String Quartet (Debussy)
Encyclopedia
Claude Debussy
wrote his sole String Quartet
in G minor, Op. 10 in 1893.
. He planned to write two string quartets only one of which materialized.
The quartet received its premiere on December 29, 1893 by the Ysaÿe Quartet
at the Société Nationale in Paris
to mixed reactions.
. The result is a cyclic structure with the four movements connected by thematic material. Other influences include Borodin
and Java
nese gamelan
music.
The quartet is considered a watershed in the history of chamber music.
Its sensuality and impressionistic tonal shifts make it a piece absolutely of its time and place while, with its cyclic structure, it constitutes a final divorce from the rules of classical harmony and points the way ahead.
"Any sounds in any combination and in any succession are henceforth free to be used in a musical continuity," Debussy wrote. Pierre Boulez said that Debussy freed chamber music from "rigid structure, frozen rhetoric and rigid aesthetics."
Claude Debussy
Claude-Achille Debussy was a French composer. Along with Maurice Ravel, he was one of the most prominent figures working within the field of impressionist music, though he himself intensely disliked the term when applied to his compositions...
wrote his sole String Quartet
String quartet
A string quartet is a musical ensemble of four string players – usually two violin players, a violist and a cellist – or a piece written to be performed by such a group...
in G minor, Op. 10 in 1893.
Background
The previous year Debussy had abandoned the opera Rodrigue et ChimèneRodrigue et Chimène
Rodrigue et Chimène is an unfinished opera in three acts by Claude Debussy. The French libretto, by Catulle Mendès, is based on the plays Las Mocedades del Cid by Guillén de Castro y Bellvís and Corneille's Le Cid which deal with the legend of El Cid...
. He planned to write two string quartets only one of which materialized.
The quartet received its premiere on December 29, 1893 by the Ysaÿe Quartet
Ysaÿe Quartet (1886)
The Ysaÿe Quartet was established in 1886 by Eugène Ysaÿe.Its members were:* Eugène Ysaÿe, 1st violin* Mathieu Crickboom, 2nd violin* Léon van Hout, viola* Joseph Jacob, celloThe quartet premiered Claude Debussy's String Quartet on December 29, 1893....
at the Société Nationale in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
to mixed reactions.
Analysis
The work seems to be influenced by the style of César FranckCésar Franck
César-Auguste-Jean-Guillaume-Hubert Franck was a composer, pianist, organist, and music teacher who worked in Paris during his adult life....
. The result is a cyclic structure with the four movements connected by thematic material. Other influences include Borodin
Alexander Borodin
Alexander Porfiryevich Borodin was a Russian Romantic composer and chemist of Georgian–Russian parentage. He was a member of the group of composers called The Five , who were dedicated to producing a specifically Russian kind of art music...
and Java
Java
Java is an island of Indonesia. With a population of 135 million , it is the world's most populous island, and one of the most densely populated regions in the world. It is home to 60% of Indonesia's population. The Indonesian capital city, Jakarta, is in west Java...
nese gamelan
Gamelan
A gamelan is a musical ensemble from Indonesia, typically from the islands of Bali or Java, featuring a variety of instruments such as metallophones, xylophones, drums and gongs; bamboo flutes, bowed and plucked strings. Vocalists may also be included....
music.
The quartet is considered a watershed in the history of chamber music.
Its sensuality and impressionistic tonal shifts make it a piece absolutely of its time and place while, with its cyclic structure, it constitutes a final divorce from the rules of classical harmony and points the way ahead.
"Any sounds in any combination and in any succession are henceforth free to be used in a musical continuity," Debussy wrote. Pierre Boulez said that Debussy freed chamber music from "rigid structure, frozen rhetoric and rigid aesthetics."
Movements
- Animé et très décidé
- Assez vif et bien rythmé
- Andantino, doucement expressif
- Très modéré - En animant peu à peu - Très mouvementé et avec passion
External links
- Performance of String Quartet by the Borromeo String QuartetBorromeo String QuartetThe Borromeo String Quartet is an American string quartet, in residence at the New England Conservatory since 1992. They have performed throughout North and South America, Europe, and Asia, at numerous festivals and in many distinguished chamber music series...
from the Isabella Stewart Gardner MuseumIsabella Stewart Gardner MuseumThe Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum or Fenway Court, as the museum was known during Isabella Stewart Gardner's lifetime, is a museum in the Fenway-Kenmore neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, located within walking distance of the Museum of Fine Arts and near the Back Bay Fens...
in MP3MP3MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III, more commonly referred to as MP3, is a patented digital audio encoding format using a form of lossy data compression...
format - 'Debussy Quartet in G minor, Op. 10', lecture by Professor Roger Parker followed by a performance by the Badke Quartet, at Gresham CollegeGresham CollegeGresham College is an institution of higher learning located at Barnard's Inn Hall off Holborn in central London, England. It was founded in 1597 under the will of Sir Thomas Gresham and today it hosts over 140 free public lectures every year within the City of London.-History:Sir Thomas Gresham,...
, 29 January 2008 (available for download as either video or audio files). - Notes by Ong Yong Hui
- Notes by Keith Anderson