Main content

Debussy's Paris

Tom Service with new perspectives on Debussy in the composer's 100th anniversary year.

Presented by Tom Service.

As part of "Debussy's Paris" on Ö÷²¥´óÐã Radio 3, marking the 100th anniversary of the composer's death this weekend, Tom explores new perspectives on Debussy's music.

At a centenary conference hosted jointly by the Royal Northern College of Music and the University of Glasgow, Tom discovers Debussy's Manchester connection, and meets researchers at the forefront of today's thinking about the French composer: Marianne Wheeldon, on the legacy of the late works written during the First World War; Helen Abbott and Mylene Dubiau on bringing meaning out in performances of his songs; and Matthew Brown, on the influence of Bach on the Violin Sonata.

Tom also talks to the conductor Francois-Xavier Roth about releasing the colours in Debussy's music, both with his French period instrument ensemble Les Siecles and with the London Symphony Orchestra. The composer Betsy Jolas reveals the inspiration of the Sonata for Flute, Viola and Harp on her own music, and Bruno Mantovani, director of the Paris Conservatoire, considers whether young composers today are retaining enough of a Debussy connection.

Plus the author of a new biography, Stephen Walsh, on the challenges of putting into words how Debussy's music works.

Available now

44 minutes

Last on

Sat 24 Mar 2018 12:15

Chapters

  • Francois-Xavier Roth

    Duration: 00:20

  • Royal Northern College of Music Debussy in 2018: A Centenary Celebration

    Duration: 10:54

  • Betsy Jolas

    Duration: 05:32

  • Royal Northern College of Music Debussy in 2018: A Centenary Celebration

    Duration: 04:42

  • Book: Debussy A Painter in Sound (Stephen Walsh)

    Duration: 05:26

  • Francois-Xavier Roth

    Duration: 00:14

  • Royal Northern College of Music Debussy in 2018: A Centenary Celebration

    Duration: 09:44

  • Bruno Mantovani

    Duration: 02:37

Broadcast

  • Sat 24 Mar 2018 12:15

Knock on wood – six stunning wooden concert halls around the world

Steel and concrete can't beat good old wood to produce the best sounds for music.

The evolution of video game music

Tom Service traces the rise of an exciting new genre, from bleeps to responsive scores.

Why music can literally make us lose track of time

Try our psychoacoustic experiment to see how tempo can affect your timekeeping abilities.

Podcast