Debussy: Préludes I & II

Éric Heidsieck (2026 Remastered, Paris 2002-2007)

2 disc(s) - 24 track(s)
Total length: 01:19:58

This is Claude Debussy’s pianistic masterpiece. Gathered into two books — the first composed very quickly during the winter of 1909–1910, the second over the course of two additional years — the 24 Préludes belong to a tradition that includes Johann Sebastian Bach and Frédéric Chopin. Yet for Debussy, the aim was not to present the 24 major and minor keys. Indeed, he had already moved beyond such concerns, with his symmetrical scales and pseudo-ancient modes that dissolve tonal foundations. The culmination of the creative path begun with Estampes and continued with Images, these Préludes are less depictions of landscapes than evocations of atmospheres.

These pieces seek a piano capable of being fluid or motionless, of sketching and drawing — but without underlining; they require a miniaturist imagination for color, but at times also for virtuosity; they call for that undoubtedly “impressionistic” art which nevertheless knows, at a sudden turn, how to cast unexpected colors in order to illuminate a particular inflection; they also require an intimacy with silence and a natural openness to mystery; they demand a keen sense of the architecture of dreams; they require the purest poetry, the purest sound, the most self-evident beauty — and then all these “requirements” must be forgotten so that these Préludes may arise as naturally as daybreak follows the night. Éric Heidsieck, in the lineage of Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli, creates a succession of microcosms sealed off from one another. Sublime piano playing — and more than that: Art.

Enjoy your listening

CD 1
Préludes, Book 1, L. 117: I. Danseuses de Delphes (2026 Remastered, Paris 2007)
Préludes, Book 1, L. 117: II. Voiles (2026 Remastered, Paris 2007)
Préludes, Book 1, L. 117: III. Le vent dans la plaine (2026 Remastered, Paris 2007)
Préludes, Book 1, L. 117: IV. Les sons et les parfums tournent dans l'air du soir (2026 Remastered, Paris 2007)
Préludes, Book 1, L. 117: V. Les collines d'Anacapri (2026 Remastered, Paris 2007)
Préludes, Book 1, L. 117: VI. Des pas sur la neige (2026 Remastered, Paris 2007)
Préludes, Book 1, L. 117: VII. Ce qu'a vu le vent d'ouest (2026 Remastered, Paris 2007)
Préludes, Book 1, L. 117: VIII. La fille aux cheveux de lin (2026 Remastered, Paris 2007)
Préludes, Book 1, L. 117: IX. La sérénade interrompue (2026 Remastered, Paris 2007)
Préludes, Book 1, L. 117: X. La cathédrale engloutie (2026 Remastered, Paris 2007)
Préludes, Book 1, L. 117: XI. La danse de Puck (2026 Remastered, Paris 2007)
Préludes, Book 1, L. 117: XII. Minstrels (2026 Remastered, Paris 2007)

CD 2
Préludes, Book 2, L. 123: I. Brouillards (2026 Remastered, Paris 2002)
Préludes, Book 2, L. 123: II. Feuilles mortes (2026 Remastered, Paris 2002)
Préludes, Book 2, L. 123: III. La puerta del vino (2026 Remastered, Paris 2002)
Préludes, Book 2, L. 123: IV. Les fées sont d'exquises danseuses (2026 Remastered, Paris 2002)
Préludes, Book 2, L. 123: V. Bruyères (2026 Remastered, Paris 2002)
Préludes, Book 2, L. 123: VI. Général Lavine – eccentric (2026 Remastered, Paris 2002)
Préludes, Book 2, L. 123: VII. La terrasse des audiences du clair de lune (2026 Remastered, Paris 2002)
Préludes, Book 2, L. 123: VIII. Ondine (2026 Remastered, Paris 2002)
Préludes, Book 2, L. 123: IX. Hommage à S. Pickwick, Esq., P.P.M.P.C. (2026 Remastered, Paris 2002)
Préludes, Book 2, L. 123: X. Canope (2026 Remastered, Paris 2002)
Préludes, Book 2, L. 123: XI. Les tierces alternées (2026 Remastered, Paris 2002)
Préludes, Book 2, L. 123: XII. Feux d'artifice (2026 Remastered, Paris 2002)