Born
August 22, 1862
Died
March 25, 1918
Country
France
Born in Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France in 1862, Claude Debussy was the creator and leading exponent of French musical impressionism. At age ten, he entered the Paris Conservatory, where he studied piano with Antoine Francois Marmontel and composition with Ernest Guiraod. Over the next ten years, he continued his studies at the Conservatory and became acquainted with a wide range of music as he traveled to Italy, Austria, and Russia.
In 1894, his cantata, The Prodigal Son, won the coveted Grand Prix de Rome. From 1887 on, Debussy confined his activity to composition, rarely appearing in public as a performer. He enjoyed the company of the leading impressionist poets and painters who gathered at the home of the poet Stephane Mallarme. Their influence is felt in Debussy’s first important orchestral work, Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun (1894). This work established the style of impressionist music and initiated Debussy’s most productive period, which lasted nearly 20 years.
During that time, he composed his one completed opera, Pelleas and Melisande (1892-1902); the orchestral suites Nocturnes (1893-99), The Sea (1903), and Images (1906-09); most of his piano music, including the books of Preludes (1910-13); the ballet, Games (1912); and one of his best known piano compositions, Claire de Lune, from Suite Bergamasque (1890-1905).
Around 1910, Debussy developed cancer, which sapped his strength during his last years. Many projects were started, such as an opera based on Edgar Allan Poe’s The Fall of the House of Usher, but few were completed. He died in Paris in 1918.
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Video
Get out your opera glasses and prepare to take a look at the history and evolution of an art form over four hundred years old. Learn how singers train and condition their voices, become familiar with some of the stage’s most tragic love affairs, and discover how theatre and music combined can tell epic stories in unforgettable ways.
Meet great composers, explore the vast musical world of the orchestra, study the science behind the instruments, and discover how classical music is anything but boring.
Get inside the mind of a composer—from a popular song, to a Broadway musical, to a symphony, how does a composer write music?
You might see some of these instruments when you come to the Kennedy Center, watch a performance by your school band, or at any other concert you attend! Click the slides to learn more about some of the most frequently spotted instruments in each family.
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