Petite Suite

Item details

• Description +

  • Arranged by Scott Weatherson
    Duration: 15 min.
    
    Claude Debussy was only twenty four years old when he began composing his Petite Suite (1889), finishing the work three years later. Written for piano four hands, the premier was given by the composer with the publisher Durand also playing. The piece was arranged by Debussy's colleague Henri Büsser in 1907 for small orchestra, which is the version which is most performed today. The work consists of four short vignettes, the first two of which were inspired by poems by Paul Verlaine from his collection Fêtes galantes: 
    
    1.    En Bateau
    2.    Cortège
    3.    Menuet
    4.    Ballet 
    
    This arrangement is written for six players – glockenspiel, two vibraphones and two or three marimbas (including one 5 octave instrument) – marimbas 1 and 3 may share the same instrument. All parts using two mallet playing throughout the piece.

• Instrumentation +

  • Percussion Ensemble (6 players)
    
    Required Instruments:
    1 Glockenspiel
    2 Vibraphones
    2-3 Marimbas (including one 5 octave instrument. Marimbas 1 and 3 may share the same instrument)

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• About the composer +

  • Claude-Achille Debussy (22 August 1862 – 25 March 1918) was a French composer. Along with Maurice Ravel, he was one of the most prominent figures associated with Impressionist music, though he himself disliked the term when applied to his compositions. He was made Chevalier of the Legion of Honour in his native France in 1903. Debussy was among the most influential composers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and his use of non-traditional scales and chromaticism influenced many composers who followed.
    
    Debussy's music is noted for its sensory content and frequent usage of nontraditional tonalities. The prominent French literary style of his period was known as Symbolism, and this movement directly inspired Debussy both as a composer and as an active cultural participant.

• Reviews +

  • Percussive Notes, November 2016
    
    Debussy’s “Petite Suite” was originally written for piano duet and later arranged for orchestra by Henri Büsser. In this arrangement, the three marimbists cover most of the left-hand piano parts; the right-hand melodies are played on the vibes, glockenspiel, and sometimes the uppermost octaves of the marimba. “En Bateau,” the first of four pieces in the suite, is a flowing 6/8, while the second, “Cortège,” shifts between a light, medium-tempo dance and a relaxed scherzando. “Menuet” is a playful, bouncy, medium-tempo 3/4, and the final piece, “Ballet,” alternates an allegro 2/4 with a sweet waltz in 3/8. I really enjoy this arrangement and think it is perfectly suited for a small mallet percussion ensemble. I do, however, miss hearing the light percussion parts (triangle, timpani, cymbals) found in the popular orchestral version of this piece by Büsser.
    
    Technically, this piece is easy enough for an advanced high school or intermediate- level college ensemble. All parts are of equal difficulty throughout, and each requires only two mallets. And, if by chance you are running low on marimbas, the piece can be performed with just one 4.3-octave and one 5-octave, with marimbas one and three sharing the 5-octave.
    
    —Julie Licata

• Credits +

  • Front Cover Graphics and Layout: Ronni Kot Wenzell
    Engraving: Scott Weatherson & CPH Engraving
    Printed in Copenhagen, Denmark
    Copyright © Edition Svitzer
    www.editionsvitzer.com

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