Voiles

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Voiles (French: Schleier / Segel ) is a piano piece composed by Claude Debussy from 1909. It is the second composition of the Préludes - Livre I and is considered a particularly typical work for Debussy.

The composition consists of 64 bars, which can be divided into 5 sections. As is often the case in musical impressionism , the boundaries within the sections are fluid and therefore cannot be precisely defined to the beat.

This is a recommended, but not mandatory, division.

part Tact
1. A Bars 1–17
2. A (modification) Bars 18-21
3. B. Bars 22–41
4. C Bars 42-47
5. C (modification) Bars 48-64

Overall, the piece consists of three different levels that must be observed, the upper / middle tones and bass tones. The overtones form the most flexible level (large ambitus ), the midtones a "not quite as flexible" (medium-sized ambitus), and the bass tones a static level (due to the low ambitus)

Part 1 (Part A)

In this part, the bass and mid-tone row rests at the beginning and only the overtones represent the descending motif (consisting of the tone supply of a whole-tone scale ) in the first four bars. With this motif, one cannot speak of a theme or cantus firmus , since Debussy basically did not use or develop any themes. His idea of ​​musical aesthetics was to use motifs that were always illuminated differently. In the further course of Part A, the individual voices are “introduced” in the various levels, whereby the upper part plays the motif over and over again, the middle part often plays chords and the bass lies rigidly on the bass note B. The overtones in this part mainly consist of sixteenth notes, the middle tones of eighth notes. The rigid bass notes consist of eighth notes and quarter notes (played in staccato ).

Part 2 (modification of A)

In this part the motif changes from a descending movement to an ascending one. Bass and mid-tones remain the same.

Part 3 (Part B)

In this part there is an acceleration in the overtones and midtones (overtones now play thirty-second notes), while there is a slowdown in the bass tones. The upper and middle tones are in contrast to each other in terms of the note values, i.e. they form a contrast. This creates a metric obscuration.

Part 4 (Part C)

With section C Debussy allows a very big break in style with the previous one, since a great many fast ascending thirty-second tones are played. The tones, these ascending tones, form the pentatonic scale . This gives the piece an aimless, exotic, Far Eastern character. The pitch is also chosen to be extremely high, which also supports the veiled character.

Part 5 (modification of C)

This section forms a conglomerate of parts A and C. The arpeggios from part C continue to come into play. However, with the difference that in addition to the arpeggios in the middle part, other motifs (which use the tone reserve of the whole-tone scale) are formed in the upper part. Various well-known motifs also reappear. So you can find the chord strokes from the middle voice (known from Part A) every now and then. The main motif, which was introduced at the very beginning of the piece (Part A), also appears again in the upper part.

The piece is specified in 2/4 time with 88 bpm , but the metric emphases are also extremely veiled. It is almost impossible to determine a metric that gives the piece a "free-floating" character. Debussy achieves this through the pause right at the beginning of the piece, as well as through the pauses that crop up again and again in the further course of the piece. In addition, the frequent changes in note values ​​within the individual levels also contribute to obscuring the metric. But the metric is also obscured by the different note values ​​(and the tempos generated with them), the individual levels in contrast to one another (overtones - "fast"; mid-tones - "medium-fast"; bass tones - "extremely slow").

literature

  • Albert Jakobik: Claude Debussy. The silent revolution in music. Wuerzburg 1977

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