CHAPTERS IN 'FRENCH' MUSIC

Questions for the exam

1.
Claude Achille Debussy - where do we find the complete annotated list of his works? Give full
bibliographic reference and the catalogue number(s) of our library.

Claude Debussy, 2003, Francois Lesure, Fayard, Paris.

2.
Explain - what (and when) are the:

• Société Nationale de Musique

The Société Nationale de Musique (National Society of Music) was founded in 1871 in Paris. It was
an organization that aimed to promote the French music and give visibility to the young generation
of musicians helping them to showcase their compositions in front of a public.
The Society was born during the nationalistic atmosphere during the franco-prussian war and had
later problems with the conservatives who didn't want to promote foreign music in France.

• Schola Cantorum

Schola Cantorum is a name that defines the choir schools made by young teens for the religious
services in the Catholic Church. The first one has been funded by Pope Sylvester I in 334. However
the most famous one is the 'Schola Cantorum of Paris' funded in 1894 by french composer Vincent
D'Indy which was a monarchist and anti-semitic who joined the 'League of la Patrie Francaise' that
had a very nationalistic orientation.

• Société Musicale Indépendante

The Societe Musicale Independante was a founded in 1909 by Maurice Ravel, Gabriel Faure,
Charles Koechlin and Florent Schmitt in Paris to promote the contemporary music of that time.
The Society was created in contraposition of the Societe Nationale de Musique who in the eyes of
many became too accademic. The Independent Music Society was too nationalistic and had a
dictactorial atmosphere.

• La Jeune France
La Jeune France was founded in 1936 by Andre Jolivet and other composers to re-estabilish a more
human form of composition. It was created as part of the Revolution Nationale of the Vichy
Regime. It aimed to renew the french culture while being occupied by the Germans.

• IRCAM
IRCAM is the Institute for Research and Coordination Acoustic, an institute for science about
electro acoustical art music. In 1970 the president Pompidou asked Pierre Boulez to found this
institution. Its rise coincides with the beginning of the debate between modernism and post-
modernism in culture and arts.

and what is their cultural and/or political 'programme'?

Report on the discussion in class:

3.
Read (see BB 'Texts MCG3A'):
Rapports de l'Académie de France a Rome sur Debussy

Debussy was too innovative for his time. L'Academie de France a Rome couldn't understand his
style in writing music especially the colour in music defining him for the first time as 'an
impressionist'. This word was used in a dispregiative way but anyhow Debussy didn't considered
himself an impressionist. However this word connects him to the impressionism movement in art
allowing us to better understand his style by comparing it to other artists of that period.

4.
The 'French Impressionist style'
What is the trouble with this term in music?

Impressionism is a term which defines a particular movement in the history of art in the 19th
century. So the origin of this term is not related to music. Musicians were labeled impressionists as
an analogy to the painters who used contrasted colors, effects on light and flattening perspective.
The main impressionist musician were Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel although Debussy
rejected this label.