Claude Debussy
(Achille) Claude Debussy (French: [aʃil klod dəbysi]; 22 August 1862 – 25 March 1918) was a French composer. He is sometimes seen as the first Impressionist composer, although he vigorously rejected the term. He was among the most influential composers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Born to a family of modest means and little cultural involvement, Debussy showed enough musical talent to be admitted at the age of ten to France's leading music college, the Conservatoire de Paris. He originally studied the piano, but found his vocation in innovative composition, despite the disapproval of the Conservatoire's conservative professors. He took many years to develop his mature style, and was nearly 40 when he achieved international fame in 1902 with the only opera he completed, Pelléas et Mélisande. Debussy's orchestral works include Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune (1894), Nocturnes (1897–1899) and Images (1905–1912). His music was to a considerable extent a reaction against Wagner and the German musical tradition. He regarded the classical symphony as obsolete and sought an alternative in his "symphonic sketches", La mer (1903–1905). His piano works include sets of 24 Préludes and 12 Études. Throughout his career he wrote mélodies based on a wide variety of poetry, including his own. He was greatly influenced by the Symbolist poetic movement of the later 19th century. A small number of works, including the early La Damoiselle élue and the late Le Martyre de saint Sébastien have important parts for chorus. In his final years, he focused on chamber music, completing three of six planned sonatas for different combinations of instruments. With early influences including Russian and Far Eastern music and works by Chopin, Debussy developed his own style of harmony and orchestral colouring, derided – and unsuccessfully resisted – by much of the musical establishment of the day. His works have strongly influenced a wide range of composers including Béla Bartók, Olivier Messiaen, George Benjamin, and the jazz pianist and composer Bill Evans. Debussy died from cancer at his home in Paris at the age of 55 after a composing career of a little more than 30 years. |
Birth and Death Data: Born August 22, 1862 (Saint-Germain-en-Laye), Died March 25, 1918 (Paris)
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1909 - 1950
Roles Represented in DAHR: composer, orchestrator
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings (Results 176-200 of 361 records)
Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Columbia | 30657 | 12-in. | 2/2/1911 | Mandoline | Lillian Nordica | Soprano vocal solo, with harp and piano | composer | |
Columbia | 49494 | 12-in. | 9/7/1918 | En bateau | Columbia Symphony Orchestra | Orchestra | composer | |
Columbia | 49638 | 12-in. | 6/16/1919 | Toccata in C-sharp minor | Percy Grainger | Piano solo | composer | |
Columbia | 98018 | 12-in. | 3/13/1922 | Andantino | London String Quartet | String quartet | composer | |
Columbia | 98034 | 12-in. | 8/7/1922 | Jardins sous la pluie | Percy Grainger | Piano solo | composer | |
Columbia | W141727 | 10-in. | 2/25/1926 | Minstrels | Georges Enesco | Violin solo, with piano | composer | |
Columbia | W148609 | 10-in. | 5/21/1929 | Menuet | Felix Salmond | Cello solo, with piano | composer | |
Columbia | W149673 | 10-in. | 12/4/1929 | Minuet | Josef Adler ; Horace Britt | Cello solo, with piano | composer | |
Columbia | W152106 | 10-in. | 2/5/1932 | Arabesque no. 1 | Bernard Zighera | Harp solo | composer | |
Columbia | W98246 | 12-in. | 3/31/1926 | Claire de lune | Percy Grainger | Piano solo | composer | |
Columbia | W98248 | 12-in. | 3/31/1926 | Toccata, C-sharp minor | Percy Grainger | Piano solo | composer | |
Columbia | W98466 | 12-in. | 2/17/1928 | Poissons d'or | Dame Myra Hess | Piano solo | composer | |
Columbia | W98467 | 12-in. | 2/17/1928 | La fille aux cheveux de lin | Dame Myra Hess | Piano solo | composer | |
Columbia | 6397 | 12-in. | approximately 1914 | Quartet in G minor | London String Quartet | String quartet | composer | |
Columbia | 6491 | 12-in. | approximately 1915 | Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune | Band of the Grenadier Guards [U.K] ; Lt. A. Williams | Band | composer | |
Columbia | 74226 | 12-in. | 12/13/1920 | Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune | Hallé Orchestra ; Hamilton Harty | Orchestra | composer | |
Columbia | 75870 | 12-in. | approximately 1917 | La cathédrale engloutie | William Murdoch | Piano solo | composer | |
Columbia | 75871 | 12-in. | approximately 1917 | Golliwog's cake walk | William Murdoch | Piano solo | composer | |
Columbia | 76225 | 12-in. | approximately August 1918 | Petite suite : En bateau | Beecham Symphony Orchestra ; Thomas Beecham | Orchestra | composer | |
Columbia | 76226 | 12-in. | approximately August 1918 | Petite suite : Ballet | Beecham Symphony Orchestra ; Thomas Beecham | Orchestra | composer | |
OKeh | 8911 | 10-in. | Jan. 1925 | Reflets dans l'eau | Agnes F. Roach | Piano solo | composer | |
Brunswick | B64 | 12-in. | 8/5/1924 | Feux d’artifice | Elly Ney | Piano solo | composer | |
Brunswick | XB77-XB78 | 12-in. | 8/6/1924 | Feux d’artifice | Elly Ney | Piano solo | composer | |
Brunswick | 13997-13998 | 10-in. | 10/22/1924 | Feux d’artifice | Elly Ney | Piano solo | composer | |
Brunswick | XE15731 | 12-in. | 5/14/1925 | Quartet in G minor : 3rd movement (Andantino) | New York String Quartet | String quartet | composer |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Debussy, Claude," accessed October 9, 2024, https://adpprod2.library.ucsb.edu/names/102597.
Debussy, Claude. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved October 9, 2024, from https://adpprod2.library.ucsb.edu/names/102597.
"Debussy, Claude." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 9 October 2024.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
External Sources
Wikipedia: Claude Debussy
Discogs: Claude Debussy
Allmusic: Claude Debussy
Apple Music: Claude Debussy
Grove: Claude Debussy
IMSLP: Claude Debussy
RILM: Claude Debussy
RISM: Claude Debussy
IMDb: Claude Debussy
Britannica: Claude Debussy
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Debussy, Claude, 1862-1918 - http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n79132137
Wikidata: Claude Debussy - http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q4700
VIAF: http://viaf.org/viaf/6219636
MusicBrainz: Claude Debussy - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/be50643c-0377-4968-b48c-47e06b2e2a3b
Wikipedia content provided under the terms of the Creative Commons BY-SA license
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