“Clair de Lune” Analysis
“Clair de Lune” by Claude Debussy is among the most famous piano songs in the piano music industry. It is part of “Suite bergamasque” created by Debussy. In this essay, the song has been analyzed by identifying its mood and basic music elements.
Musical Elements in the Song
Debussy composed the song using various elements of music. Debussy composed the song using sound. He used an elegant and luminous sound to create the song. The timbre of the song is brighter and lighter. When listening to the song, one can identify its tone progressively getting darker and heavier. The pitch of the song is low. The song was also created using harmony. The harmony used to compose the song was D flat major.
D flat major makes the song flow courteously. The harmony of the songs is pleasing. The chords used to develop the harmony are the 7th, 9th, and 11th chords. Debussy did not base the song on any dance form, making it unique. The song was based on a poetic structure. The form of the harmony is compound ternary. Debussy began the A section in a D-flat major containing a descending main theme.
He raised the pitch to the highest point using contrasting ascending style with sixteenth notes and passionate arpeggiated lyrical melodies. After raising the pitch, Debussy used a sentimental mood to come back to the A section. Another musical element Debussy used is expression. He increased excitement level and energy in measure 37 using pis cresc and En animant. Debussy also used rhythm to create the song. The first bead in the song is rest, followed by bass in a deep note, and then alto.
Mood and Impression of the Song
A person listening to this song may feel lonely because, unlike the other three movements, the song is quiet, slightly melancholy, and contemplative. A section of the song has a lonelier feeling because it was created using descending thirds. This section was created using descending lines and sighing gestures to bring the feeling of grief. Debussy used rising three-note and sixteenth notes to create melody and develop great intensity in the B section. In summary, the mood and impression of the song include loneliness, sadness, and grief.
Apollonian or Dionysian
“Clair de Lune” is an apollonian song. The song was created for people to listen to it thinking and sitting still. It does not involve movement, individual and ecstasy and trance, or dancing. The mood of the song needs the lister to think rather than dance. Its form is poetic and not dance.
Comparing Impressionism as an Artistic or Musical Movement
The similarity of musical and artistic movements is that they put much stress on color. According to Byrnside (1980), impression uses triggers emotions using harmony and color. The song as triggered lonely mood and feeling of grief using its harmony and tone. Similarly, “Impression Sunrise” by Claude Monet uses colors to trigger viewers emotions. The color of the painting triggers calm feeling. The difference between art and musical movements is that art uses visuals while music uses chords to communicate and impress.
Conclusion
Music and art both share impressions. “Clair de Lune” and “Impression Sunrise” have both used colors to develop different impressions. The song has developed a lonely feeling, while the art has developed a calm feeling.
References
Byrnside, R. L. (1980). Musical impressionism: the early history of the term. The Musical Quarterly, 66(4), 522-537.
Wheeldon, M. (2000). Interpreting” Strong Moments” in Debussy’s” La terrasse des audiences du clair de lune”. Intégral, 181-208.
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