Debussy: Nuages Flashcards
What does ‘Nuages’ mean?
Clouds
When was it composed?
1899
How many nocturnes are in this set of pieces, of which ‘Nuages’ is one of them?
3
What style of music is ‘Nuages’?
Impressionism
What is an octatonic scale?
A scale of alternating tones and semitones (or semitones and tones)
What is the structure of ‘Nuages’?
Loose rounded binary or loose rounded ternary
How many rotations are there in ‘Nuages’?
5
What instrument plays the main theme in the B section?
Flute and harp
What term describes the use of chords made up of perfect 4ths?
Quartal harmony
Why is quartal harmony ambigious?
It needs to have a major or minor 3rd for the chord to be major or minor
What type of scale does the B melody mainly consist of?
Dorian
D# minor
What notes form an acoustic scale (starting on G)?
G, A, B, C#, D, E and F
What 2 modes make up the acoustic scale?
Lydian (the raised 4th note i.e. C# if starting on G)
Mixolydian (the flattened 7th i.e. F if starting on G)
Name some of the performance techniques heard by the strings
Double stopping, tremolo, arco, pizzicato, sur la touche (near the fingerboard), 8va, divisi and mutes
Which instrument plays the Y theme?
Cor anglais
What kind of scale does Debussy also use that consists of one recurring interval?
Whole tone scale
Name ways in which Debussy creates ambiguity in ‘Nuages’
Lack of cadences
Non-functional harmony
Longer note values
Unconvential scales such as whole tone, acoustic and modes
Paralell dominant 9th chords that don’t resolve properly
Thin texture in accompaniment
Pedal notes
Whole tone polyphonic sections
What interval do the horns play as a melodic idea heard during the Y melody section?
Tritone
How does Debussy create a sense of ‘return’ in the final A section
Returns to original tonal centre (B minor)
Themes heard previously (X, Y, pentatonic and tritone) are heard in a fragmented fashion
What is the tonal centre at the start of ‘Nuages’?
B minor
What two types of instruments play at the start of ‘Nuages’?
Bassoons
Clarinets
What percussion is used in ‘Nuages’?
Timpani
Harp (although it can be seen as strings instead/too)
How does ‘Nuages’ contrast to the late Romantic style?
Fewer intsruments
Shorter length of pieces
Smaller range of dynamics and emotion
Focus on unconventional scales; whole tone, modal, acoustic and octatonic
How does ‘Nuages’ compare to the late Romantic style?
Non-functional harmony
Loose structures
Chromaticism in the harmony and melody
Rhythmic complexity/less conventional time signature combinations
Modulations to unrelated keys
Lack of tonal centre
Lack of ‘correct’ resolution of chords
Inclusion of extended/added chords
