Debussy Passepied (featuring the Punch Brothers) - Behind the Score Ep. 1
Added 2021-08-08 13:30:01 +0000 UTCFor the inaugural edition of the Behind the Score series, we're going to one of history's all-time best composers of music, Claude Debussy. His Suite Bergamasque is one of his most famous works, with the inclusion of Clair de Lune. But, we're going to focus on the lovely final movement of this suite, the Passepied.
We're going to listen to the original version of the work, for piano. Then, we'll dive into the harmonic and motivic structures embedded in the musical score. Finally, we'll listen to a contemporary arrangement and performance by American band The Punch Brothers.
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Comments
Holy moly that was awesome 👏
The Nanny named Fran
2024-10-17 19:38:39 +0000 UTCI'm surprised you didn't know Chris Thile, whose name starts with a voiceless TH sound like "think" or "thistle", and rhymes with "wheelie" and "Sealy". He took over as host of A Prairie Home Companion after Garrison Keillor retired. (Keillor made a bad pick with Thile. He's a brilliant musician, but was a boring radio host.)
Ray Sincere
2022-01-29 22:37:52 +0000 UTCI remember the first time I heard Debussy's "le Mer," and it blew me away. Since then he's been one of my favorite composers. Modern symphonic music, especially soundtrack music, owes so very much to the way he can evoke images and moods so masterfully in his pieces.
Blinky
2021-08-16 22:38:29 +0000 UTCThanks for sharing that enjoyable performance! I also appreciate the analysis. It helped me appreciate the harmonic complexity of the piece.
Richard Moore
2021-08-12 00:45:30 +0000 UTCHow lovely Doug! You really know how to hook me in, Debussy is my No.1 favourite classical composer. His work is, to me, the musical equivalent of the revolution in the visual arts contemporary with him...if Monet, Turner or Carrington had written music...It's quite hard to believe how shocking these creators were considered at the time. Anyway, I would like to second the suggestions above for Satie's work, especially the Gnossiennes and add my own of anything of Palestrina, von Bingen, Tallis (Motet for 40 Voices) or more recently Arvo Part (Speigel im Speigel) or Steve Reich. Oh, there's the Karl Jenkins The Armed Man, a Mass for Peace too. You've opened up a musical chocolate box!
Sian Podmore
2021-08-11 16:27:55 +0000 UTCThat was great, Doug! I love Clair de Lune, and to hear the rest of the piece with your annotations was wonderful. I'm really looking forward to more of these. Satie's Gnossiennes would be a great one to explore. One artist I was going to suggest for YouTube is jazz saxophonist Kamasi Washington, and specifically his piece "Changing of the Guard." He also covered "Clair de Lune" on the same album that the previous song was recorded on.
Teresa Conboy
2021-08-11 04:29:35 +0000 UTCilike it because of your very interesting analyse of the beautiful music of debussy a french composer...i listened a lot of classic music and sometimes prog music are inspire by classical...i like too another french composer eric satie...
Michel Paré
2021-08-09 21:24:32 +0000 UTCi like very much your ``behind the score series``
Michel Paré
2021-08-09 21:21:42 +0000 UTCThanks...learning music theory often involves leaps forward followed by time filling in the holes.
R. Douglas Helvering
2021-08-09 17:44:23 +0000 UTCThere is so much going on in the so called Roots-Szene. Listen to Mark O'Connor's latest album "Markology II". He is a famous Bluegrass-fiddler and guitar player and has recorded Standards and Folk Tunes for solo guitar, where he is deconstructing all these beloved songs and rebuliding them as clusters with lots of space. His rendition of Greensleeves is awesome, it was quite hard for me to find the melody when I first listened to it.... I also recommend Bluegrass-Legend Béla Fleck with his Concerti for Banjo and Orchestra and also great chamber and solo music.
ctschwei
2021-08-09 06:14:15 +0000 UTCI think of it more as a digestif than a dessert, like a cognac or a sherry. 😉 Since I’ve only just recently begun a study of “what’s under the hood” of Debussy’s art, your choice is fortuitous, and highly welcomed! I only wish my music theory chops weren’t so weak. Some of this is above my head at present, but I’m working on it. And you’ve helped provide me with some useful focus. Great stuff, Mr. Doug!
Nathan-Andrew
2021-08-09 01:17:24 +0000 UTCThose Bach recordings are how I found him. Awesome stuff.
R. Douglas Helvering
2021-08-09 00:09:41 +0000 UTCDebussy was a very popular composer while he was alive. It’s not that his style was that much different than others…it’s that he was the best at it. His melodic gift is as impressive as his harmonic gifts.
R. Douglas Helvering
2021-08-09 00:08:56 +0000 UTCAs a Bluegrass Guitar and Banjo player, who comes from Heavy Metal and studied Jazz and Classical Guitar, I love the Punch brothers. They combine everything I love about music. Chris Thile was a child prodigy on the mandolin. You should check out his recordings of pieces by Bach.
ctschwei
2021-08-08 20:34:59 +0000 UTCThis is lovely! Out of curiosity, musical history wise, how was Debussy's innovative use of the functional progressions received at the time? Or, did Clair de Lune garner all of the critical and analytical commentary of the time? Obviously, the piece has been studied and appreciated in the century since. But how was it initially received?
Illume Eltanin
2021-08-08 18:23:55 +0000 UTCThank you , Doug. I never thought this piece could be this awesome and enjoyable on other intsruments, And listening to you was like being back to music school. The whole video is a lovely experience.
Zsuzsanna Vázsonyi
2021-08-08 17:56:58 +0000 UTC
