied hidden desires and carried it into the late 19th century’s S...
Only to a certain degree, perhaps – because originally the piece had a completely different title, which was ‘Promenade Sentimentale’. That, too, is from Verlaine, after verses from his Poèmes Saturniens. But when Debussy decided to switch to the more descriptive and precise ‘Clair De Lune’, he probably had a good reason to do so. The work shares t...
In terms of piano technique ‘Clair De Lune’ is simpler than many of Debussy’s other pieces, but it does have complications of its own. In particular, we need to pay attention to the quality of touch and sound and the subtle gradations of dynamics within those mainly muted colours. Lang Lang says the opening of Debussy’s ‘Clair De Lune’ is like glim...
Interestingly, we also have Debussy’s own advice on how to play ‘Clair De Lune’. The pianist Maurice Dumesnil once visited the composer for a coaching session and wrote an article about what he had learned. He reports that Debussy did not want the triplets in the first section to be too strictly in time: there should be “a general flexibility”. Dum...
Debussy’s ‘Clair De Lune’ is featured on Lang Lang’s album Piano Book– a collection of pieces that first inspired Lang Lang to play the piano as a child and led him on his path to international stardom. Lang Lang said, “I dedicate this album to my wonderful piano students and all my friends around the world who love the piano as much as I do.” Buy ...
- Jessica Duchen
- 7 min
Jul 26, 2017 · French composer Claude Debussy’s best-loved piano piece, Clair de Lune, has entered popular consciousness thanks to its regular performance.
- Stephanie Mccallum
- 24 min
Aug 18, 2024 · French composer Claude Debussy’s major works included Clair de lune (“Moonlight”; in Suite bergamasque, 1890–1905), Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune (1894; Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun), the opera Pelléas et Mélisande (1902), and La Mer (1905; “The Sea”).
- Edward Lockspeiser
Feb 27, 2019 · Claude Debussy started writing the incredibly romantic piano piece Clair de lune in 1890 when he was just 28, but it wasn’t published for another 15 years! The title means ‘Moonlight’ and the piece is actually part of the four-movement work Suite Bergamasque.
Jul 10, 2014 · The reflective and thought provoking sentiment of Clair de Lune was absolutely intended by Debussy. The title Clair de Lune means ‘moonlight’ in French. Fair enough- the piece does remind us of the moonlit night, but what is interesting is that the piece was originally called ‘Promenade Sentimentale’ meaning a ‘sentimental walk’.
Apr 28, 2024 · The poem’s title translates to “gallant parties,” a reference to the aristocratic gatherings of the 18th century, and is full of symbolism and hidden meanings. Debussy used Verlaine’s ethereal yet melancholic poem to create Clair De Lune, a piece that captures the essence of the poet’s words.
