Claude Debussy - Debussy Orchestrated (Pascal Rophé)

Information

Composer: Claude Debussy

• Petite suite, L. 65 (orch. Henri Büsser)
• La boîte à joujoux, L. 128 (orch. André Caplet)
• Children's Corner, L. 113 (orch. André Caplet)

Orchestre National des Pays de la Loire

Pascal Rophé, conductor

Date: 2022

Label: BIS

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Review

For their latest album, Pascal Rophé and his Loire orchestra turn to music by Debussy originally written for piano but orchestrated by other hands, either with Debussy’s consent during his lifetime (Children’s Corner, Petite Suite) or, in the case of the ballet La boîte à joujoux, the completion of an orchestral version left unfinished at his death.

The piano originals are to some extent linked by ideas of expressive directness and on occasion technical simplicity, which should not blind us to their subtlety. Children’s Corner (1906 08) and La boîte (the piano version dates from 1913) are, of course, aimed at children (specifically Debussy’s daughter Chouchou) as well as adults, both as listeners and potential performers: La boîte, its ‘joujoux’ punning on Chouchou’s name, was at one point intended for children to dance to. The lovely Petite Suite (1886 89), inspired in part, like many of Debussy’s songs, by Verlaine’s poetry, was commissioned, probably by his publisher Jacques Durand, as a work for talented amateurs. The orchestrations, meanwhile, were the work of proven associates and colleagues. Henri Büsser’s version of the Petite Suite, which Debussy much admired, dates from 1907, a year before Büsser tackled the orchestration of Printemps. Children’s Corner and La boîte à joujoux were undertaken in 1910 and 1919 by Debussy’s pupil André Caplet, who is also thought to have had a hand in Le martyre de Saint Sébastien.

All three works are superbly done here. Rophé is wonderfully alert to points of colour and detail throughout. The shifting textures of ‘The Snow is Dancing’ from Children’s Corner are breathtakingly done. We’re reminded that Büsser treats ‘En bateau’, from Petite Suite, almost as a sketch for Faune, in the swaying flute phrases at the start, the sensuous string-writing and suggestive low woodwind just before the main melody returns. La boîte is by turns tender and witty, carefully paced and shaped: with its divertissements derived from classical ballet it can turn episodic if not carefully handled, a trap Rophé manages to avoid. That the work, and indeed Caplet’s orchestration, owe something to Petrushka, which floored Debussy at its premiere, is discreetly underscored.

This is a fine orchestra, meanwhile, and the playing is exquisite. The woodwind sound particularly lovely, most notably perhaps in the unfurling phrases at the start of the Petite Suite’s ‘Menuet’, and there are ravishing, poised flute and oboe solos in ‘En bateau’ and Children’s Corner’s ‘Little Shepherd’. My only cavil is that we could do with a better synopsis of La boîte than the one provided, which omits too much detail of the dances for the various toys, making the narrative difficult to follow for anyone coming to the work for the first time. Otherwise, it’s a wonderfully engaging disc of great charm.

— Tim Ashley

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Claude Debussy (22 August 1862 – 25 March 1918) was a French composer who was among the most influential composers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. His orchestral works include Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune (1894), Nocturnes (1897–1899), Images (1905–1912), and La mer (1903–1905). His piano works include sets of 24 Préludes and 12 Études. Throughout his career Debussy also wrote mélodies based on a wide variety of poetry, including his own. His works have strongly influenced a wide range of composers including Béla Bartók, Olivier Messiaen, George Benjamin, and the jazz musician Bill Evans.

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Pascal Rophé (born 16 June 1960) is a French conductor. Educated at the Paris Conservatoire, he gained recognition after winning 2nd prize at the 1988 Besançon Competition for Young Conductors and later collaborated closely with Pierre Boulez at the Ensemble Intercontemporain. Since 2014, he has served as Music Director of the Orchestre National des Pays de la Loire. Rophé has conducted leading orchestras across Europe and Asia and is particularly acclaimed for championing 20th-century music. His discography has earned multiple honors, including the 2018 Gramophone Awards for Best Contemporary Recording.

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