Three Favorite Debussy Orchestral Works

[EigenUser]

Not counting the opera, which are your three favorite?

(sorry to pick on you, Ken )

For me:
1. "Jeux"
2. "La Mer"
3. "Sirenes"

[Ken B]

Unfair! There simply must must be 3 pieces by Satie the dude orchestrated, but none are listed.
I'm calling Banana!

[North Star]

I voted for Nuages, La mer & Iberia, though the breaking up of works into separate entities seems arbitrary and pointless, since other works could have been listed instead - not that my votes would be different then.

[NJ Joe]

Nuages, La Mer, Jeux.

I first grew to love these works from this disc:

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[EigenUser]

I voted for Nuages, La mer & Iberia, though the breaking up of works into separate entities seems arbitrary and pointless, since other works could have been listed instead - not that my votes would be different then.

I still could have listed other works (I broke them up since they are performed separately often enough), but I decided to go with these since they are the most common names (perhaps I should have included "Printemps", the two-part choral work).

C'mon 'Jeux'! You can do it!!!

[TheGSMoeller]

Saint-Sebastian, La Mer and Sirenes.

[EigenUser]

Nuages, La Mer, Jeux.

I first grew to love these works from this disc:

[asin]B000001GM5[/asin]

I haven't heard that recording before, but I'll check it out if/when I'm in the market for another one. I like the Dutoit/Montreal for everything except "La Mer", for which I prefer de Burgos with the LSO.

[Sergeant Rock]

Fetes, La Mer, Jeux

Sarge

[7/4]

La Mer.

[Mirror Image]

I voted for Nuages, La mer & Iberia, though the breaking up of works into separate entities seems arbitrary and pointless, since other works could have been listed instead - not that my votes would be different then.

Hear, hear! I don't understand the need to break up the works either. Makes absolutely no sense to me. Come on, Nate! Combine the movements of Nocturnes and Images.

[EigenUser]

Fetes, La Mer, Jeux

Sarge

I almost picked "Fetes" and I always think that this one's my favorite while it's playing, but then when the chorus in "Sirenes" begins I almost literally melt from its beauty.

[EigenUser]

Hear, hear! I don't understand the need to break up the works either. Makes absolutely no sense to me. Come on, Nate! Combine the movements of Nocturnes and Images.

Pshhh, go back to your progressive rock .

I would have if I knew that I'd be chased from breakfast to hell for it , but I don't want to now because I assume that it will start from scratch.

[Mirror Image]

Pshhh, go back to your progressive rock .

I would have if I knew that I'd be chased from breakfast to hell for it , but I don't want to now because I assume that it will start from scratch.

One work, besides the masterpiece La Mer, which isn't listed and that has continued to leave me in a trance, is Danse sacrée et danse profane. Gorgeous work.

http://www.youtube.com/v/RdIrI06hFyw

[EigenUser]

One work, besides the masterpiece La Mer, which isn't listed and that has continued to leave me in a trance, is Danse sacrée et danse profane. Gorgeous work.

http://www.youtube.com/v/RdIrI06hFyw

I've been meaning to hear this. Thanks for reminding me!

I read (in a biography of Ravel, I think), that Ravel was commissioned by a harp manufacturer to write his "Introduction and Allegro" (one of my favorite Ravel works) to show off what their new chromatic harp could do. Then, another harp manufacturer (competitor) commissioned Debussy to write the "Danse Sacree et Danse Profane" to show off what a traditional harp could do. It may have been the other way around, but it was something funny like that.

Beautiful, as I had expected.

[Mirror Image]

I've been meaning to hear this. Thanks for reminding me!

I read (in a biography of Ravel, I think), that Ravel was commissioned by a harp manufacturer to write his "Introduction and Allegro" (one of my favorite Ravel works) to show off what their new chromatic harp could do. Then, another harp manufacturer (competitor) commissioned Debussy to write the "Danse Sacree et Danse Profane" to show off what a traditional harp could do. It may have been the other way around, but it was something funny like that.

Beautiful, as I had expected.

Both Debussy and Ravel could write absolutely mesmerizing harp parts. Just think of all those beautiful note cascades from the harp in Ravel's Daphnis et Chloe (still one of my favorite works by any composer and one that has meant a lot to me). Also, the woodwind writing of both composers is just in a class of it's own. Anyway, I'm getting off topic here....

Debussy wrote some tremendous music that has continued to touch me time and time again.

[Ken B]

Pshhh, go back to your progressive rock .

I would have if I knew that I'd be chased from breakfast to hell for it , but I don't want to now because I assume that it will start from scratch.

It's vote splitting! Next Nate will split La Mer into pieces!

[EigenUser]

Yes! I should have done that. "Jeux" is losing to "La Mer" (as much as I love "La Mer") because it is only in one part. How can it possibly compete?

[Mirror Image]

How can it possibly compete?

It can't.

[EigenUser]

It can't.

[EigenUser]

Speaking of "Jeux", here's an interesting article I found on the piece:
http://tranb300.ulb.ac.be/groupe317/archive/files/4b45df1e9dea8f9884887c65038fb0c9.pdf