Claude Debussy - by François Lesure (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

English translation and revised edition of the most comprehensive and reliable biography of Claude Debussy.

François Lesure's "critical biography" of Claude Debussy (Fayard, 2003) is widely recognized by scholars as the most comprehensive and reliable account of that composer's life and career as well as of the artistic milieu in whichhe worked. This encyclopedic volume draws extensively on Debussy's complete correspondence (at that time unpublished), a painstaking tracking of contemporary reviews and comments in the press, and an examination of other primary documents-including private diaries-that had not been available to previous biographers. As such, Lesure's book presents a wealth of new information while debunking a number of myths that had developed over the years since the composer's death in 1918.

The present English translation and revised edition, by Debussy authority Marie Rolf, augments Lesure's numerous notes with several thousand new ones by Rolf, providing more precise information oncrucial and sometimes contentious points. It also reflects Debussy scholarship that has appeared since 2003, updating Lesure's seminal work. Rolf's translation-the first ever-will make Lesure's findings accessible to scholars, musicians, and music lovers in English-speaking lands and around the world.

FRANÇOIS LESURE (1923-2001) was the Director of the Music division of the Bibliothèque nationale de France, Professor of Musicology at the Université libre de Bruxelles, and Chair of Musicology at the École pratique des Hautes Études.

MARIE ROLF is senior associate dean of graduate studies and professor of music theory at the Eastman School of Music and a memberof the editorial board for the Ouvres complètes de Claude Debussy.

Review Quotes

'In Marie Rolf's new English edition of François Lesure's classic biography, Claude Debussy, Anglophones will discover Debussy's perosnality, his large network of friends and collaborators, and his impassioned relationships with women, all animating a rich chronology of his compositional life. A beautifully written, fluid translation incorporating new sources and over two thousand new footnotes, it is a welcome contribution to the burgeoning interest in the composer.' ----Jann Pasler, University of California-San Diego

'This book is an outstanding event in Debussy scholarship and literature. François Lesure was at the center of international Debussy scholarship over several decades, devoting much of his career at the Bibliothèque nationale de France to collecting the material that lies at the core of this richly detailed biography. Marie Rolf has similarly dedicated the major part of a distinguished career to Debussy, having worked closley with François Lesure from the early 1980s on the Ouvres complètes de Claude Debussy. She is perfectly placed to have realized the present edited and updated English translation, making a wealth of vital information available in English for the first time.' ----Roy Howat, Royal Academy of Music, London, and Royal Conservatoire of Scotland

A much-esteemed volume...Marie Rolf of the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York, a Debussy specialist in her own right, was an ideal candidate for the task of translating.-- "INTERNATIONAL PIANO"

An invaluable scholarly resource.-- "LONDON REVIEW OF BOOKS"

Easy and rewarding to read--a landmark in historic Debussy studies and an essential source in this new enlarged edition and translation.-- "MUSICAL OPINION"

Magnificent. A milestone in Debussy scholarship. Its translator, Marie Rolf, ...has also added substantial additional notes. Writing with exemplary conciseness and cool detachment, Lesure gives us a complex portrait of 'an artist who sacrificed nearly everything for his work', and, while presenting us with a marvellously detailed depiction of the artistic and social milieu in which he moved, he places his primary emphasis on the contradictions within the man, which in turn fuelled his creativity.-- "GRAMOPHONE"

Meticulously researched...Marie Rolf has not only translated this magnum opus but also augmented Lesure's book with information unearthed by more recent scholarship.-- "BBC MUSIC MAGAZINE"