IMPRESSIONISM

MUSICAL COMPOSERS

Debussy was born in St. Germain-en-Laye

inzz on August 22, 1862.
He entered the Paris Conservatory in 1873.
He gained a reputation as an erratic pianist
and a rebel in theory and harmony.
In 1884, he won the top prize at the Prix de
Rome competition with his composition L
Enfant Prodigue (The Prodigal Son). This
enabled him to study for two years in Rome,
where he got exposed to the music of
Richard Wagner, specifically his opera
Tristan und Isolde

Debussys mature creative period was

represented by the following works:
Ariettes Oubliees
Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun
String Quartet
Pelleas et Melisande (1895)his
famous operatic work that drew mixed
extreme reactions for its innovative
harmonies and textural treatments.
La Mer (1905)a highly imaginative
and atmospheric symphonic work
for orchestra about the sea
Images, Suite Bergamasque, and
Estampeshis most popular piano
compositions; a set of lightly textured
pieces containing his signature work
Claire de Lune (Moonlight)

Claude Debussy _
Clair de Lune for Piano

MAURICE RAVEL
(18751937)

Joseph Maurice Ravel was born

in Ciboure, France to a Basque
mother and a Swiss father. He
entered the Paris Conservatory
at the age of 14 where he
studied with the eminent French
composer Gabriel Faure.
His works involve a
programmatic nature, wherein
visual imagery is either
suggested or portrayed. Many
of his works deal with water in
its flowing or stormy moods as
well as with human
characterizations.

Ravels works include the following:

Pavane for a Dead Princess (1899), a slow but
lyrical requiem
Jeux dEau or Water Fountains (1901)
String Quartet (1903)
Sonatine for Piano (c.1904)
Miroirs (Mirrors), 1905, a work for piano known
for its harmonic evolution
and imagination,
Gaspard de la Nuit (1908), a set of demonicinspired pieces based on the
poems of Aloysius Bertrand which is arguably the
most difficult piece in the
piano repertoire.
These were followed by a number of his other
significant works, including
Valses Nobles et Sentimentales (1911)
Le Tombeau de Couperin (c.1917), a
commemoration of the musical
advocacies of the early 18th century French
composer Francois Couperin,
Rhapsodie Espagnole
Bolero

ARNOLD SCHOENBERG
(18741951)

Arnold Schoenbergwas born in a working-class

suburb of Vienna, Austria on September 13,
1874. He taught himself music theory, but took
lessons in counterpoint. German
composer Richard Wagner influenced his work
as evidenced by his symphonic poem
Pelleas et Melisande, Op 5 (1903), a
counterpoint of Debussys opera of the same
title.
Schoenbergs style was constantly undergoing
development. From the early influences of
Wagner,his tonal preference gradually turned to
the dissonant and atonal, as he explored the use
of chromatic harmonies.
Although full of melodic and lyrical interest, his
music is also extremely complex, creating heavy
demands on the listener. His works were met
with extreme reactions, either strong hostility
from the general public or enthusiastic acclaim
from his
supporters.

His works include the following:

Verklarte Nacht, Three Pieces for
Piano, op. 11
Pierrot Lunaire,
Gurreleider
Verklarte Nacht (Transfigured Night,
1899), one of his earliest successful
pieces, blen````
ds the lyricism, instrumentation, and
melodic beauty of Brahms with the
chromaticism and construction of
Wagner.