Rêverie (Debussy)
| "Rêverie" | |
|---|---|
| by Claude Debussy | |
Cover of the score, E. Fromont edition (1905) | |
| Key | F major |
| Catalogue | L 76 (68) |
| Composed | 1890 |
| Performed | 1899 |
"Rêverie" is a musical composition by Claude Debussy, composed in 1890.
Overview
"Rêverie" was composed in 1890.[1] The work was published by Éditions Choudens in 1891 and appeared in the music supplement of L'Illustration (no. 2751) in 16 November 1895, then at Fromont in 1905.[1]
Debussy was critical of the piece, writing in a letter to Madame Fromont in 1905, Vous avez tort de faire paraître la "Rêverie"... C'était une chose sans importance faite très vite pour rendre service à Hartmann ; en deux mots : c'est mauvais (You are wrong to publish "Rêverie"... It was a thing of no importance, made very quickly to do Hartmann a service; in two words: it's bad).[2]
The piece is however famous and has been transcribed many times, notably for violin and piano by Alberto Bachmann (Fromont 1912), for piano four hands by Henri Woollett (Fromont, 1913), and for cello and piano by Ferdinando Ronchini (Fromont, 1914) among others.[3]
The first known public performance was given on 27 February 1899 by the pianist Germaine Alexandre.[3]
Analysis
Harry Halbreich described "Rêverie" as very pleasant sounding piece with a somewhat simple but certain melodic charm.[4]
The piece carries the number L 76 (68) in the catalogue of works by Debussy by the musicologist François Lesure.[1]
In popular culture
The song "My Reverie" by Larry Clinton adapts the melody of Debussy's "Rêverie".[5]
Isao Tomita includes a synthesized version of "Rêverie" among other pieces by Debussy in his album Snowflakes are Dancing.[6]
References
- ^ a b c Lesure 2003, p. 507.
- ^ Lesure 2005, p. 904.
- ^ a b Lesure 2003, p. 508.
- ^ Halbreich 1987, p. 292.
- ^ Brown 2012, p. 24.
- ^ Brown 2012, p. 66.
Sources
- Halbreich, Harry (1987). Claude Debussy (in French). Paris: Bleu nuit éditeur. ISBN 978-2-35884-074-3.
- Lesure, François (2003). Claude Debussy (in French). Paris: Fayard. ISBN 2-213-61619-1.
- Lesure, François (2005). Correspondance, 1872-1918 Claude Debussy ; édition établie par François Lesure et Denis Herlin et annotée par François Lesure, Denis Herlin et Georges Liébert (in French). Paris: Gallimard. ISBN 2-07-077255-1.
- Brown, Matthew (2012). Debussy Redux : The Impact of His Music on Popular Culture. Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press. ISBN 978-0-253-35716-8.
Further reading
- Lebrun, Éric (1987). Claude Debussy (in French). Paris: Fayard. ISBN 978-2-02-000242-4.
External links
- "Rêverie" (Debussy): Scores at the International Music Score Library Project