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BBC Radio 3 is a radio channel that started transmitting on the 30th September 1967. It replaced Third Programme.

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Composer of the Week

Music: Classical

An informative guide to composers' lives and their music.

An informative and accessible guide to composers' lives and their music.

Composer of the Week: Claude Debussy (1862-1918)

Composer of the Week: Claude Debussy (1862-1918): Episode 3: Pierre Louys

Claude Debussy (1862-1918)

Episode 3

Episode 3: Pierre Louys

Pierre Louys

BBC Radio 3 - Composer of the Week, Claude Debussy (1862-1918), Pierre Louys

Donald Macleod examines Debussy's friendship with writer and poet Pierre Louys.

Donald Macleod examines Debussy's friendship with writer and poet Pierre Louys, with whom he worked on several projects including Chansons de Bilitis.

Debussy's association with the writer and poet, Pierre Louÿs, the friend he said he loved the most.

Over the course of the week Donald Macleod explores the musical fruits of Debussy's relationships with the society hostess Madame Vasnier, writer Pierre Louÿs, poets Stéphane Mallarmé and Maurice Maeterlinck and the ballet impresario Sergei Diaghilev.

Born in 1862, Debussy's childhood was overshadowed by periods of uncertainty and poverty. His father Manuel was in and out of employment and his mother was obliged to work as a seamstress to make ends meet. During the Commune, Debussy's father enlisted in the National Guard but family life hit a further stumbling block after the movement was crushed in 1871 as Manuel Debussy was put on trial and imprisoned. On identifying a natural talent and a potential income, young Debussy was steered towards a career as a concert pianist. He began his studies at the Paris Conservatoire at the age of 10, the twelve or so years he spent there being the only formal education he received. By the time he graduated he had made many useful contacts, some of whom we'll encounter across this week, as well as coming to the conclusion that he should focus on composition rather than performance. 

Continuing this week's exploration of Debussy's relationships, Donald Macleod examines his friendship with the writer and poet Pierre Louÿs, with whom he worked on several projects including Chansons de Bilitis as well as enjoying each other's company socially.

Pour invoquer Pan (Six Épigraphes antiques)
Jean-Pierre Armengaud, Olivier Chauzu, piano

Ballade
Pascal Rogé, piano

Chansons de Bilitis
Dawn Upshaw, soprano
Gilbert Kalish, piano

Images (Book 1)
Marc-André Hamelin, piano

Nuages, Fêtes (Nocturnes)
London Symphony Orchestra
Pierre Monteux, conductor.

Live music and the arts: broadcasts more live music than any other radio network. Classical music is its core. Genres include world and new music, jazz, speech and drama.

Donald Macleod discusses the fruits of a number of Debussy's important friendships

Donald Macleod discusses Debussy's friendships with society hostess Madame Vasnier, writer Pierre Louys, poets Stephane Mallarme and Maurice Maeterlinck and ballet impresario Sergei Diaghilev

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Composer of the Week

Claude Debussy (1862-1918)

Episode 3: Pierre Louys

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