Debussy: The Genius Who Painted Music
Claude Debussy (1862–1918)
The story of Claude Debussy (Duh-Buh-See) is the story of a genius composer who was not meant to be.
Born to a family with modest means, Debussy had nobody to look up to in his immediate surrounding. Claude’s father, Manuel-Achille, was uneducated and suffered alcoholism. His mother Victorine was busy raising a daughter and four sons while making a living as a seamstress. The living conditions were rather harsh for the Debussys who moved several times during the 1860’s as their family was growing.
As a young boy, Claude did not go to school until age 11. This may partly explain the independence of mind and the anti-conformism of Debussy. Another trait of his personality was his extreme curiosity and continuous search of experience that would translate into his ethereal and dreamy masterpieces such as “Reflets dans L’Eau” (Water Reflection) in 1905.
Debussy finally had an opportunity to see the sea at age 8 following the forced move of his family to the city of Cannes in the Southern part of France. This was in 1870 and France had just declared the war to Prussia. Debussy’s father joined the army and his mother moved to her sister in the southern part of the country where Claude discovered the impressionists and got his first piano lessons.
The family was back to Paris in 1871 following the defeat of France to Prussia and after the Paris’ riots known as the “Commune”. Claude’s father was judged for being a “Communard”. He was sentenced for four years behind bars. In prison his father managed to find Claude his first piano teacher, Madame Mauté. “I remember my first teacher, a chubby lady who exposed me to Bach and played him like no nobody else do nowadays, making his music so lively” Debussy said about Madame Mauté.
Madame Mauté detected the potential of young Claude and taught him everything she could. After one year, Debussy knew enough to successfully apply for the Paris Conservatoire, which he joined in 1872. He stayed there for eleven years.
Claude found the school system too stifling for his temperament. Teachers on their side did not appreciate Debussy’s lack of discipline and his contempt for rules. The relationship between Claude and the school was tense.
Yet his teachers would acknowledge Debussy’s talent and recommend him to teach private piano lessons or to play in concerts. This way, Debussy could broaden his horizon and gain some real world experience while at school.
In 1880, Debussy changed dramatically as he joined Madame von Meck, a wealthy Russian widow, and her family for the summer in Switzerland. Madame von Meck was the patron of Tchaikovsky himself and introduced Debussy to various cultures and networks during the summer 1880, 1881 and 1882.
By the end of his studies, Debussy had become an excellent musician. Although he reported lackluster academic results, Debussy yet had become an innovative composer. Moreover, Debussy’s journeys with Madame von Meck also gave him a lot of experience and confidence.
In 1884, one of Debussy’s compositions earned him the Prix de Rome and a scholarship to study in Rome for three years at the Villa Medici. However, Debussy missed Paris and returned two years later where he would mingle in the company of poets and musicians. He would continue discovering new music, styles, books, and poems.
His inspiration was limitless. In 1889 while visiting the Universal Exhibition of Paris, Debussy was deeply impressed by the Indonesian Gamelan. The Gamelan is a traditional ensemble composed of percussions and other Asian instruments.
By 1890, Debussy aged 28 had found his style. His early successes include “Clair de Lune” (“Moonlight”) and the well known “Prelude of the Afternoon of a Faun” in 1894, which to many marks the birth of modern music. It was premiered on Dec 22, 1894.
In 1902, Debussy firmly established his reputation with his only competed opera, “Pelléas and Mélisande”. Later noticeable works include “La Mer” (“The Sea”) and “Nocturnes” based on Whistler’s “Nocturnes” set of paintings.
Debussy private life was tumultuous and passionate to say the least. Women he loved nonetheless inspired his compositions such as “Chidren’s Corner” dedicated to his only daughter Chouchou with the sweet words: “To my lovely Chouchou….with the sweetest apologies from her daddy from what is to follow”.
Debussy loved paintings and befriended painters. He also loved poetry and composed melodies based on texts of great poets such as Baudelaire or Mallarme. Throughout his life, he has changed the landscape of classical music, rewrote its grammar and traced new roads into previously unknown territories. He died in 1918 of a cancer but his legacy survived as he became an inspiration to the generations that followed including luminaries such as Igor Stravinsky with his “Firebird” or later the French composer Pierre Boulez.
Debussy and Impressionism
During the second part of the 19th century, a group of painters led by Monet, Renoir, Bazille and Sisley denunciated the conformism of the painting rules of Paris’ official art school, the Academie des Beaux Arts. They were called the Impressionists.
These artists were creating a new style based on the usage of color to capture the luminosity of nature such as Monet’s “Impression, Sunrise” in 1872. Also the Impressionists switched from military and religious paintings to more day-to-day themes. Renoir’s painting “Ball at Le Moulin de la Galette” from 1876 is one example.
The Impressionist movement represented a rupture with the tradition and went to symbolize a rebel spirit against established academic practices in general. First booed and mocked by the public, Impressionism quickly became the most popular movement in the history of art.
From Visual to Musical “Impressionism”
In this context, the term “Impressionist” was used to define the work of the composers who were also reinventing the musical form during the 1890’s. Though he deeply disliked being called an Impressionist, Claude Debussy turned out to be the leading force behind this movement.
The composers applied to music new color theories pushed forward in visual arts by the Impressionists. To them, sound suddenly had colors and notes functioned just like complementary colors.
The main key of a piece of music usually set its mood. However this can be altered. Composers can write complex scores and create the effect of blending colors in music. This way, musical notes are played so that listeners do not hear the key any longer. Instead listeners would unconsciously make up a new key.
Debussy’s use of melodies was also very creative. His melodies made wave-like and circular movements. This effect was achieved by accentuating the sound of a melody before letting it fade away. Similarly plain motives in music were generally avoided in order to emulate the unfinished effects of the impressionists’ paintings. Debussy composed a musical idea but would not finish it or switch to another idea before it was fully developed, thus creating an evanescent effect in the sound.
Debussy disregarded traditional harmony theory for his composition. Instead he used different techniques such as dissonant chords or non-harmonic tones and poly-tones to manipulate the key in his music and to create ambiguity in the perception.
Sonorities are everything in Debussy’s music.
