1917: Debussy: Les Soirs illumines par l’ardeur du charbon, age 55

Claude Debussy’s “Les Soirs illumines par l’ardeur du charbon” was composed in 1917. The translation is: “Evenings Lit by the Burning Coals”. The music expresses peace, and contentment. It is written in the style of Debussy’s preludes for piano and in fact it is very similar to one of his preludes, almost as if he used the same theme.

The manuscript was only discovered in 2001 but was written in 1917, more than a century ago.

Since it is in print for the first time, it is very difficult to find. Supposedly this short composition was last thing Debussy wrote. The winter of 1916-17 was horrible. Because of WWI, coal in Paris was in short supply. However, Debussy’s coal merchant, Monsieur Tronquin, managed to find some for the composer.

Debussy was very grateful.

In return Debussy gave him the manuscript of this short piece which he composed in gratitude. The title is a line from Baudelaire’s poem “Le Balcon”. I think today we can imagine Debussy warming his body in front of a cozy fire that was possible only because of his coal merchant.

3 thoughts on “1917: Debussy: Les Soirs illumines par l’ardeur du charbon, age 55”

  1. The glow and warmth of the fire, a hot cup of cocoa, a great book to read and in the background this wonderful music. This all goes together to bring, as you said, a feeling of peace and contentment.

  2. This has an unsettling quality to me. Expectant, anticipatory. Fear? Trepidation? Anxiety? And yet, I hear something really crazy from Debussy – at 00:51 it goes completely major and sounds like normal piano music, instead of that signature Debussy. It’s triumphant, even.

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