CLAUDE DEBUSSY PART II

An Outline Presented to Dr. Soo Hong Kim Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary

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In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for VOICL 4921

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by Casey McCarthy February 18, 2011

Song Analysis La Flte de Pan Part of the Song Cycle Trois Chansons de Bilitis 1. La Flte de Pan - The pan flutes 2. La Chevelure - The hair 3. le tombeau des Naiades - The tomb of the Naiades The poetry is by Pierre Louys There are a total of 155 poems with the Chanson,all of which discuss the life of the female character, Bilitis. These three poems were set to music by Debussy between 1897-1898. Summary of plot The three poems were chosen by Debussy to represent the three stages of Bilitis' life: her experience of finding a first love, the second displaying the love that has reached its height, and the third that speaks of winter and a waning lover's affections. There are three main musical attributes that unite and give structure to La Flte de Pan: The use of the B-Lydian scale and the use of parallel fifths. The B-Lydian scale appears three times. The scale is used but only the first seven notes are ever presented, and there is never the final, consonant resolution of the scale to the octave as Debussy always ends the scale on the seventh scale degree. (m. 1-4; m. 12; and m. 27.) Each time it appears at a different place in the plot of the poem. The parallel fifths move in fourths, thirds, and seconds. They appear many times in conjunction with the B-lydian scale and help set the mood and character of the piece. The melody is declamatory Not a very wide range a lot of repeated notes, almost chant-like has a feeling of recitative text driven. The form is through-composed The harmonies are modal through the use of the parallel fifths.

La Flte de Pan Pour le jour des Hyacinthies, il m'a donn une syrinx faite de roseaux bien taills, unis avec la blanche cire qui est douce mes lvres comme le miel.

Text and Translation The pan-pipes For the festival of Hyacinthus he gave me a syrinx, a set of pipes made from well-cut reeds joined with the white wax that is sweet to my lips like honey. He is teaching me to play, as I sit on his knees; but I tremble a little. He plays it after me, so softly that I can scarcely hear it. We are so close that we have nothing to say to one another; but our songs want to converse, and our mouths are joined as they take turns on the pipes. It is late: here comes the chant of the green frogs, which begins at dusk. My mother will never believe I spent so long searching for my lost waistband. -Trans. By Peter Low

Il m'apprend jouer, assise sur ses genoux ; mais je suis un peu tremblante. il en joue aprs moi, si doucement que je l'entends peine. Nous n'avons rien nous dire, tant nous sommes prs l'un de l'autre; mais nos chansons veulent se rpondre, et tour tour nos bouches s'unissent sur la flte. Il est tard, voici le chant des grenouilles vertes qui commence avec la nuit. Ma mre ne croira jamais que je suis reste si longtemps chercher ma ceinture perdue.

Song Analysis Chevaux de bois This is part of a Song Cycle with 6 songs entitled Ariettes oublies 1. C'est l'Extase langoureuse 2. Il Pleure Dans Mon Coeur 3. L'Ombre des arbres 4. Chevaux de bois 5. Green 6. Spleen The poetry is by Paul Verlaine who influenced Debussy's writing greatly. Summary The poem is about the wooden horses on a merry-go-round, so the music, setting, and mood is more light hearted in nature, however, the poetry and song take a somber turn of mood toward the end as the horses are turned into a metaphor for life and asks the question, Are we just going around in meaningless circles, as the wooden horses do? The opening mimics the sound of a merry-go-round starting up or perhaps even the sound of galloping hooves The accompaniment is characterized by broken, arpeggiated chords with fast rhythms. At the end of the piece the accompaniment begins to slow its rhythmical pace until nothing is left except tied half notes sustaining across bar lines, signifying the end of the carousel ride. The harmonies here are modal in nature as Debussy makes use of parallel fifths set apart by thirds, fourths, and seconds. The melody is declamatory and text driven with lots of repeated pitches. Debussy uses a greater range of pitches to add to the expressivity of the melody.

Chevaux de bois Tournez, tournez, bon chevaux de bois, Tournez cent tours, tounez mille tours. Tournez souvent et tournez toujours, Tournez, tournez au son des hautbois. L'enfant tout rouge et la mre blanche, Le gars en noir et la fille en rose. L'une la chose et l'autre la pose, Chacun se paie un sou de dimanche. Tournez, tournez, chevaux de leur coeur, Tandis qu'autour de tous vos tournois Clignote l'oeil du filou sournois. Tournez au son du piston vainqueur! C'est tonnant comme a vous sole, D'aller ainsi dans ce cirque bte, Rien dans le ventre et mal dans la tte, Du mal en masse et du bien en foule; Tournez dadas, sans qu'il soit besoin D'user jamais de nuls perons Pour commander vos galops ronds. Tournez, tournez, sans espoir de foin, Et dpchez, chevaux de leur me, Dj voici que sonne la soupe La nuit qui tombe et chasse la troupe De gais buveurs, que leur soif affame.

Text and Translation Wooden horses Turn, turn, good horses of wood, turn a hundred turns, turn a thousand turns, turn often and turn always, turn, turn to the sound of the oboes. The red-faced child and pale mother, the boy in black and the girl in pink, the one pursuing and the other posing, each getting a penny's worth of Sunday fun. Turn, turn, horses of their hearts, while all around your turning squints the sly pickpocket's eye-turn to the sound of the victorious cornet. It is astonishing how it intoxicates you to go around this way in a stupid circle, nothing in your tummy and an ache in your head, very sick and having lots of fun. Turn, wooden horses, with no need ever to use spurs to command you to gallop around, turn, turn, with no hope for hay. And hurry, horses of their souls-hear the supper bell already, the night that is falling and chasing the troop of merry drinkers, famished by their thirst. Turn, turn! The velvet sky is slowly clothed with golden stars. The church bell tolls sadly. Turn, to the happy sound of drums. -trans. By John Glenn Paton

Tournez, tournez! Le ciel en velours D'astres en or se vt lentement, L'Eglise tinte un glas tristement. Tournez au son joyeux des tambours, tournez.

Bibliography Kimball, Carol. Song: A Guide to Style and Literature. Seattle: Pst Inc., 1996 Stone, Ashley L. Claude Debussy's Trois Chansons de Bilitis: An Analysis http://ecommons.txstate.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1049&context=honorprog Accessed February 17, 2011 Chevaux de bois Translation from French to English copyright 2000 byJohn Glenn Paton http://www.recmusic.org/lieder/get_text.html?TextId=16241 Accessed February 17, 2011 Ariettes oublies score from http://imslp.org/wiki/Ariettes_oubli%C3%A9es_(Debussy,_Claude) Accessed February 17, 2011 Trois Chansons de Bilitis score and recording from http://imslp.org/wiki/3_Chansons_de_Bilitis_(Debussy,_Claude) Accessed February 17, 2011 Claude Debussy - Ariettes oublies http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XRwk6xUwpBc&feature=fvwrel Accessed February 17, 2011