Debussy

September 1, 2018
A musicologist offers a sensuous portrait of an iconic composer.Drawing on many fine studies of Claude Debussy (1862-1918) Walsh (Emeritus, Music/Cardiff Univ.; Musorgsky and His Circle, 2013, etc.) focuses on the composer's music--daring and often misunderstood--to create a perceptive and authoritative new biography. A precociously gifted pianist, Debussy had achieved near-adult virtuosity by the age of 10, though he lacked "practical, or even moral, discipline," rebelling against the narrow teachings at the Paris Conservatoire and the "rabid vocationalism of the average music student." By the time he was 17, he decided to abandon the goal of becoming a concert pianist and, instead, become a composer. In 1885, he pursued that goal in Rome, where, again, he bristled against the "hated specifications and stereotyped criteria" at the Academy. His assessors deemed his compositions strange: He was preoccupied, they believed, with "the bizarre, the incomprehensible, the unperformable," and warned him to "be on guard against that vague impressionism which is one of the most dangerous enemies of truth in works of art." Undaunted, over the next few years, he honed a unique style, "subtle and resonant," inspired by "the astoundingly rich and suggestive imagery" of poems of Verlaine and Baudelaire. Walsh sees 1890 as a breakthrough year for Debussy, in which he met the Symbolist poet Stéphane Mallarmé, who invited him to write incidental music for a stage performance. Mallarmé, writes the author, "opened doors...that would broaden his literary and artistic horizons." Soon, he mastered orchestral music. Walsh praises Nuages for its "refined juxtapositions of colours, melodic, harmonic and instrumental" and Fètes, for its "deftness and athleticism." The ambitious Le Mer, Walsh writes, most clearly reflects Debussy's "inflexibly meticulous, hyper-perfectionist approach to composition." Perennially in debt and embroiled in domestic problems, Debussy felt, he explained, an "invincible need to escape into myself," unable to abide "strict observance of traditions, laws, and other obstacles." He was dedicated to creating, and redefining, beauty, and as Walsh amply demonstrates, he brilliantly succeeded.A richly detailed life of a modernist master.

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November 5, 2018
Walsh (Stravinsky) uses the musical compositions of French composer Achille-Claude Debussy (1862–1918) as a framework to tell the story of his short life in this richly descriptive biography. Debussy was often referred to as an impressionist composer, as he was influenced by the works of impressionist artists Claude Monet and Stéphane Mallarmé, and Walsh gives a thorough history of Debussy’s artistic growth. Working against a rigid, conservative musical tradition, Debussy nevertheless created a radical body of work where visual expression or “painting in sound” was paramount. Walsh writes accessibly about his music: “ ‘Le Soirée dans Greande’ is a street scene; atmosphere with passersby. The C sharp ostinato at the start hangs expectantly in the air and soon a distant voice intones one of those laments.” In the chapter “Songs for Marie,” Walsh describes the affair Debussy had with Marie-Rosalie Texier, who would later become his wife and for whom he wrote several songs in which “one can hear her voice almost as if she were in the room singing them.” Throughout, Walsh wonderfully underscores Debussy’s importance as a composer.

Starred review from October 15, 2018
In Fryderyk Chopin? (2018), Alan Walker gave us a life and times. In Schumann? (2018), Judith Chernaik presented a life and works. In the equally outstanding Debussy, Walsh offers yet another kind of book about a composer, a work-life with just enough extramusical detail to claim being a biography. More than most other composers?a singularly nose-to-the-grindstone professional fellowship?Debussy lived music. He did not come from a musical or well-to-do family, studied at the Conservatoire de Paris by dint of virtuosity on the piano, wasn't otherwise well educated, and lived with his parents until he was pushing 30. Very early, however, he transformed a disinclination to discipline into determination to re-create composition, which led him to dump concert pianism and concentrate on writing music. To realize his musical radicalism, Debussy became a perfectionist, spending as much time as he needed to meet his own standards. Fortunately, from early on, his music was popular with concertgoers if not with the musical establishment, enabling him to maintain, often precariously, the comfortable, cultured lifestyle he desired. Walsh discusses nearly every one of Debussy's compositions and points out their innovations and their narratives, so to speak?and speak pertinently, for Debussy was as concerned with literature as any great musician ever has been.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)

September 15, 2018

Most classical music aficionados would agree that Claude Debussy (1862-1918) is one of the world's greatest composers. Walsh (emeritus professor of music, Cardiff Univ.) likens Debussy to a "painter," though, curiously, he makes more references here to literature than painting. A central theme of this work is Debussy's rebellion against established musical forms, specifically, those of the Paris Conservatoire, which he attended. With detailed descriptions of Debussy's compositions, the author leads us through the evolution of his music to impressionism (a term Debussy rejected) and beyond. His recounting of the musician's personal life reveals a touchy individual who made frequent use of friends, especially women, without much regard for their well-being in his quest to perfect his work. Walsh's language is frequently quite technical; one would almost have to know what he's writing about to understand him properly. Unlike other biographies this year (e.g., of Chopin, Schumann, and Beethoven), this work, despite its detailed text and numerous references, provides no musical examples. VERDICT Though the book shines a welcome light on the composer, his music, and his times, it is best suited for specialists and classically trained pianists. [See Prepub Alert, 4/9/18.]--Edward B. Cone, New York

Copyright 2018 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 1, 2018

The Observer's former deputy music critic and a prize-winning Stravinksy biographer, Walsh revisits an ineffable groundbreaker.

Copyright 2018 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.