Claude Debussy : His Life and Works
Leon Vallas, Dover, 1973 (orig. 1933)
One of the most famous Debussy biographies by the man
who defines "Debussy Worshipper". At times very poetic
but of dubious objectivity.
Debussy Remembered
Roger Nichols, Amadeus Press, 1992
A collection of essays about Debussy by his
contemporaries. Some of them are quite entertaining.
Debussy, His Life and Mind (in
two volumes)
Edward Lockspeiser, Cassell, 1979 (vol1) 1978 (vol2)
The definitive biography, unfortunately the english
edition is out of print. The new french edition has extensive
commentary.
A Portrait of Claude Debussy
Marcel Dietschy, Oxford University Press, 1994
A good biography, more oriented towards the music than
usual.
Debussy Man
and Artist
Oscar Thompson, Dover, 1965 (orig. 1937)
A thoroughly enjoyable biography.
Claude Debussy Master
of Dreams
Maurice Dumesnil, Greenwood Press, 1970 (orig. 1940)
Yet another biography. I haven't read this one, but it
has lots of dramatic accounts of conversations as literal
quotations. Typical: '"But--" Claude began'. Makes you
wonder.
Debussy
Letters
Francois Lesure and Roger Nichols (Editors), Faber and Faber, 1987
A wonderful source of insights into Debussy's life and personality,
and a great source of quotes such as:
"Composers aren't daring enough. They're afraid of that sacred idol called 'common sense', which is the most dreadful thing I know - after all, it's no more than a religion founded to excuse the ubiquity of imbeciles!"
Debussy on Music
David Langham Smith and Francois Lesure (Editors), Cornell
University Press, 1977
A collection of Debussy's writings as a music critic,
including the opinions of Monsieur Croche. Another source of
insights into Debussy's personality.
Images : The Piano Music of
Claude Debussy
Paul Roberts, Amadeus Press, 1996
A remarkable and inspiring book on the interpretation of
Debussy's piano works. I cannot recommend this book too highly.
The Piano Sonority of Claude Debussy
(Studies in the History and Interpretation of Music, Vol 43)
Virginia Raad, Edwin Mellen Press, 1995
A discussion of Debussy's piano works from the
perspective of their sound. In the end somewhat disappointing in
view of its high price.
The Piano Works of Claude
Debussy
Elie Robert Schmitz, Dover, 1966
The classic book on the interpretation of Debussy's
piano works.
"Gieseking's Pedaling in
Debussy and Ravel" by Dean Elder
in The Pianist's Guide To Pedaling
Joseph Banowetz, Indiana University Press,
1985
An essay on pedaling Debussy's (and Ravel's) works,
which is critical in the interpretation of Debussy's piano music.
Includes a description of a master class by Gieseking on La
Cathedrale Engloutie. The rest of the book is just as
wonderful and well worth reading.
Debussy Studies
Richard Langham Smith (Editor), Cambridge University Press, 1997
An eclectic collection of essays about Debussy.
Contents:
1. The definition of timbre in the process of composition of Jeaux
Myriam Chimenes2. Waiting for Golaud: the concept of time in Pelleas
David Grayson3. Sirens in the Labyrinth: amendments in Debussy's Nocturnes
Denis Herlin4. Debussy's piano music: sources and performance
Roy Howat5. Portrait of the artist as Roderick Usher
Jean-Michael Nectoux6. The reception of Debussy's music in Britain up to 1914
Roger Nichols7. Debussy and Satie
Robert Orledge8. Semantic and structural issues in Debussy's Mallarme songs
Marie Solf9. 'Le jeunesse du Cid': a mislaid act in Rodrigue at Chimene?
Richard Langham Smith
Music of Claude Debussy
(Composers of the Twentieth Century)
Richard S. Parks, Yale University Press, 1990
A deep and thorough examination of the structure of
Debussy's music via Shenkerian analysis.
Debussy in Proportion: A Musical Analysis
Roy Howat, Cambridge University Press, 1983
Howat points out that many of Debussy's works seem to
make strong use of the ratios of the golden mean and bisection.
Howat then proposes that this is intentional and provides insight
into Debussy's secrets of composition.
Claude Debussy : Pelleas Et Melisande
(Cambridge Opera Handbooks)
Roger Nichols and Richard Langham Smith, Cambridge University
Press, 1989
A discussion of the history, structure and performance
of the great opera.
Debussy : La Mer (Cambridge
Music Handbooks)
Simon Trezise, Cambridge University Press, 1994
A discussion of the history, structure and performance
of the great orchestral work.
Debussy : Prelude to "The Afternoon of a
Faun" (Norton Critical Scores)
Roger Nichols, Richard Langham Smith, Cambridge University Press,
1970
The complete score, poem, history and analysis of the
breakthrough piece.
The Singer's Debussy
Marie-Claire Rohinsky (Editor), Pelion Press, 1987
The complete song lyrics of Debussy in French with
phonetic transcriptions and word-for-word English translations
The Theories of Claude
Debussy, Musicien Francais
Leon Vallas, Hyperion, 1979 (orig. 1929), reprinted by Encore
Music Editions
A poetic, somewhat rambling but ultimately inspiring
discussion of Debussy's musical style.