Jean-Yves Thibaudet - Debussy ? images, ?tudes ~ complete works for piano, vol. 2
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Composer: Claude DebussyPerformer: Jean-Yves Thibaudet
Edition: Music CD
CD Release Date: 2000-05-09
Music Label: Decca
Music reviews of Jean-Yves Thibaudet - Debussy ? images, ?tudes ~ complete works for piano, vol. 2
Music Review: Exceptional! As with Vol. 1, this set SHINES!
Rating: 5 Stars
Again, thank you to my Amazon friend Amy for another exceptional recommendation.
Jean-Yves Thibaudet, the virtuoso pianist, was awarded his country's highest musical award in 2007, France's prestigious Victoire D'Honneur, a lifetime achievment award in what is, essentially, France's Grammy Awards. And rightfully so; he is a wonder, a masterful performer and a passionate interpretor of the works which he plays.
Here, Thibaudet completes Debussy's repetoire of solo piano work by following up Complete piano works, Vol. 1 with the remaining works for solo piano composed by Claude Debussy, one of the master French Impressionsists.
Offered on this double disc set are 16 (13 were included on Volume 1) compositions by Debussy. All are amazing and the collection is worth every penny. Any fan of Debussy, the impressionists, late romantic classical or turn of the century (20th) classical, should own both this and Volume 1. It is necessary to hear Thibaudet perform his countryman's pieces flawlessly and with such passion and vigor.
Debussy was a non-conformist and a lot of what he did, although it could have been labeled in a standard manner, was classified in a strange or contrary fashion. For example, his 'Piano Concerto' was called 'Fantasy for Piano and Orchestra'. Most of what he wrote could be considered tone poems, but he never used that moniker; Debussy sought to place pictures or scenes in the mind of the listener, using just music; he wrote tone poems. But, yes, he was unorthodox.
This disc contains several compositions which contain more than one piece or movement and they are:
---Images, Serie 1 (Set 1) - 3 pieces, all amazing. I 'Reflets dans l'eau' ('Reflections on the Water'), evocative of a dancing water fountain with it's distorted shapes and ripples; lovely, soft, with ascending and descending cascades of keystrokes; II Homage a Rameau is a succulent, if not somewhat atonal, soft and reverent "tip o' the hat" to Rameau for his tragic opera 'Castor et Polux'. III Mouvement is, as the title suggests, active; quick on the keys and intense in it's use of high and low chords in contrast.
---Images, Serie 2 (Set 2) - 3 pieces, again, amazing. I Cloches a travers les feullies ('Bells heard through the leaves') has a very chilly fell to it; it feels like autumn. II 'Et la lune descend sur la temple qui fut' ('And the moon descends on the temple that was' or 'Descent of the moon upon the temple which used to be') is somewhat dark and eerie but hauntingly beautiful. III 'Poissons d'or' ('Goldfish') sparkles brightly, a sprite and joyful tune.
---Children's Corner Suite - 6 pieces. These are tunes about children, not composed for children to perform. They are a treat. I 'Doctor Gradus ad Parnassum' is a jest towards Clementi's 'Gradus ad Parnassum' ("Steps to Parnassus", a reference to the mythilogical Mount Parnassus where the godesses of the arts resided), a series of instructional pieces for piano. It is a fast-paced romp on the keyboard, light and fun. II 'Jimbo's Lullaby' is, in my humble opinion, the best of the 6 pieces; it is a beautiful, melancholy piece which is punctuated with dissonance, but it is enjoyable and, towards the end, contains a sublime melody. III 'Serenade for the doll' is, like movement II, punctuated by dissonance, but wonderful and soothing. IV 'The snow is dancing' evokes just that picture; it is a soothing dance on the keyboard; IMHO, second only to movement II in beauty. V 'The Little Shepherd' is light, dissonant and as playful as the rest of the pieces. VI 'Golliwogg's Cakewalk' is a piece for dance (a cakewalk) that is based upon a French mythical creature known as a Golliwogg. The piece is best known for it's reference to the 'Tristan Chord' from Wagner's 'Tristan und Isolde'. If you listen, you can hear (first at 1 minute 25 seconds, then repeated again throughout) the 'Tristan Chord' played then followed by mimicking laughter from the piano.
---Suite Bergamasque - Debussy's most famous piece probably comes from this Suite in the 3rd movement. I Prelude is lovely, almost somber but contrastingly still uplifting. II Menuet is true to title, a dance, tranquil and melodious. III Clair de Lune ('Moonlighting') is probably Debussy's most famous work. It has also been orchestrated and is used in movies, tv shows and commercials ubiquitously. But it is staggeringly radiant and remains my favorite classical piece. IV Passapied ('moving feet') is a dance piece; it is fast and breezy, quite enjoyable.
---Etudes, 12 pieces (in 2 books). All are studies for learning to play but, despite the fact that studies might seem prosaic, they are enjoyable to hear, impressive and substantial.
The remaining pieces are individual pieces for solo piano:
---'Le Petit Negre' (the title is quite offensive and I don't understand the purpose behind it) is beautiful, despite the title. It opens quickly, slows to a soft melody, and returns to its opening, quick theme.
---'La plus que lente' is one of my favorite pieces by Debussy. It is delicate and the melody is quite breath-taking.
---'Valse romantique' is much like 'La plus que lente'; perhaps slightly less melodious, but still lovely.
---'Ballade slave' is another of my favorite Debussy pieces. It is a graceful and melodic piece, supple and warm.
---'Tarantelle styrienne' is a piece for ballet, played at a quick pace and I feel it may be more enjoyable were it played slower.
---'Mazurka' is just that; a dance, slowly played but at a quick time. It is a bit awkward sounding, but still somewhat enjoyable.
---'Hommage a Joseph Haydn' is alluring; soft and slow with flourishes and harsh chords. I rather like the piece.
---'Elegie' would be one of the last pieces composed by Debussy for solo piano before his death in 1918. As the title suggests, the piece is somber, played slowly, a reflection on sorrow.
---'Berceuse Heroique' was written in response to the German occupation of Belgium; in fact, it was written for the king to honor his defense of the country. The title literally means 'heroic lullaby'. It is a gloomy and oppressive piece that occassionally references the Belgian national anthem. It communicates its intended theme thoroughly and is stunning.
---'Page d'album' (subtitled 'Piece pour le Vetemente du blesse' or 'Piece for the clothing of the wounded') A piece written, again, in response to the monstrous German regime. It is slightly lighter in makeup than the associated 'Berceuse Heroique' but does still carry a darker undertone.
---'Etude retrouvee' (subtitled 'Pour les arpeges composes' or 'for composed arpeggios'). Retrouvee means 'recovered' or 'found' and, as the title indicates, the piece was never published (heck, Debussy never let anyone know it existed). The subtitle being the same as the 11th Etude suggests a connection, but the piece was apparently discarded by Debussy only to be discovered in 1977. The pieces do not resemble each other, making this a unique and enjoyable find for Debussy fanatics; a dead piece, reborn.
Excellent performance and great recording make this disc a MUST HAVE!!!
Description of Jean-Yves Thibaudet - Debussy ? images, ?tudes ~ complete works for piano, vol. 2
Jean-Yves Thibaudet is not a pianist to be pigeonholed. Alongside the recordings of his fellow countrymen Debussy and Ravel, he has recorded a tribute to a jazz giant, Conversations with Bill Evans, and he plays on the soundtrack of the film Portrait of a Lady. Perhaps this catholic approach accounts for the freshness of his Debussy playing. Not for him the "stick the pedal down and make an impressionistic wash of sound" approach. His playing is clean and refreshing without losing any of the voluptuous sensuality of Debussy at his most beguiling. There are lollipops to be found among the extensive repertory on these two discs, including the celebrated "Clair de Lune" from the Suite Bergamasque and the "Golliwogg's Cake-Walk" from Children's Corner. The mainstay of the release is the two sets of Images and the two books of ?tudes, 12 studies whose demands are not for the faint of heart. Luckily for us, Thibaudet's heart is strong. He offers virtuosic, thoughtful performances of pieces that, while written to help develop pianists' technique, stand up magnificently as music to be listened to. --Keith ClarkeGeneral CDs
- Styles > Classical
- Ballets & Dances > Dances
- Mazurkas
- Waltzes
- Chamber Music > General
- Featured Composers, A-Z > ( D ) > Debussy, Claude
- Featured Performers, A-Z > ( T ) > Thibaudet, Jean-Yves
- Forms & Genres > Ballads
- Etudes
- Short Forms > Character Pieces
- Suites
- Historical Periods > Classical (c.1770-1830) > Forms & Genres > Chamber Music
- Instruments > Keyboard > General
- Opera & Vocal > Vocal Non-Opera > Lullabies & Berceuse
- Miscellaneous > Exercise
- Debussy, Claude - Works by Debussy
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