Le Petit Nègre

Debussy's piano piece transcribed for saxophone quartet by the legendary Marcel Mule, performed by the Charles River Saxophone Quartet in Boston at a musical soirée.

Category:

Music

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• CRSQ

[amaralucci1]

where are you based out of?

[dswerdlove]

@amaralucci1 - Boston (near the Charles River)

[dswerdlove]

continued from previous comment:

"Nègre" translates literally to "Negro" so I don't know what Debussy had in mind when he wrote it. I'd prefer to just leave the title in French and let the listener enjoy the music without my socio-political inferences embodied in a translation.

[dswerdlove]

Yes, that is the title I first heard as a high school student in music class just outside Boston in 1970. Imagine that! This was an era where bussing was the big controversy, the rest of the world looked upon Boston as the hotbed of white Northern hypocracy and all good white suburban Boston liberals were for it. Even Randy Newman got in his licks in the song "Rednecks" (And he's free to be put in a cage in Roxbury in Boston).

continued ...

[tzarBHD]

LOL why do you people thumb him down it really means the little nigger

[2125]

"Le Petit Nègre" means "The little nigger" ...

[omarbelicocancoes]

Olá Pessoal

Gostei muito do grupo de Sax estou preparando um grupo que agora tem quatro Sax e fizemos essa musica mais lenta por enquanto,acho que agora dá para chegar nesse andamento.

Omar Belico Canções

[amaralucci1]

Are you looking for additional members? I am a 27 year old female conservatory trained musician

[Jorisz145]

@dswerdlove

Well, in the time this song was written, there weren't so much "nègres" in France. Since Debussy saw a little "nègre" walking about, he decided to write a song about him.

To the musicians:

Awesome, guys! We also did this song in our saxophone quartet, me playing the tenor sax. Shame we didn't record it, it realy sounds great!

[romaneeconti02]

If you think it means nigger - it doesn't. YOu would have to know the first thing about french to know that. "Le negre" is a chocolate cake for isntance. Le petit negre could either mean the young black boy (Not a derogatory thing.) or a sort of simplified french that was used in colonial france turn of the century. Knowing what we know about music - it will be the first meaning. debussey was an impressionist - he told stories. As you can tell...this one tells a story.

[zebest62]

I can play it on the piano but I do think it's much better transcribed for saxophone !

[Joshamania220]

There were quite a few issues with length of notes, over all sound from the Bari as well as some minor timing errors in the final statement of the theme. I did like the tuning between the alto and the bari as well. This is an easy piece but a lot of fun to play. Also, we always use the true French title and don't tell the audience what it means.

[boringdude23]

I like the style, it sounds like something you'd hear in a silent movie :D

[QQWEERTTYUUI]

and the sound and vibration are like the old style!!