Cello sonata - C. Debussy
Philippe Muller, cello
Eliane Reyes, piano
The “Prologue,” initiated by an introductory fanfare in the piano, relies on a specific melodic-rhythmic figuration that originates in the music of the French Baroque. Subsequently, the cello introduces a theme that takes its character from a Baroque operatic lament, and in due course introduces a theme that alternates between the minor and major tonalities. In a grand musical arch, the fanfare and lamenting themes are repeated, with the fanfare providing the fitting conclusion. Originally, the title of this composition was to make reference to Albert Giraud’s poem “Pierrot Lunaire.” This puppet character from the commedia dell’arte, which was musically immortalized in Arnold Schoenberg’s expressionist setting, dominates Debussy’s “Sérénade” movement. Imitating the strained sounds of a singing puppet—accompanied by the stylized strumming of a guitar—this movement leads into a “Finale” that offers an inexhaustible array of instrumental effects.
