Claude Debussy, "Pour le piano"

In 1898 Claude Debussy's economic situation was by no means the most comfortable. Nor was his sentimental life going through a good time. That year he broke up with Gabrielle Dupont, his "green-eyed Gaby", the muse whom he lived with for ten years, although he soon overcame this situation by marrying at the end of 1899 a beautiful brunette, Rosalie Teixir, called Lily in the working environment of her job as a mannequin in a haute couture house.

Monsieur Croche
In order to cope comfortably with this new scenario, he had to accept a "nourishing" job, as he used to call them. Thus, in 1901 he began to write musical chronicles for the art magazine La Revue Blanche, where he invented a somewhat ambiguous and at times irritating character, Monsieur Croche (Mr. Quaver), with whom he would fantastically dialogue, and from whom he took advantage to air what until then he had reserved for his intimate environment:

"...Musicians listen only to music written by dexterous hands; never to that which is inscribed in nature. To see the day being born is more useful than listening to the Pastoral Symphony. Discipline must be sought in freedom. Do not listen to anyone's advice, but only to the passing wind that narrates the history of the world".

These are the words of "Monsieur Croche", taken from a long article of July 1, 1901.

Debussy remained a contributor to the magazine until December of that same year, when the work on his only opera, Pelléas et Mélisande, began to fully involve him.

Pour le piano

Published in 1901, the work is a piano suite in only three movements that Debussy had begun around 1894. A first version of the central movement was already part of his Images inedites of that year, and its final movement was probably composed in 1896. Dedicated to two of his students and to a friend – one movement for each of them – the work, very brief, is a reflection of the definitive transfer of his original musical language to the piano.

Movements:

00        Prelude.  At once familiar and exotic, with reminiscences of Rameau and Javanese gamelan. (I venture to guess that Gershwin paid close attention at minute 1:32).

04:49  Sarabande.  In Debussy's words, a "conversation with the piano," or rather, a conversation with Satie, from whose 1887 sarabandes he borrows something.

09:35  Toccata.  The most solid of the three sections, highly demanding, and simultaneously extroverted and graceful.

The rendition is by Italian pianist and composer Bruno Canino.