Suite bergamasque

1. 0:03
   Opening third, F and A♭

   The melody begins on F and A♭, a third played pp with no bass beneath it. The phrase moves in paired notes that separate and come together. Debussy marks it Andante très expressif, with the soft pedal down.

2. 0:35
   Verlaine’s poem, 1869

   In Verlaine’s Clair de lune, masked dancers play lutes under the moon. The poem describes them singing of love and good fortune while doubtful of their own happiness. It appeared in Fêtes galantes in 1869, and its first stanza names the bergamasques that also give Debussy’s suite its title.

3. 1:33
   Un poco mosso, left-hand arpeggios

   D♭ major arpeggios spread out in the left hand beneath a new melody in longer notes. The marking is Un poco mosso, a little more movement.

4. 2:03
   Middle section in C♯ minor

   The key signature changes from D♭ major to C♯ minor. Over a continuous rolling bass the melody rises, marked En animant, reaches forte at bar 41 and descends to Calmato at bar 43.

5. 2:40
   Return of the opening melody

   At bar 51, marked Tempo I and ppp, the opening melody returns an octave higher. A low F sounds in the bass beneath it, and arpeggios open the bars under its paired notes.

6. 3:05
   Moiseiwitsch recording, London, 1946

   Moiseiwitsch recorded Clair de lune at Abbey Road Studio 3 in London on 28 February 1946. His Master’s Voice issued the whole piece on one side of a 78 rpm disc, catalogue C.3485.

7. 3:39
   Ending in D♭ major

   Broken chords rise into the treble, then fall back towards D♭ major. Debussy marks the passage morendo jusqu’à la fin (dying away to the end). The final D♭ major chord is rolled across both hands and followed by a dotted-crotchet rest.

Joins

1. 1:26
   Held chords, then arpeggios

   The piano’s high, held chords are marked dim. molto. At Un poco mosso, the left hand begins rolling D♭ major arpeggios, pianissimo, beneath a long upper note (bars 25–⁠30 in the Fromont edition of 1905).

2. 2:34
   The opening tune returns over F

   At Calmato the music returns to D♭ major after the C♯ minor climax. The left hand continues to move while the upper phrases grow softer. At a Tempo I the opening melody returns an octave higher over a low F, with short arpeggios beneath it, marked pianississimo.

3. 3:40
   Melody to closing arpeggios

   The returning melody stops and broken chords climb into the treble over low D♭ and F in the bass. The whole passage is marked morendo jusqu’à la fin. After a last rise through D♭ major, both hands play a rolled chord, followed by a written rest.