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12 SELECTED PIANO WORKS

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DEBUSSY
12 SELECTED PIANO WORKS

EDITED BY JOSEPH BANOWETZ

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AN ALFRED MASTERWORK EDITION

Alfred) ° 2000 by Belwin-Mills Publishing Corp., Cover art: Argenteuil, 1875

S A Division of Alfred Music Publishing Co., Inc. by Claude Monet (1840-1926)
X All rights reserved. Printed in USA. Orangerie, Paris
Giraudon/Art Resource, New York
 |
A CONTENTS

Page No. Track No.

Pace ао ое В а TS 1
Lepetit DESTEN SL O оО ARA RAS 2
ае ао cheyveux de in. ae etn ЕК МООЛ ee E SON SALE 5
‘Atabesgue Nos e ООО УУ О ОШО me О sn AI e дир 4
ArabesҚолы Гер ne N ani OT LSA ТКТ: 5
RC
VE CC A ыз ЗЫМ е MM 205527 КЕТЕE 6
A 1061.1710 с Са ы ee A rime ку eee A R RE A à7
rele игото ОО о Е КИ e 8
Doctor (ОШ. Раа ЕТЕ Se O 9
INS pana eoe de iN UR LU ee DA n ин E P nd 10
Serena dani ON A ter ver teet d a mt andes d ASS ii Pe LE
 OOfhour THE EDITOR
JOSEPH BANOWETZ has been described in Fanfare Record Review (United States) as
“a giant among keyboard artists of our time” and by Russia's News (Moscow) as “a magnificent
virtuoso.” He has been heard as recitalist and orchestral soloist on five continents, with guest
appearances in recent seasons with such orchestras as the St. Petersburg (formerly the Leningrad)
Philharmonic, the New Zealand Symphony (in a twelve-concert national tour), the Prague Radio
Symphony, the Moscow State Symphony, the Belarus National Philharmonic of Minsk, the Hong
Kong Philharmonic, the Shanghai Symphony, and the Beijing Central Philharmonic.

Banowetz has received international critical acclaim for his series of compact disc recordings
for the Marco Polo, Naxos, and Altarus labels. His world-premiere recording of Balakirev works
received a German Music Critics’ outstanding record of the year award, and his world-premiere
recording of Anton Rubinstein's Concertos Nos. 1 and 2 received a similar citation from Fanfare
Record Review (U.S.). He has recorded twenty-two compact discs including concertos of
Tchaikovsky’s, Liszt's, and d'Albert's and the world-premiere recordings of all eight of the Anton
Rubinstein works for piano and orchestra. Banowetz has recorded with the Moscow Symphony,
Prague Radio Symphony, the Czecho-Slovak State Philharmonic, the Budapest Symphony, the
Beijing Central Opera Orchestra, and the Hong Kong Philharmonic.

A graduate with a First Prize from the Vienna Academy for Music and Dramatic Arts,
Banowetz also studied with Carl Friedberg (a pupil of Clara Schumann's) and Gyorgy Sándor
(a pupil of Béla Bartok’s). In addition to his performance and recording activities, he has given
lectures and master classes at such schools as the Juilliard in New York City, the St. Petersburg
Conservatory, the Royal College of Music in London, the Chopin Academy of Warsaw, the
Beijing Central Conservatory, the Shanghai Conservatory, and the Hong Kong Academy for the
Performing Arts.

Banowetz has been invited to serve on many international piano competition juries, these having
included the Gina Bachauer International Piano Competition (United States), the 2001 World Piano
Competition (United States), the Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Master Competition (Israel),
the Scottish International Piano Competition (Glasgow), and the PTNA Young Artists Competition
(Japan). His award-winning book The Pianist Guide to Pedaling has been printed in five languages. In
1992 Banowetz was presented with the Liszt Medal by the Hungarian Liszt Society in Budapest. Mr.
Banowetz is a Steinway artist.
 2 ERFORMANCE NOTES

Page d'album
This work, which was untitled by Debussy, was written in 1915, to be sold for the benefit of a war
relief organization named Le Vétement du blessé (The Clothing of the Wounded). The music has
the character of a slow waltz.

Measures 7 and 8: Push ahead the tempo slightly until the beginning of measure 9, where there is
a resumption of the original tempo. Note that in measures 11 and 12, Debussy does not indicate
a parallel quickening of the tempo.

Measures 19-22: Show a distinction between the pianissimo here and the piano found at the
beginning when this same theme appears.

Measures 24-27: Carefully follow the sudden drops of dynamics back to piano.

Measures 27-30: The rubato indicates a freedom in the rhythm. Hold together these measures as
a four-bar phrase, perhaps starting a little slower, speeding up, and then slowing back down at the
end of the phrase in measure 30.

Measures 37-38: Keep this measure in tempo, as a sort of elegant “throw-away” ending.

Le petit negre
This humorous little piece in ragtime style was written for Théodore Lack’s piano method and
then published in 1909 by Alphonse Leduc, who again brought it out in 1934 in an expanded
version not originally by Debussy. Its style 1s related to the “Golliwogg's Cake Walk” from the
Children's Corner Suite and can be used as an introduction to it. A cake walk is an elaborate step
or strutting dance that was originally performed by Negroes in the American South competing
for the prize of a cake.

Throughout this piece, a clear differentiation of touches is extremely important. Relatively little pedal
should be used so as to project the sharp, incisive touches and rhythms. Only in measures 16-25 and
29-33, where the outlines of the music become more rounded, can some more pedal be used.

Measures 1-3, 5-7, etc.: Carefully show the slurring. Even a short slur over two sixteenths, as in
measures 3 and 7, should be shown.

Measures 3-12: Differences in touches should be clear to the listener. For instance, in measures
3—7 the left hand is given a portato touch, in measure 8 there are two slurs in the left hand, and in
measures 9-12 the left hand has a staccato touch.

Arabesque No. 1
Debussy's two arabesques were first published in 1891 but actually date from 1888. The style
cannot yet be termed “impressionistic.” The composer himself later perhaps implied the meaning
of the titles when he spoke of Bach’s “adorable arabesques.”

11
Throughout the piece, lightly stress the lowest notes in each left-hand figuration, these usually
falling on the first and third beats.

Measures 7, 9, 10, and ll: When the pedal is changed on each second beat, hold the first two eighths
of the left hand long enough to sustain them as a new pedal is taken. This “finger pedaling” will
enable the bass to be maintained in an unbroken line.

Measure 39: Notice the tempo rubato indication, therefore giving you the freedom to “let go” and
play in an improvisatory manner.

Measures 47-49: Note the differences in phrasing and slurring in both the left and right hands.

Measures 89-94: Carefully hold over, as well as lightly emphasize, the half notes in the left hand.

Measures 99-107: Play from measure 99 to the end in tempo, as if this is the curtain coming down
on an elegant play or opera.

Arabesque No. 2
Measures 1-7, and later similar passages: It is important that the triplet sixteenth-eighth note
figures be extremely precise rhythmically. A good way to practice is to tap a rapid eighth-note
rhythm with the left hand while playing the right-hand notes. Start with a lower wrist as you begin
each triplet, and then lift slightly as you reach the eighth note. This will keep your arm and hand
from getting tense and, more important, will shape each group properly. Throughout this entire
piece, use very little pedal.

Measures 3840: Do not be tempted to use pedal to connect the left hand since this will blur the
staccato notes in the right hand.

Measures 82-89: This is the only area requiring longer stretches of pedal. In later works in
particular, Debussy often indicates such stretches of pedal by writing longer notes, often in the
bass, that cannot be held by the fingers alone.

Кеуегіе
The exact date of composition of this early work is unknown, although Debussy sold it, along
with a group of other early works, to the Choudens publishing company in 1891. Fromont finally
published it in 1905, much to Debussy’s chagrin, who by that time was composing works of much
greater musical maturity. Nonetheless, it has proven to be one of his most popular works for piano
largely because of the elegant melody set against a Chopinesque texture.

Measures 1-8: When the pedal is changed because of the melody, hold over as many notes in the
left hand as you can with the fingers. For instance, in measures 4-5, play as follows:
Measures 23-26: On many pianos, you will not need a pedal change on the downbeat of measure
25, assuming you make a good, steady crescendo. Experiment and listen carefully to yourself!

Measures 69-70: Bring out the melody clearly in the lower quarter notes of the left hand.

Measures 76-81: This is a wonderful use by Debussy of the venerable three-hand effect, first used
extensively and with great brilliance by Liszt and Sigismond Thalberg. Here, try to shape the
overall melody as well as its first occurence in the opening bars of the piece.

Prélude, from Suite bergamasque

The Suite bergamasque was written around 1889 and then appeared in 1905 in a revised version
published by Fromont. The word bergamasque probably had its origins in the Bergamo region
of northern Italy. It is from this region that a dance called bergamasca came and that the cast of
characters from the antique Italian Comedia dell'Arte can be traced. The entire Suite bergamasque
can also be regarded as a transformation of the older Baroque suite, with the *Prélude" serving as
a brilliant improvisatory first movement and the “Clair de lune" as the slower dance movement.

One of the difficulties found in this lovely work is the occurence of large unbroken left-hand
chords, which demand a stretch of a tenth. In many cases, redistribution will solve this problem if
the performer is not fortunate enough to have such a large hand. Following are possible solutions,
additional to the redistributions already indicated in the musical text in measures 10, 18, 22, 38,
and 68.

Measure |: By the indication tempo rubato, Debussy is asking for a certain freedom and flexibility
in the rhythm. For instance, in measures 1 and 2, the performer could hold the half-note chord
slightly longer, start the sixteenth notes slower, then speed up, and finally reach a stable tempo in
the first half of measures 3 and 4. A slight pushing of the tempo to the downbeat in the second
half of measures 3 and 4 would offset the more strict tempo of the first half of each of these
measures. (This gives only a very rough idea of how tempo rubato could be used here!)

Measure 3: The following redistribution is possible. Note that the whole-note A in the left hand
must be silently re-depressed again with the left hand before the pedal is changed on the third
beat. If this is used, a slightly different pedaling is necessary.

Measures 5-6: Here Debussy writes in a real four-part, almost fugal, style. Keep a good legato
with the fingers so as to not lose the tied and held notes in each part when the pedal is changed.
Do some practicing without pedal. у
Measure 19: Ideally the low whole-note F on the downbeat should be heard through the entire
measure. Underplay slightly the D-BB and BB-G thirds in the right hand so as to more easily
maintain the basic F major harmony. Another solution (favored by the editor) is to use the
following redistribution as a form of finger pedaling. Note the pedaling.

== Hold both F's in the left hand until the end of the measure.
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Measures 21, 24, and similar later places: Smaller hands should roll the left-hand chords slightly
before the beat, carefully catching the lowest notes in each change of pedal.

Measures 26-29: Problems with these large left-hand stretches can be solved with the following
redistributions:

3 3 3
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Measures 30-31: As in measures 5 and 6, keep a good finger legato so that each part remains
connected. See also measures 44-51. Do some practicing without pedal.

Measure 88: Note that Debussy's accent is placed under the A, which is the last note of the melody.
Playing the chord using 5-3 instead of 5-4 will help facilitate this difficult voicing.
Clair de lune, from Suite bergamasque
Do not sentimentalize this delicately shimmering work with exaggerated rubatos and other cheap
effects, but rather try to play with an expressive simplicity and elegance.

Measures 5-8: The downbeats should not be accented so that the tied notes of the melody can
clearly sound through from the measure before.

Measures 10-14: These measures are good examples of how Debussy often indicates how he
wishes the pedaling by the use of long notes. Since each dotted half note on each downbeat
must be carried through, do not change the pedal until the next measure. Only in measure 14
can a possible half pedal change be taken, which incidentally may not be necessary on all pianos,
especially when playing in a larger hall.

Measure 15: The tempo rubato marking indicates there should be flexibility of the rhythm. For
example, perhaps pause slightly on the first chord, then push ahead until the second half of
measure 16, and then relax the tempo.

Measures 19-25: Begin measure 19 still at a pianissimo, and then carry the crescendo to the
downbeat of measure 25. Calculate your rate of crescendo carefully, being approximately piano
at the start of measure 21, mezzo piano at the start of measure 23, and finally a non-percussive
forte in measure 25. A common mistake in a long crescendo 1s to get too loud too soon. Knowing
approximately where you want to be in dynamic levels, somewhat like following road signs, is a
helpful means of conquering this bad habit.

Measures 25-26: Make each roll not only slower than the one before, but also softer. Again, use
“road signs,” the first roll being forte, the next mezzo forte, the next mezzo piano, and the last
piano. This sets the stage for the pianissimo of measure 27.

Measures 27-42: Follow the dynamics exactly. The climax of this entire section, which is only a
forte, comes in measure 41. When you memorize, learn not only the notes but the exact dynamics
as well. Know what they are at any given moment, and not just as a vague “now I get louder” or
“now І get softer”!

Measure 30: Lightly bring out, like an echo, the G-F-D?-D?-B}È answer in the middle voice.

Measure 43: Notice that from here to the end ofthe piece, the dynamics should never be above a
pianissimo and will be pianississimo for part of the time.

Measures 63-65: Avoid making a crescendo in order to set the mood better for the morendo
(dying away) indication in measure 66.

vi
Selections from Children’s Corner Suite
Debussy’s Children’s Corner Suite was composed between 1906 and 1908. He dedicated it to his
daughter, Claude-Emma, with the following inscription: “To my dear little Chouchou with her
father's apologies for what is to follow.” Debussy’s daughter outlived her father by only one
year, dying in 1919 at the age of fourteen. These lovely works continue to captivate listeners and
performers of all ages.

Dr. Gradus ad Parnassum

Debussy is perhaps suggesting a child’s frustrating struggles with exercises from Clementi’s
Gradus ad Parnassum. Debussy, perhaps with tongue in cheek, termed this piece “a kind of
progressive hygienic, gymnastic exercise to be played every morning.”

Measures 3-6: Show a clear difference in touches between the eighth-note staccato top
notes in measures 3 and 4 and the /egato quarter notes in measures 5 and 6.

Measures 67 and 69: The editor takes the A’s with the right hand.

Serenade for the Doll

This piece was first published separately in 1906 and is a tribute to one of his daughter’s
favorite dolls.

It is quite possible to play this piece entirely without damper pedal until reaching Debussy’s
indication for it in measures 121-123.

Measures 1-13: Keep the E-Bs uniformly even in dynamics, except for the sudden forte in
measure 8. Do not let them follow the dynamics in the melody.

Measure 13: Taking the last E-B with the right hand will help ensure that there is no
crescendo or accent before the sudden forte in measure 14.

Measure 66-105: Pay close attention to which notes are rolled. For instance, in measures
83-84 there are rolls in the left hand, in measures 86-89 no rolls, and in measures 90-92 rolls
in both hands.

Measures 107-114: Carefully observe the sudden shifts of dynamics in the right hand.

vli
Measures 115-118: Try to make these measures sound as if you would play them as follows:

+ ‎‫ ڪڪ‬RER

mit ITI = = =========

1 2 3

The Little Shepherd

This is a rather melancholy picture of a toy shepherd. Throughout, the most precise dynamics
are called for. There are lovely echo effects, for instance in measures 3 and 4 and measures
24 and 25. Debussy at times uses dynamics between dynamics, as in measures 8-10, where he
begins piano, goes to pi piano (more soft), and then goes to pianissimo in the right hand and
pianississimo in the left hand. Depending on the instrument you play, try to use the una corda
only for pianissimo and softer.

Measure 24: This is the dynamic climax of the entire piece. Only in measure 3 does Debussy
give another mezzo forte indication, everywhere else indicating piano or below.

Measures 27-30: In measure 27 start pianissimo, and then go down to pianississimo. In

measure 28 start piano, and then drop to a pianissimo at the beginning of measure 29. Keep
getting softer until you reach the pianississimo in measure 30.

Golliwogg’s Cake Walk

In Europe during the early 1900s, a little black doll named Golliwogg was enormously
popular. In style, this piece is related, through its use of minstrel rhythms, to “Le petit negre,”
also included in this collection.

Measures 1-4: Make distinctions between the various types of accents, such as the following:

> AA
Measures 6-15: Keep the left hand uniformly piano and staccato.

Measures on. 18-19, and 96-99: Possibly redistribute these measures as follows:

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Measures 16-17:Take the crescendo up to a strong fortissimo, and then immediately drop back
to a forte on the downbeat of measure 18.

Vili
Measures 27,35, 107, 115: Most performers hold the pedal through each of these measures
in order to hold the D-F half notes. Another solution is possible that allows the eighth
notes to still sound staccato and unpedaled.

Measure 33: If pedal is used on the last eighth note, it should only be for accenting.
Release it quickly; otherwise, a carry-over of sound into the next piano will result. On a
large concert instrument, this pedaling may be unnecessary.

Measures 47-59: All the grace notes should be played very rapidly and before each beat.
Use a quick upward flip of the wrist, while pulling in with the fingers playing the chords. In
measures 49 and 57, Debussy's marking (see example) is somewhat ambiguous in meaning.
A small rubato as well as a slight expressive stressing of the grace note may be what is
intended.
—pp >

IX
 Measures 61-63 and 65-67: Debussy detested the music of Wagner. Here he makes fun of
the opening of Wagner’s opera Tristan and Isolde.
Lento e languido
Langsam und schmachtend

7 The opening to Wagner’s Prelude

to his opera Tristan and Isolde

==
Measures 67 and 68: These measures сап be redistributed as follows to make it easier to
play the grace notes in a rapid, clear manner. See also measure 78.

гай оо де
— +” 145 И —
EY AO ELA AA SL A BA A
зь EL p ET) ETA Бестен V A A
LN y EA SAA

Measures 90-92: Do not gradually get faster in measures 90-91; then make the return to
tempo one in measure 92 sudden and unexpected.

La fille aux cheveux de lin (from Préludes, Bk. 1)

This portrait of “The Girl with the Flaxen Hair” remains one of Debussy's most popular works
for the piano. Play it with simplicity and an unexaggerated expressiveness.

Measures 2-3: Do not accent the downbeat of measure 3; be careful to make clear the small
decrescendo at the end of measure 2. This will help prevent any feeling of rhythmic squareness.
Measure 12: Roll the right hand on, not before, the beat so as to avoid a break in the melody and
to be able to catch all the notes in the pedal.

Measure 13: When the pedal is partially cleared on the first beat, be sure to hold the right hand С?
with the fifth finger to avoid a break in the melody. Another way of pedaling this is as follows:
Mouvt (resume tempo)

Г) —
Rees" AA Rc NT A E аа БҰ ВРО UM SN! AA
ПУ AB E edic
E o o
HAZ e

half pedal Ê É

If you use this pedaling, hold only the lowest G? in the left hand when you change the pedal on
the high G? in the right hand.

Measure 31: In the left hand, first play the lowest Е?-В? slightly before the beat and then the top
G?-B”-E? with the notes in the right hand. Slightly hold back the last two sixteenths in measure
30 to help make this necessary delay musically convincing.

Measures 37-38: Imagine the sound of the two broken octaves as the sound of a harp
being plucked.

XI
 ОВюскльнх OF CLAUDE DEBUSSY

Claude Debussy’s place in musical history as one of France's greatest composers remains secure. Born
August 22, 1862, near Paris in St.-Germain-en-Laye, his father was proprietor of a china shop. Debussy had
early piano lessons with Mme. Mauté de Fleurville, the mother-in-law of the French poet Paul Verlaine, and
then at the age of eleven was admitted to the Paris Conservatoire. Debussy proved to be an excellent student,
although he was not popular with either the faculty or his classmates because of his uncommunicative and
surly manner. He sarcastically termed César Franck, one of his teachers, a modulating machine, and when
asked by another instructor what rules he followed, answered back, “My own pleasure.” Nonetheless,
Debussy was awarded first prizes in both solfège and practical harmony shortly before his graduation.

Debussy spent 1881 and 1882 in the employment of Mme. Nadezhda von Meck, Tchaikovsky's patroness.
His duties included acting as the household's piano teacher and resident performer during the von Meck
family’s travel’s to Switzerland, Italy, and Russia. Mme. von Meck, in a letter to Tchaikovsky, described
Debussy as “Parisian from tip to toe, a typical gamin, very witty and an excellent mimic.” He was fired
when he unsuccessfully proposed marriage to von Meck’s eldest daughter, Sonia.

In 1884, after further composition studies at the Conservatoire, Debussy was awarded a coveted Prix
de Rome, which enabled him to live for three years at government expense at the Villa Medici in
Rome. During this time, he was expected to compose as well as submit some of his work each year to
the authorities in Paris for evaluation. At the end of the first year, it was reported that “at present M.
Debussy seems to be afflicted with a desire to compose music that is bizarre, incomprehensible, and
impossible to execute.” Debussy despised Italy and all that was Italian, and in the spring of 1887 he
decided to return to Paris before completing his residency. His days as a student were over.

Although Debussy was briefly captivated by the music of Richard Wagner, soon he developed a bitter
hatred of all Wagnerisms and consequently championed the French ideals of conciseness and clarity. These
ideals are increasingly reflected in his music. Debussy also encountered both the music of the Russian
Nationalists, as well as music of the Far East, at the 1889 Exposition held in Paris. These musical styles,
too, would prove to be exotic influences on his work. Most important, during the 1890s, Debussy became
personally acquainted with the leading impressionistic painters and symbolist poets of the day.

By this time, Debussy’s personality had become complex and reserved and was pervaded by an
unpleasantly aggressive egoism that made him appear cold and sarcastic to most people. He was short
and plump with a pale complexion and a huge forehead protruding over penetrating, heavily lidded eyes.
Since his return from Rome in 1887, he had been living with Gabrielle Duport. She left him after having
shot herself following an argument. A marriage followed two years later to Rosalie Texier, a dressmaker.
In 1904 Debussy left her, and she, too, shot herself, but recovered. Debussy finally found some domestic
happiness with Emma Bardac, whom he married in 1908. Emma was relatively well-off, having been
married to a wealthy banker. Debussy and Emma had one daughter, Chouchou, who tragically died at
the age of fourteen, just a year after Debussy’s own death.

The final fifteen years of Debussy’s life were spent primarily in Paris, although he occasionally paid
visits to such cities as Budapest, Vienna, Moscow, Amsterdam, and Rome to conduct his own works. It
was during this period that he wrote the caustic series of music reviews and articles that earned him the
reputation as one of the day’s most perceptive critics. By the summer of 1909, Debussy began to feel
symptoms of the cancer that would bring him an agonizing death on March 25, 1918, as the Germans were
bombarding Paris. At the end, he wrote tragically about his “life of waiting—my waiting-room existence
I might call it—for I am a poor traveller waiting for a train that will never come any more.” |

XII
 AND THE PIANO

Debussy's manner of playing was, from all accounts, highly unique. When the Italian composer
Alfredo Casella heard Debussy play, he wrote:

He played without a real and proper virtuosity in the bravura sense, but still possessed
an inimitable art of touch and pedaling. He sometimes seemed to play directly on
the strings, without passing through the mechanism of the piano, so vaporous and
usubstantial was his sonority .... His rhythm was perfect, and the two hands always
played precisely together. Even in the predominantly harmonic music he wrote,
every melodic and rhythmic accent had its just value.

Maurice Dumesnil, who played for Debussy, wrote:

I noticed that at times the position of his fingers, particularly in soft chord passages,
was almost flat. He seemed to caress the keys by rubbing them gently downward
in an oblique motion instead of pushing them down in a straight line.

Another Debussy pupil, the famous French pianist and pedagogue Marguerite Long, observed:

He played almost always in half shades, but with a full and intense sonority that had
not harshness in the attack .... The scale of his nuances went from pianississimo
to forte without ever arriving at immoderate sonorities.

Although Debussy in 1904 recorded a few accompaniments for Mary Garden, the creator of his
first operatic Mélisande, there are no other sound recordings by him. He did make a number of
piano rolls for the Welte Company, but although they are of undeniable interest, these remain
unreliable in many respects. Pianists from the time, some of whom played for Debussy, recorded
Debussy's music. These include Alfred Cortot (1877-1962), Marguerite Long (1874-1966),
George Copeland (1882-1971), E. Robert Schmitz (1889-1949), Harold Bauer (1873-1951),
Daniel Ericourt (1903-1998), Ricardo Viñes (1875-1943), Robert Casadesus (1899-1972), and
Guiomar Novaés (1896-1979). Walter Gieseking (1895-1956), who did not personally come in
contact with Debussy, is regarded by many as the finest interpreter of his music in the twentieth
century. Perhaps the best way someone today can come in contact with Debussy’s pianistic style is
to study some of the recordings of these often very diverse interpreters.

xiii
 ( osama FOR FURTHER READING

Debussy, Claude. “Monsieur Croche,” in Three Classics in the Aesthetics of Music. New York:
Dover Publications, 1962. (A collection of Debussy’s reviews and articles on music, which is both
indispensable and entertaining.)

Dumesnil, Maurice. How to Play and Teach Debussy. New York: Schroeder and Gunther, Inc., 1932.
(This contains important suggestions on how to play Debussy’s piano music by a former Debussy
student.)

Lockspeiser, Edward. Debussy: His Life and Mind. 2 vols. London: Cassell, 1962 and 1965. (This
still remains an important biography for anyone studying Debussy’s life and music.)

Schmitz, E. Robert. The Piano Works of Claude Debussy. New York: Dover, 1966. (Schmitz’s
book, written by someone who played extensively for the composer, has long remained one of the
most valuable books on Debussy’s piano music.)

Thompson, Oscar. Debussy: Man and Artist. New York: Dover, 1967. (This is the first American
biography of Debussy. It contains not only a fine biography of the composer, but also perceptive
discussions of his individual works.)

Vallas, Léon. Claude Debussy: His Life and Works. New York: Dover, 1973. (This is a famous
biography by a personal acquaintance of the composer's.)

XIV
 PPP à — à
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INESIS RAN eR S ERI NIS
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—————
MM
PG

Deuxiéme Arabesque, Autograph (first page) (Bibliothéque Nationale, Paris)

XV
 PAGE D'ALBUM
Album Leaf CLAUDE DEBUSSY
Edited by Joseph Banowetz

* Modéré (moderate) Cédez (slow down)

En serrant (becoming quicker)

Mouvement (resume tempo) Mouvt (resume tempo)

= cresc.
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En retenant (holding back)

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e
wo

* Debussy gives no tempo indication or title. The Editor suggests moderato, J 120-126.

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All Rights Reserved
 (a little more lively)
Mouvt (resume tempo)
Cédez (slow down) Un peu a nimé
2

Rubato (flexible rhythm)

sdl

Mouv! retenu (first tempo, but slightly slower)

na

Mouvt (resume tempo)

Wi

una corda
 LE PETIT NEGRE
(Cake Walk) CLAUDE DEBUSSY
Edited by Joseph Banowetz

Allegro giusto (J = 126-132)%

f trës rhthmé
(very rhythmical)

2 L 2 > mil » 2 а
Fa a AA A AA A M A” РДС A, Gee A
Bad DA LSS тез EEE N a Δ а ГЫ
шығ ЕКЕ хатын A A БЕЗ
[A no |

PA un peu retenu
2 B ET ° itle
(a little. olding back)
holding back

* Debussy gave no metronome indication. l | 4

© 2000 BELWIN-MILLS PUBLISHING CORP.,

a Division of ALFRED MUSIC PUBLISHING CO., INC.
All Rights Reserved
 doux et express if
(sweet and expressive)

retenu (hold back)

| LET EZE ETE CEI, AA аса `. ` a Say

je]
E
хо

|
e
|
г

Š ËŠ © Е © S°
 TWO ARABESQUES
Arabesque I CLAUDE DEBUSSY
Edited by Joseph Banowetz

Andantino con moto (J = 126-132)*

AŠ Q° 3 AŠ S° o Ë е 9

* Debussy gave no metronome indication.

© 2000 BELWIN-MILLS PUBLISHING CORP.,
a Division of ALFRED MUSIC PUBLISHING CO., INC.
All Rights Reserved
oo

= E) A
ER FT EA cu]
I 4S ран A aso LAS

| Fe al E a lic re (ақың OO A езе жан jr [reca

EA “iL Ai |
 Poco mosso

woo)
‎‫رلا‬
&

еу
' =

Tempo rubato un peu moins vite

|
(a little less fast)

Е| L i ( 1ii| |
SE п E Фа ат

PS ss ы | l |

Mosso
i
 Risoluto

nd ÂT 5 1144 K
 3-4

| | 1 1 "U | |` i ШІ |

una corda

a,
 13

Arabesque II

CLAUDE DEBUSSY
Edited by Joseph Banowetz

Allegretto scherzando (J = 116-120)*

Sere
— |
— |

—
— tu EM =
ey PEA Da pr 95 JessiБЕН Без
Saat ез таз AA A ҒҰН ll VE” ad 1. ӨР" сря I
Erb ET SE FET EF hi. толы meii a ИИ
DRA A
—"— AIN ErI eee ENS
==
—

* Debussy gave no metronome indication.

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 sssi A lA A Бен E =!

molto dim.
 > AA
cal >
—-
SA
O

11
в pi Ri
|
 ۵
CAE 0РЕЗ NES
Lm < TRP | Y «

om.
Pp M-—I-L ше Aa `
EF AA i ай! Шы]
CITAS kum |
EU...
 Meno mosso

8 Ë ©E S Le]°

— —

y |
аа Emm | p $6“м
| ы г OS]

una corda

M] ПЕ Cone
una corda
20

RÉVERIE
CLAUDE DEBUSSY
Edited by Joseph Banowetz

(without dragging)
L = пс =й
Andantino sans lenteur (J = 100-104)*
(2 AA ——

* Debussy gave no metronome indication.

© 2000 BELWIN-MILLS PUBLISHING CORP.,
a Division of ALFRED MUSIC PUBLISHING CO., INC.
Ali Rights Reserved
 ——
aereo
"er (een

= A RA БЕЛ E vem [met E JENS ФЕР А

[ЕРЕ e A ГЕГИ ERE] SEY SAA
= | __ у ат —
FAA AAA AO
Ed)

Ба

SÈ|
 una corda

> AA yEStж A Бела A AA ған WSESE CONG мне

EA A A

III“ill
 PRÉLUDE
(from Suite bergamasque)
CLAUDE DEBUSSY
Moderato (tempo rubato) (J = 108-112)% Edited by Joseph Banowetz

D e a AAAAAA E
Р,
=>
5

* Debussy gave по metronome indication.

© 2000 BELWIN-MILLS PUBLISHING CORP.,
a Division of ALFRED MUSIC PUBLISHING CO., INC.
All Rights Reserved
 half pedal
Tu

J AIA
ND

x
à:

lãi
QD
ung
 — ae eae. PL.
^ mm HT <T x | «db ^ ||
[L 1] | трае NS MAT ^|
EA PR NN AI AAA VU a
PSS ENT A Y |;
L]

TER oso ЕТЕ

Ы - a
| a IP

* See the notes for performance and interpretation for a possible solution for more easily playing the large chords in the left hand in bars 26-29.
ез” LO" Фа
ASI
A ir

AAN A NAAA O
F= EE eE VI LI
AA AE

Vee,
©
e A es es cn шу
e
©

= х
Қан жем A Oe a әкені ae ЫШ] ЕАР D ‘EF Sa E= u= === ТЕ =.
E Ea A |Ул PO A ET (сз, PES ASES DRESS EC IEEE)
| - dU 4 E es A erem]

22222.42
COR =
AC |S аны с ЧЕ астаса
 una corda

ШЕР”e) | D |a | ||A P” g!
= а ЫЛЕ a las ЈР sel A A A
2 ШУ "= 17) EF

Tar лена amu BE mum E om —

7 a SS шалы: Pa ШЕЙНано E een ШЕЕ
o [шол ES

|“
— —
а —_ mm
шн
қыны g mm
BERI KS ta ЕРЕ)
 A
!
= ue
aen
=
ПР| ' —

ls) |ый ela [n ns A

_——
— == [БЕШ De) теке ==
|

*
|
a

half pedal
gs
5 1
1

чат |==:
Е
—=
И

- 3
2
— — o s
—

|
[pee
1 Isssi|1
mmm
4
A
|
кезе f enm
mum <A
4
Ic"
A
ame
i||
—
жар AAA
AAA
—m—
| |I
 di

CLAIR DE LUNE
Moon light CLAUDE DEBUSSY
(from Suite bergamasque) Edited by Joseph Banowetz
(very expressive)
Andante très expressif (J. = 56-58)*

© £: aS A S

una corda

ELENA. Y 12. MEA

F T ca GS xw Be A
BAD) ETA a Cra ae a > RE ©
Ü

|
de:
€
dl Eur
|
|

"RT“

half pedal

* Debussy gave no metronome indication.

@ 2000 BELWIN-MILLS PUBLISHING CORP.,
a Division of ALFRED MUSIC PUBLISHING CO., INC.
All Rights Reserved
32

Tempo rubato

5
half pedal

(little by little get louder and quicker)

[e NO S = —_ peu à peu cresc. et animé

ESA
E „+ DA
LRU

half pedal

5
half pedal
 33
un poco mosso

— —
34

(Animated)
En animan t
 Е 5.E
Ñò
i

NOON
tre corde

—з n E Đo в = 8 = ° = % % E =
+

morendo jusqu а la fin

зА

una corda

* An effective distribution is to take the bottom three notes with the left hand, the next four notes with right hand, and the top A flat with the left hand crossed over.
38

DOCTOR GRADUS AD PARNASSUM

(from Children’s Corner)
CLAUDE DEBUSSY
Edited by Joseph Banowetz
Modérément animé (moderately lively) (J = 126-132)*

P égal et sans sécheresse

(even and without dryness)

h. LY
EE aS DEP end БЕЗІ A E=—==—= `... WS SA AAA = = ==
MAA LT A SS +a A A LAO AA
EA

* Debussy gave no metronome indication.

© 2000 BELWIN-MILLS PUBLISHING CORP.,

a Division of ALFRED MUSIC PUBLISHING CO., INC.
All Rights Reserved
 39

Есей
[m aee] Ce OA nE etas]
7 М-ы

Un peu retenu (a little holding back)

half pedal
 expressif (with emotion)

10 Tempo 3 PAM лата

33 1 5 3 = ¬
Cy L =
ша Есе ене паста FE БЕЛ Z `" CE DA |~ 1 = p =< tạ AAA | AR
ESS ГЕНЕ) A "E A PSS Ш шамы”. ПТ A SES E AO) CN w— r r sss
_ T TA Ta me БЛ Es, Za POST A TO SE mi AA #- |H Y
|
anne | Vd 111 e n pon | [AAA N A

expressif AAA
(with emotion)
AS AAA | ED
AA зе ыны | a I
ES ағама AAA A | (S TS
[^ cce [IT AA оғыз EE c V

ae A DD aa

Animez un peu
(a little faster) 5
1

expressif — expressif
(with emotion) (with emotion)

3 ٠ pal
‫مع‬‎ ‫ م مع‬att of BG et в att ol
al ла En
Tice
ве Rn ET Nem
CS ES ia ms E A EEE,
SS
 — E= mm ma team ір! eel
SW. EA Sa A EA AAA AAA Ae A ee ИШ sr

u. u EA
AA mY DA pei
POSO AA MAD li УЕ Т ТЫ с AA A ee

En animant peu à peu (little by little get faster)

5

|
4
2 2
1
L Беу” MA Hese
ED EA ЕУ ae E Без ee E e da ee ae
E = ala 94 BSI EsslПБ) ЫЫ Гаа EE C Ae i a
aa EI
 dem, uer i
LIONS EPA A AAA MA AA Y
ESAS di A A HE SA

ка
AAN
SÎ A eT DE ШЕ
)- шо тшш == е АА

==" #“———————_——-
иж
LAD - – 7 LEA E JS,
A A MEA s
 43

SERENADE OF THE DOLL

(from Children’s Corner) CLAUDE DEBUSSY
Edited by Joseph Banowetz
Allegretto ma non troppo (J = 116-120)%
Très léger et gracieux (very light and graceful)

2 la m.g. un peu en dehors

(emphasize a little the left hand)

TI AAA SY AAA
| EP EA
.

(emphasize a little the right hand)

la m.d. un peu en dehors
154
Mara
TZ
А„ A VIE E ANTS
SERI A A

* Debussy gave no metronome indication. ° . = 2

** Il faudra mettre la pédale sourde pendant toute la durée de ce morceau, méme aux endroits marqués d'un f.
(One must use the soft pedal through the whole duration of this piece, even at places marked with an ý)
© 2000 BELWIN-MILLS PUBLISHING CORP.,
a Division of ALFRED MUSIC PUBLISHING CO., INC.
АП Rights Reserved
 poco a poco cresc.

|
B.
a

СРУ
<<<

Un peu retenu (a little holding back)

 45

(slow down)

a tempo

| 7

(expressive)
expressif

€
= | |
|
a

LJ

(becoming a little more lively)

En animant un peu

|
ae — | D" 4
 . a

ES AAA "AA алсын” EA Баған” (FE REA База! | EEEE жын TN ES шен A

(without slowing)
 47

А ACCU R айталық di ESSI de PEA

ac n. ED W.

P expressif
 4 Z 5
[ M MILLI a
EF AEEEL
в ваг.
[TAN 1
ERA,

AA =7... vim
| @YES
"À € | Пе. ЛА LI € | bgD LEA = E "TEEN A À UPA "LA / “Шын
Appeare 87ESSA A A EA ПР| ГӘ] теат ao НУ ЕЕ A AO yg Ç JAB IY A
DEAII Se’ ASIAN сш AS, à с Y RIA meme] I AAA,

Гл '
Ги alle A
ЕР Ағасына n Ga жығы ІШ Y жеу
Па "EL Deer

Š
* Debussy’s original indication forr the
the ¢damper pedalal is g
is given here. Because of the extreme delicac and transparency of the music’s t
the Editor prefers to play the entire piece up to this point without any damper pedal whatsoever. ý p 4 Hua
Claude Debussy while at the Conservatoire (about 1874)

Claude Debussy (about 1895)

50

THE LITTLE SHEPHERD

(from Children’s Corner)
CLAUDE DEBUSSY
Edited by Joseph Banowetz

Trés modéré (very moderate) (J = 72-76)*

3
р très doux et délicatement expressif
(very sweet and delicately expressive)

ЕА — |
E ‫ےک‬‎ ‫ا‬ ‫ ا‬asl БҮ, SA a
resi A j A AA AAA AAN ен ẼẼaa¬aäa=....
— f ‫ا‬‎ Е нца,«на ЫІЫ Е ‫ج‬‎ ‫ ي‬Баа
2 |

tre corde E
* Debussy gave no metronome indication. NEE NE
© 2000 BELWIN-MILLS PUBLISHING CORP.,
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All Rights Reserved
 AI ln a FE p=:
RS ACA ie E a pees a a сте)
& ug = | «аш =

ип poco рій forte

(a little louder)

`"... A ì he tre corde

una corda (a little animated)

ЖЕСЕ => Plus mouvementé (more animated) Poco animato
1 2-1
2 3 7 = ERU KT: DAA DN PY Dd me e DA

CAeee 57]
BU? c q ES |
2 3

Un peu retenu (a little holding back)

(en conservant le rythme) (keep the rhythm) 4
DZ

GOLLIWOGG”S CAKE-WALK
(from Children’s Corner) CLAUDE DEBUSSY
Edited by Joseph Banowetz

Allegro giusto (J = 112-116)*

5 — ч > 3 >

* Debussy gave no metronome indication. ` 2 x

© 2000 BELWIN-MILLS PUBLISHING CORP.,

a Division ofALFRED MUSIC PUBLISHING СО., INC.
All Rights Reserved
 53

—" |AA pesas c RS да O O O AA

nal
* An alternate redistribution, which is used by the Editor, is given in the notes for performance and interpretation. See similar places in bars 37, 109, and 117.
54
Un peu moins vite (a little less rapid)

Б h % в
má -Li
ES AA) CR SS” RI Гарна
[|seen si]
prese=]

Cédez (slow down)

avec une grande émotion
(with much emotion)

т мера
 а іетро 95

O `Qe Y N ue2 = “зŠ ==

Cédez (slow down)

ü¢

*sostenuto pedal
* A use of the sostenuto pedal can be very useful in bars 84-86 and 88-89, both to sustain clearly the held chords, while allowing the B flat - A flat - B flat motive
above to be heard with an unblurred, distinct staccato touch.
 Retenu (hold back)
A
m
А.

AA E IO bai er

ы
A i A AA Ыы

(always hold back) sostenuto pedal

El

Foujoursretenu
2.282.222 9502 се m 10 Tempo (opening tempo)
|
|
|
T

ll i
lồ
е)
Se.
 AA mene
== | |

* See note on page 53. 5

>»
ч- С)
58

LA FILLE AUX CHEVEUX DE LIN

The Girl with the Flaxen Hair CLAUDE DEBUSSY
(from Préludes, Book D Edited by Joseph Banowetz

Trés calme et doucement expressif (very calm and sweetly expressive) J = 66%

—
m ‫ےک‬‎ ‫ا‬ a petag:
E sssi е E E |][A E E E E BEES ee, TT
(a sus E р A A A EA E en A ei El
6-1 A E EA A EA

à p (softer)
. `

* This metronome indication was given by Debussy.

© 2000 BELWIN-MILLS PUBLISHING CORP.,
a Division of ALFRED MUSIC PUBLISHING CO., INC.
All Rights Reserved
 au Mouvt (resume tempo)
Cédez (slow down) sans lourdeur (without heaviness)

una corda
 60
au Mouvt (resume tempo)
Cédez très doux (very sweet, gentle)
(slow down)
E
n
СИЕ

ad

tre corde

Murmuré et en retenant peu à peu

(а whispered sound and little by little holding back)

НИИ | m——
——— Nnm OA
|
= A EER E A O [Re]
Je A A A A AA сас Пара

a EY в È 5
© & оо > ER

una corda
 a iEPEE м
La leg l p mmn
fg T2 th
T E EU
ES.

СКА сыа а Бас

асч: иав Pro

2 L L; bon rd
7 id "Еру

La fille aux cheveux de lin (The Girl With the Flaxen

Hair), measures 1-32
 Debussy outside his home (about 1910)

Debussy at Pourville (September 1904)

Debussy, by Jacques-Émile Blanche (1903)
а.
| Tear along perforation to open |
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