Debussy - Doctor Gradus ad Parnassum - Children's Corner

The first piece from Claude Debussy's "Children's Corner Suite", composed for piano and later orchestrated by Andre Caplet, 'Doctor Gradus ad Parnassum', is performed here by the Orchestre Symphonique de Montreal, led by the great Charles Dutoit.

The title of this piece references Classical-era composer (and father of modern piano technique) Muzio Clementi's instructional pieces entitled 'Gradus ad Parnassum' or 'Steps to Parnassus'; Parnassus being a mountain, but also in Greek mythology, a sacred site of the nine muses, the champions of the arts. Clementi's work, in turn, was based upon a particularly famous Prelude, the first piece in Bach's "Well-Tempered Clavier".

The second photo you'll see is of Debussy on picnic with his daughter, Claude-Emma, whom he adored and affectionately called Chouchou.
Debussy dedicated the entire Children's Corner Suite to Chouchou and would later dedicate a Ballet Suite, "La Boite a joujoux" ("The Toy Box" or "The Toy Shop", depending upon translation), to his beloved Claude-Emma, so named after her father, obviously, and mother, Emma Bardac.
Sadly, Chouchou passed away from diphtheria in 1919 at the young age of 13, only a year after Debussy's untimely death due to colon cancer.

Still, this Suite is considered to be one of Debussy's best compositions and it is certainly one of his most difficult to perform on piano; it is a beautiful example of what the master composer did to change the musical landscape forever. Caplet's transcription is wonderful and carries the symbolism of dear Debussy's work elegantly and with flair.

Enjoy!

Category:

Music

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• Claude
• Debussy
• Doctor
• Gradus
• ad
• Parnassum
• Childrens
• Children's
• Corner
• Suite
• Orchestra
• Charles
• Dutoit
• Montreal
• Symphony
• Andre
• Caplet
• Transcription
• Transcribed
• Orchestrated
• Classical
• Music

[doykinbass]

absolutely brilliant

[karateslaginnek]

Never heard this version before.Only with piano..but how beautifull!

[jidmoore10]

nice piece just too short.



[Mathlete1000]

i like it better on piano :) but still quite quite good... :)

[robertslistening]

This sounds excellent when well played on piano, with that dreamy quality maintained...but orchestrated...this is gorgeous. Why did they get sooo forte though. The dynamic range got a bit too wide for me, but the orchestration was beautiful.

[supergabyota]

al fin a la velocidad correcta

[marcmerritt24]

Absolutely incredible! Beautifully scored! I played this in numerous miniature concert competitions and love this magical orchestral score. Truly delightful and inspiring!

[lamazopa21]

I didn't know about this orchestral transcription of Dr. Gradus. The entire Children's Corner Suite is magical music and it works well here for orchestra.

[GoodTimesSickPimpin]

This was dedicated to one of his daughters, right?

[DrGradus11]

HER-MO-SO!! Qué genialidad!