Achille-Claude Debussy was born on 22 August 1862 at 4:30 a.m. in Saint-Germain-en-Laye, a small town near Paris, France. His parents, Manuel-Achille Debussy and Victorine Manoury, owned a small china shop. Music was respected in this small town: concerts were held everywhere and all the time and the music ranged from Verdi to Gluck to Rossini (Dietcschy 5). In December 1871 when Claude was just nine years old, his father was tried for “revolutionary activities” and sentenced to four years in prison (Sadie 292). With her husband in prison and his safety in jeopardy (as the state of prisons was unstable and dangerous in the latter part of the 19th century), Mme. Debussy found herself in both a financially and socially difficult position. Her work as a seamstress didn’t pull in enough money to support her and her four children, and she had to borrow money from friends and family (Nichols 295). Debussy rarely spoke about this dark period in his life, but it is important to know this part of his history as it was a driving force of ambition and left a stain on his view of anything of “official” nature

When, in the setting sun, rivers are rose

While one is young and the evening beautiful,

Musically, Debussy deals with this extremely beautiful and moving text with exceptional delicacy, filling the accompaniment with rolling triplet arpeggios to symbolize the water. The piece begins in E Major, but is contradicted by the relative minor of the dominant, g minor, at the end of the piano introduction. This reflects the irresolute feeling of the poem – Bourget speaks of both the “delight in being alive” and the “troubled heart.” Though there are tempo markings, andante ma non troppo (moving but not too much) in the beginning and later plus lent (quite slow), the Impressionistic style of the piece leaves much room for the performer to interpret. When the lyrics are “While one is young and the evening beautiful,” the singer may feel the emotional desire to accellerando to “For we go away as the water goes away” (Rohinsky 87).

While Debussy was considered a major revolutionary in his time, he was by no means the only Impressionistic composer in France (Howat 285). Maurice Ravel, a contemporary of Debussy, was another strong force. He was, in fact, well liked and respected by (Hammond 886). In a study of a work by each composer, Debussy’s “Beau Soir” and Ravel’s “Chanson de la mariée,” the similarities become evident. Both are extremely lyrical with slow even accompaniment pulsing beneath a flowing vocal line. These two pieces clearly express the sentiments of the text, even if the listener does not understand the language. While “Beau Soir” has its arpeggiated and smooth piano line, signifying the flowing water, “Chanson de la mariée” is strophic to show the folk origins of the text. Also, its soft and melancholy melody emanates the intrinsic sadness of some soul trying to awaken a dead lover. Technically, the largest similarity is visible by mere viewing the music side bye side: the piano line is split into groups of three. In the Debussy, this serves to reemphasize the water imagery. In the Ravel, it is the essence of the dove symbolism: “Spread thy white wings, ‘tis morning.”

For we go away as the water goes away:

Some advice to be happy seems to emanate from things

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