What does Debussy’s music want to express?

Album name: Debussy Preludes, Images, Prints CD1

Performer name: Arrau

Music introduction

The idea that Debussy's hazy and erratic approach would render the overall structure indistinguishable has long been proven to be a misunderstanding. In fact, Debussy's precise design in his works really makes him envious of composers throughout the ages. It would be better to say that he established a new structural form. Wherever his phrases passed, he left behind French tradition: clear tone, light texture, elegant style, natural, simple and friendly form.

Debussy is not the kind of composer who uses the development of a theme to construct his own world. Rather, he discovers the poetry contained in the world from the subtle connections between feelings and images, which of course also includes The feeling he was looking for.

Debussy did not give anything to the world at all, but captured something with his rare sensitivity. From this, he formed his own unique poetic and picturesque world. His piano works are perhaps the best testimony to this. It shows how an artist who truly understands the significance of colors in the emotional world uses methods to make them appear extremely delicate and colorful.

The two sets of piano preludes by Impressionist master Debussy are almost the epitome of the characteristics of his piano works, and are a comprehensive collection of styles and techniques. Among them, Debussy's hazy, mysterious and ethereal impressionist style and unique, novel and colorful harmony techniques are concentratedly reflected. Such as the diatonic technique in "Sail", the hazy atmosphere in "The Sunken Church", the devilish technique in "Fireworks", etc., just like twenty-four colorful impressionist oil paintings, Debussy used his unique The brush strokes bring the colorful colors and purples of nature to life on the paper like a dream.

Debussy's "Preludes" consists of two collections, each containing 12 pieces of music. Each piece is accompanied by a title, but the composer did not record the title at the beginning of the piece. , but written in small letters where the music ends. His intention is to hope that the audience will not be limited to the title when enjoying it. These preludes can also be said to be works in the form of improvisations or fantasies. The piano techniques they explored, discovered and created are all skillfully used in conjunction with each other, and are a masterpiece of Debussy's piano techniques.

"Preludes Book I"*** has 12 works:

1. "Delphi Dancer", the music is pure and classical, expressing the Abo in Delphi region The solemn dance in the religious ceremony of the Temple of Luo is inspired by the impression of the sculptures on the columns of the Louvre (some say they are the reliefs on Greek vases).

2. "Sail", a misty seascape picture: a few small sailboats moored on the sea, rippling back and forth, splashing waves, the horizon extending towards the horizon, and endless silence. The distance between the two voices is a major third, which was a very novel color at the time, as if it were a floating impression.

3. "Wind in the Wilderness", this is the wind that passes quickly, but it is not strong. It is erratic and fleeting. The left-hand theme is the pentatonic scale.

4. "Sounds and Fragrances in the Dusk Air", in this piece of music, Debussy soaked the twilight sky with beautiful sounds and rich fragrance. Inspired by "The Harmony of Dusk" in Baudelaire's collection of poems "Flowers of Evil", the following is the first paragraph of this poem:

"The hour has come when the flowers tremble on the branches ,

Each flower exudes fragrance like an incense burner;

Sound and fragrance are wafting in the evening breeze;

Melancholy waltz, lazy dizziness . ”

5. "The Hills of Anacapri", Anacapri is a small town on the island of Capri in the Persian Gulf. The music begins in an almost complete state. There is a state of silence, while the last part of the music is as bright as fire.

6. "Footprints on the Snow", some desolate music gives people a feeling of exhaustion and burden, as if walking in the snow, and every step has to be pulled out of the deep snow with difficulty When the feet come, someone once asked: "Where will these lonely, lonely footsteps take people?"

7. "What the West Wind Sees", the "wind" in this piece of music It is a destructive wind, a "hurricane" that can stir up huge waves on the sea. The music gives people a sense of impact and chaos.

8. "Girl with Flaxen Hair", the melody is sweet and lyrical, revealing the youthful atmosphere of a girl. The title comes from a poem in L. De Lille's "Song of Scotland". The original poem describes a A Scottish girl sang a simple and innocent song in the morning light. The melody was charming, lovely and carefree.

9. "Interrupted Serenade", the music imitates the playing of the guitar, with a typical Spanish style, which seems to show a lover singing a courtship song without confidence, and the singing voice is ironic somewhere There was a break, and then he started singing from the beginning again in frustration, until he finished listlessly.

10. "The Sunken Church" was inspired by a cathedral in Brittany that was flooded about 1,500 years ago. It is said that when the morning sun shines on the sea, a church that sank to the bottom of the sea a long time ago The city's churches will slowly rise out of the sea to warn those who do not believe in God. In the music, you can faintly hear the church's chants and the sound of the organ, and of course the depth of the sea. The main thing is a mysterious and profound fantasy. At the beginning of the music, the music is played with very light intensity to express the submerged bells mixed in the calm water. When the cathedral emerges from the water amid the bells, the volume of the piano gradually increases, and it seems that the roar of the pipe organ can be heard. The majestic singing of the psalm rises at this moment and echoes for a long time, and finally everything disappears in the waves.

11. "Puck's Dance", a light, erratic, elf-like piece of music, is said to be inspired by Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream".

12. "Tourman", the music is bright and cheerful, showing the weirdness with a sense of humor. The "troubadour" here refers to the actors who wore black hats, black faces, and white tailcoats at that time.

"Images" shows Debussy's amazing skill in piano music and his imagination on the keyboard. There are two episodes, each episode includes three pieces, regardless of their purpose. or effect, very similar to traditional sonata form.

"Images Book I" consists of three works, which are:

1. "Reflection in Water" can be said to be the most beautiful piece of Debussy's piano music. A work that embodies the characteristics of Impressionist music and is one of the greatest piano pieces of all time. These "reflections" are incomplete echoes, or repeated distortions of the theme's sound and shape, just like Monet's painting "Water Lilies", which shows glimpses of colors and shapes. The theme consists of just three descending notes, around which Debussy creates an imaginative structural play that begins with a gentle touch and then intensifies into a whirlpool and ends in breathless stillness. Debussy uses several bright chords and rapidly passing arpeggios here to express the response to the reflection in the water in the auditory world. The theme of the music is slow and heavy, swinging and swaying like ripples that have been slowed down several times. At the end of the music, the technique of three notes dripping into the water at the beginning is used again. The music is empty, long, and full of endless aftertaste and fantasy.

2. "Homage to Rama" is a solemn sarabande, elegant and noble, but very passionate and full of homesickness. It is a wonderful meditation that shows the Debussy’s maturity and innovative spirit. Rameau is one of the world-renowned musicians in the history of French music. He was a representative figure different from the German composer Gluck at that time. Debussy composed this piece while revising Rameau's score "The Festival of Boremini". It can be regarded as a work of reverence not only for Rameau personally, but also for the French national spirit. . Perhaps only the French can feel the connotation of music as deeply as Debussy.

3. "Movement" is also called "Infinite Motion". It is similar to a touch piece and ends "Image Episode 1" by challenging the player's touch. Debussy lets the notes continue to In the flowing structure of sixteenth notes, a hymn emerges from the haze of pointillism. The mood of the music is cheerful and slightly humorous. It depicts some small animals like bees constantly shaking their wings and flying around among flowers and woods, showing extraordinary flexibility and freedom.

The piano suite "Estampes", composed in 1903, was a milestone in Debussy's Impressionist techniques in the field of piano, and Debussy entered a period of prosperity. It is well known that Debussy accomplished more on the piano than on the orchestra. He greatly expanded the expressive power of piano music and greatly enriched the repertoire of piano music. This work still fascinates listeners with its implicit charm and elegant artistic conception.

"Print" consists of three ditties:

1. "Pagoda" is inspired by Chinese music and uses pentatonic scales to express the effect of bells. Seventh chords and pentatonic scale intervals make the melody like smoke, fresh and beautiful, with a Chinese charm. In the development of natural expressions, contrasts between thick and light, solemn and harmonious, virtual and real are everywhere. The climax is colorful, the subtle fragrance floats, and finally the music disappears like gurgling water... There are many possibilities. The feeling of being around for three days.

2. "Granada Nights" is a Spanish folk genre painting. It is said that the material of the work comes from Ravel. Granada is a city in southern Spain. When night falls, there is the sound of mandolin coming from a distance and the rhythm of habanera. It shows the atmosphere of night markets and wine bars in Spanish back alleys and has a strong Spanish atmosphere. It can be said that although this piece of music is short, anyone who listens to it will never forget it.

3. "Garden in the Rain", the music is based on two ancient French folk songs. Through the rapid changes of rain, clouds, sunshine and clear sky, it vividly depicts the pastoral scene of France and the innocence of children. image.