Debussy, Clair de lune (piano music)

Clair de lune, by Claude Debussy, played by Stephen Malinowski, with graphical score.
FAQ
Q: What's the best way to watch this video?
A: I recommend the version I've made for iPad. Because the iPad can support 60 frames per second (instead of the usual 30), the scrolling is silky smooth (the way it's supposed to be), and you can watch it at night, in the dark, in bed. You can get the video here:
http://gum.co/WtDZz

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

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=cJsyMm...

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-D...

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/TapperD...
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/ClairD...

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/AuClairDeL...

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

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_be...

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

[ThatDudeWithThePiano]

hey smalin. i dont know if you remember me, but ive commented on a number of your videos (my other username is Ryan Little). You inspired me to learn this piece quite a while ago, and i finally did it. i just wanted to thank you. i told you id make a video of me playing it a while ago, and its up now if youd like to see it (on this channel). thanks again.

[smalin]

Hey Ryan, I'm glad you pursued this! Sounds like your piano needs a pedal adjustment --- or maybe some felt added? But you have a nice touch.

[AngelMuggleAngel]

Beautiful! When I was a little girl, my Mom told me that I had the hands for playing piano... Sadly, I don't have the coordination or the mind for it. My hands would fumble and I kept getting badly confused over what the notes on the pages were. I still love the piano, but will never be able to play it myself. Thank you for posting such lovely music! :-)

[TheCraftedMine]

Why do I think of sonic games when I listen to this? It is beautiful

[NastyPoops]

art tatum

[Luke Swailes]

Anybody know of any catchy piano music such as this? I've tried Wagner, Chopin, Beethoven, but nothing tops this. I've prob missed the best of the three prior like. Someone educate me!

[GalileoFigaroNAARG]

beautifull music

[travis carrier]

si si, my favorite musica de fraincais

[Colton Johnsgard]

I listen to this at school, after school, and whenever I can and I'm only 14. I've lately been doing music theory because I love musco and because it looks good on college applications. Kids that listen to rap really have no idea what they are missing. I even have raised my musical standards of what I listen to after hearing this, Chopin and Bach. Those are my definite fav, and those who say that classical music is for old people, they haven't heard real, REAL classical music. Thank you.

[marietyler22]

I listen to this when I'm upset cause nothing calms me down more:)

[RMR7Maestro]

The description box is the most helpful and most interesting one I've ever seen on YouTube, thank you for taking the time to make this awesome!

[ThatGuyWithTheHands]

Simply Stunning