Review (PDF) Complete Preludes, Books 1 And 2 (Dover Music For Piano)
Here, in one volume, are two bodies of work that, perhaps more than any others, reveal the essence of Claude Debussy's extraordinary expressiveness and his innovative gifts for musical imagery. Each book contains twelve preludes for the piano, many of them known to today's musical audiences because of their great popularity with pianists worldwide. Ranging from the mystical "La Cathédrale engloutie" to the capricious "Ondine" to the explosive "Feux d'artifice," they offer special joys to pianists of varying levels of ability.Other favorites from the piano repertoire in this collection include: "Danseuses de Delphes," "Ce qu'a vu le Vent d'Ouest," "La fille aux cheveux de lin," "La danse de Puck," and "Feuilles mortes." Some are technically simple, others comparatively difficult. All of them afford pianists an unparalleled opportunity to explore and develop their expressive range.This authoritative edition of the complete Preludes, with a helpful glossary of French terms, has been carefully printed on durable paper and sturdily bound to provide students and lovers of fine music a lifetime of study and enjoyment of these beloved masterpieces of piano composition.
Series: Dover Music for Piano
Paperback: 128 pages
Publisher: Dover Publications (April 1, 1989)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0486259706
ISBN-13: 978-0486259703
Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 0.4 x 11 inches
Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
Best Sellers Rank: #445,891 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #26 in Books > Humor & Entertainment > Sheet Music & Scores > Composers > Debussy #53 in Books > Humor & Entertainment > Sheet Music & Scores > Historical Period > Modern & 20th Century #313 in Books > Humor & Entertainment > Sheet Music & Scores > Forms & Genres > Opera
Dover's book of Debussy preludes is made of extremely high quality print on heavier paper than usual. The beams on even the 32nd notes are very easy to distinguish - many printers do not get such a high resolution and the spaces between 2 or 3 beams are often poorly defined (resulting in fat black patches instead of distinct lines). The print is somewhat larger than normal which is very good for playing these beautiful, difficult pieces.This book is no different than any other music book as far a keeping it open at the keyboard is concerned. - it is easy to open and keep opened. As the author states, "this edition of the complete Preludes ... has been carefully printed on durable paper and sturdily bound to provide students and lovers of fine music a lifetime of study and enjoyment...".A glossary of French Terms is a very welcomed addition (I wish so much that I could speak French).The two books of 24 Preludes, are printed on 118 pages.This is a profound edition at a great price and it will serve me forever. I have several other copies of all Debussy's piano works, but this book is the best for print and paper quality!I hope my review helps you decide on purchasing this book, if not for just reading the notes while listening to the music.
This is an affordable book that is fine for following along while listening to the music being played by someone else, but very frustrating to play from for oneself. The book does not open flat on a piano stand, and keeps falling when the pages are turned. It needs constant propping up by other books, which interrupts passages that have not been memorized (especially for non-professional pianists like me with a poor memory). The Schirmer editions are a bit better in this regard, and the Peters and Kalmus editions open even more flatly than the Schirmer volumes. I will not buy a Dover piano book again for playing -- only if I intend merely to follow a score while listening. Dover editions are cheap compared with those published by other companies, but you get what you pay for.
This is a very, very good edition originally published by the Soviet State Music Publishing Agency that rivals the original Durand et Fils. edition. It even manages to fit a little more music per page than what Durand did. The only quibble I have is its putting the titles at the HEAD of each piece: Debussy deliberately wanted them at the END in order to indicate that these were impressions and NOT pieces of "programme music" 'per se', even though enough times the works do have such content as well (e.g., "La Cathédrale Engloutie", #10 in Book 1).Definitely a warm recommendation both for pianists (of all levels) AND for listening plus study!!!
This is one of those sets that I think, if I were stranded on a desert island with a Steinway (and a good piano tuner), I could delve into for years with little other music.These short pieces are excellent for sight-reading difficult passages with many key changes and unexpected accidentals, for intricate harmony and for expression of mood. The names are evocative of feelings and sights, such as an underwater cathedral, bells in the evening air, wind through heather and the like.Though short pieces of a few pages, each provides a particular challenge to the piano student, as well as being appropriate for concert encores or intimate playing.
I'm a music major in college, and I bought this book to use for analysis. There's plenty of room between staves to write notes or mark the chords and whatnot, unless you have freakishly large handwriting. But I definitely have to agree with Davey's review. This book would be HORRIBLE for playing along with. The pages will not stay and lie flat on a music stand unless you use paper clips or something, which is obviously not so doable when there's several page turns per piece. I was able to make it a LITTLE better by folding the cover back, but still not useable for playing.Still, this is worth buying if you want an affordable score to read along with a recording or analyze the pieces. The engraving in this book is crisp and easy to read, not to mention it comes with a VERY useful glossary of the French words used in the scores.
I love Debussy music, but a lot of his solo piano pieces have gone overlooked, masked by overly-exposed favorites like "The Moonlight Sonata." This book contains some very interesting and unique sounding preludes, and the editing has been top-notch as far as I can tell. The music is easy to see/read, the spacing between staves is just right, and I haven't been able to find a single mistake yet (though, finding a wrong accidental in Debussy's music because of an editorial mistake would be comparable to finding a needle in a haystack). Some French terminology is also explained in the front of the book. I've had this for close to a year now, and though I do take very good care of my music, there have been NO issues with binding/pages tearing/whatever. Want some Debussy preludes? Buy this edition.Oh, if you want to hear some of these preludes performed by a reputable Debussy interpreter, look up "Michelangeli" on YouTube and you'll find a series of videos where he plays the majority (if not all) of these preludes.
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