Debussy, Clair de lune (piano music)

FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) for this video

Q: Where can I get free sheet music for this piece?
A: Here (courtesy of Clint S. Mars):
http://www.musanim.com/pdf/debussyclairdelune.pdf

Q: Why is the audio/video quality so poor?
A: This was encoded by YouTube a long time ago; here's a better version:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cJsyMmC76aM

Q: I'd like to download this movie to play on my computer/iPod/iPhone/iPad.
A: It's here:
http://musanim.cerizmo.com

Q: I'd like an MP3 of this.
A: You can get it at iTunes:
http://tinyurl.com/ad9vnc
or at Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Clair-De-Lune-Debussy/dp/B001OIUS90

Q: I wish I could play this piece.
A: You can! If you have a MIDI setup (MIDI keyboard with damper pedal, MIDI piano, and a computer running Windows or Mac OS X), you can play this piece using the conductor program. You need to learn the piece really well, but you don't need to learn to play the piano. The article describing how this works is here ...
http://www.musanim.com/tapper/
... and the software is available here (free) ...
http://www.musanim.com/tapper/TapperDownload.html
The performance used in this video was done using this software!

Q: Is it just me, or does this piece make everyone cry?
A: Maybe not everyone, but lots of people ...
http://www.musanim.com/youtube/ClairDeLuneCrying.html

Q: Can you please do a video of ________?
A: Please read this:
http://www.musanim.com/all/MAMRequests.html

Q: This is not the Clair de lune I learned growing up in France.
A: You may be thinking of the song Au clair de la lune:
http://www.musanim.com/img/AuClairDeLaLune.jpg

Q: How did you make this video?
A: You can read about it here:
http://www.musanim.com/ProductionNotes/ClairDeLune.html

Q: What do the colors mean?
A: Each pitch class (C, C-sharp, D, D-sharp, etc.) has it's own color, and the colors are chosen by mapping the musician's "circle of fifths" to the artist's "color wheel." You can read more about this here:
http://www.musanim.com/mam/pfifth.htm

Q: Who is Debussy?
A: A French composer; you can read about him here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Debussy

Q: Where can I learn more about this piece?
A: This Wikipedia article is a good place to start:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suite_bergamasque

Q: Wasn't this in Fantasia?
A: Almost. There originally was a Clair de lune segment in the film, but it was cut from the final release. It's on the Fantasia Legacy Supplemental Features DVD.

Q: Is there a way I could make the bar-graph scores myself?
A: The Music Animation Machine MIDI file player will generate this display; you can get the (Windows) software here:
http://www.musanim.com/player/
There are lots of places on the web where you can get MIDI files; I usually go to the Classical Archives site first:
http://www.classicalarchives.com/

Q: Can I use this audio/video in my project?
A: Please send me an email (stephen at musanim dot com) describing your project and I'll let you know whether it's okay.
.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• music
• animation
• visualization
• score
• art

[AnaBuhnana276]

@smalin

Are you there person that is playing this? If so, your very talented. I've played the Bb Clarinet for about a year now, and i hope i'm atleast 1/16 of how great you are!(:

[smalin]

@AnaBuhnana276 The answer to your question is not simple; see the "Q: How did you make this video?" item in the FAQ.

[freshenerable]

you still comment on this after 6 YEARS?! (@smalin)

[smalin]

@freshenerable Why not? People are still watching.

[JokerVidProductions]

Ugh, I would study music just to learn to play this piece.

[smalin]

@JokerVidProductions Does that mean you will?

[ceab1760]

@IMAHMS bah

[Miekiee1]

wish I could play this.. :O 

[fabialessas]

caso com uma serenata dessa música

[AnaBuhnana276]

@smalin

This is awesome. And i'm in middle school, so i'd like to be able to play elegant,classy pieces like this. All we do in middle school is Fast, loud songs...

My dream is to go to college on a band scholarship, and become a world-wide musician.

[sarahm108]

It's a beautiful melody. I think that everyone knows it.

[IMAHMS]

@Chizzy941 I don't play it better, but I have heard it being played better than this, this is not perfect.

[IMAHMS]

@mariajazzym and it is not that much difficult to play by the way :) not at all, I played it in a small concert when I was 17 years old.. but to play it perfectly is the issue

[IMAHMS]

@mariajazzym I don't need to study to know that this is not as well played as the mp3 that I have of it.. I have a musical ear that I trust, and the way it is played here did not do this piece its justice, I love this piece so much and wish that those 17 million people have listened to how it is played perfectly.. by the way I play it almost as good as it is played in this video, which is still not perfect and not good enough