Though Debussy would become a particularly influential composer during the early part of the 20th century, his parents initially had plans for their son to take up the life of a sailor. Even Debussy himself admitted his childhood fascination with the sea, and we can only wonder what the face of classical music would look like today had he followed his parent’s initial plans. Given his love of the sea, it is no surprise that on several occasions he turned to it for inspiration. Yet, perhaps his most famous evocation of the sea is his three-movement symphonic poem, La Mer. Composed between 1903 and 1905, Debussy curiously avoided spending significant time near any large bodies of water, drawing inspiration instead from the representations of the ocean in paintings and literature. Yet, La Mer is one of the most breathtaking and intriguing musical portraits of nature in all of classical music. Though it would become one of Debussy’s most oft-performed orchestral works, its premiere in Paris on October 15, 1905 was lackluster at best. The orchestral was ill-rehearsed and Debussy suffered backlash from the Parisian public after leaving his first wife for the singer Emma Bardac. However, these proved to be only minor setbacks and La Mer quickly became a staple of the orchestral repertoire.
Despite its three-movement symphonic form—two powerful outer movements framing a much more delicate central movement—Debussy referred to La Mer as trois esquisses symphoniques pour orchestra, or “three symphonic sketches for orchestra.” The movements are given the following titles: "De l'aube à midi sur la mer" (“From Dawn to Noon on the Sea”), “Jeux de vagues” (“Play of the Waves”), and "Dialogue du vent et de la mer" (“Dialogue between Wind and Waves”). Debussy’s method of depicting the sea throughout these movements is complex and rich. He completely shuns the triadic figurations so often found in Schubert and Wagner to depict the movement of water. Instead, the musical figures found in La Mer seem to evoke the aural and visual impression of the sea itself. The orchestral texture is often rich, perhaps reflecting the great depths of the sea, with multiple layers progressing at once, blurring the lines between what is melody and what is harmony. Joseph DuBose
La mer, trois esquisses symphoniques pour orchestre Claude Debussy
"De l'aube à midi sur la mer" - très lent ("From dawn to noon on the sea")
"Jeux de vagues" - allegro ("Play of the waves" - allegro)
"Dialogue du vent et de la mer" - animé et tumultueux ("Dialogue of the wind and the sea" - animated and tumultuous)
The Peabody Institute, a conservatory and preparatory school, was founded in 1857. It has a preeminent faculty, a collaborative learning environment, and the academic resources of one of the nation's leading universities, Johns Hopkins.
Classical Music | Orchestral Music
Claude Debussy
La Mer Play
Recorded on 10/19/2002, uploaded on 04/14/2010
Musician's or Publisher's Notes
Though Debussy would become a particularly influential composer during the early part of the 20th century, his parents initially had plans for their son to take up the life of a sailor. Even Debussy himself admitted his childhood fascination with the sea, and we can only wonder what the face of classical music would look like today had he followed his parent’s initial plans. Given his love of the sea, it is no surprise that on several occasions he turned to it for inspiration. Yet, perhaps his most famous evocation of the sea is his three-movement symphonic poem, La Mer. Composed between 1903 and 1905, Debussy curiously avoided spending significant time near any large bodies of water, drawing inspiration instead from the representations of the ocean in paintings and literature. Yet, La Mer is one of the most breathtaking and intriguing musical portraits of nature in all of classical music. Though it would become one of Debussy’s most oft-performed orchestral works, its premiere in Paris on October 15, 1905 was lackluster at best. The orchestral was ill-rehearsed and Debussy suffered backlash from the Parisian public after leaving his first wife for the singer Emma Bardac. However, these proved to be only minor setbacks and La Mer quickly became a staple of the orchestral repertoire.
Despite its three-movement symphonic form—two powerful outer movements framing a much more delicate central movement—Debussy referred to La Mer as trois esquisses symphoniques pour orchestra, or “three symphonic sketches for orchestra.” The movements are given the following titles: "De l'aube à midi sur la mer" (“From Dawn to Noon on the Sea”), “Jeux de vagues” (“Play of the Waves”), and "Dialogue du vent et de la mer" (“Dialogue between Wind and Waves”). Debussy’s method of depicting the sea throughout these movements is complex and rich. He completely shuns the triadic figurations so often found in Schubert and Wagner to depict the movement of water. Instead, the musical figures found in La Mer seem to evoke the aural and visual impression of the sea itself. The orchestral texture is often rich, perhaps reflecting the great depths of the sea, with multiple layers progressing at once, blurring the lines between what is melody and what is harmony. Joseph DuBose
La mer, trois esquisses symphoniques pour orchestre Claude Debussy
More music by Claude Debussy
La Puerta del Vino, from Préludes Book II
Arabesque in C sharp major
Soiree dans Grenade, from Estampes
Rapsodie (arr. Rousseau)
Beau Soir
Ondine, from Préludes Book II
La Cathédrale engloutie, from Preludes, Books 1, No.10
Estampes
Apparition, from Quatre chansons de jeunesse
General Lavine – eccentric, from Préludes Book II
Performances by same musician(s)
Daphnis and Chloé, Suite No. 2
Symphony no. 6
Scheherazade
Oberon Overture
Symphony No. 4
Symphony no. 6, 1st movement
Symphony no. 6, 3rd movement
Symphony No. 5 in c minor, Op.67
Symphony no. 4 in F minor, Op. 36
Symphony No. 5
Classical Music for the Internet Era™
The Peabody Institute, a conservatory and preparatory school, was founded in 1857. It has a preeminent faculty, a collaborative learning environment, and the academic resources of one of the nation's leading universities, Johns Hopkins.