Society for Music Theory

Tonality and Form in Debussy's "Prlude 'L'Aprs-midi d'un faune"

Author(s): Matthew Brown
Source: Music Theory Spectrum, Vol. 15, No. 2 (Autumn, 1993), pp. 127-143
Published by: University of California Press on behalf of the Society for Music Theory
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Tonality and Form in Debussy's
"L'Apres-midi d'un faune"
MatthewBrown
Seventy-five years after his death, Debussy is often re-
membered as "the quiet revolutionary," who breathed new
life into musical art.1 He is credited with challenging the
authority of nineteenth-century tonal and formal practice,
and with pushing music gently into the twentieth century. To
quote Pierre Boulez:
Just as modern poetry surely took root in certain of Baudelaire's
poems, so one is justifiedin saying that modern music was awakened
by L'Apres-midi d'un faune.2
For his part, Debussy did much to promote this radical image
of his music; throughout his letters and journal articles, he
launched a bitter campaign against the musical establishment
and conventional compositional practice. Most of these criti-
cisms are general in nature, and ridicule what Debussy saw
1See chapter 1 of Arthur Wenk's book Claude Debussy and Twentieth-
CenturyMusic (Boston: Twayne Publishers, 1983), 1-19; and Pierre Boulez,
Relevdsd'apprenti,ed. Paul Thevenin (Paris: Seuil, 1966), 336. I would like
to thank various people for helpful suggestions, especially Jennifer Williams
Brown, David Grayson, MarieRolf, Arnold Whittall,and the two anonymous
readers for this journal.
2PierreBoulez, Notes to CBS Record 32 11 0056, quoted in Glenn Wat-
kins, Soundings (New York: Schirmer, 1988), 75.
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Prelude a
as a "silly obsession with overprecise 'forms' and 'tonality.' "3
Sometimes, however, they address concrete musical issues.
For example, Debussy denounced accepted notions of chord
function; in a letter to Pierre Louys (22 January 1895), he
announced that "tonic and dominant had become empty
shadows of use only to stupid children."4 Similarly, Debussy
rejected the traditional distinctions between consonance and
dissonance. With typical panache he insisted:
Nothing is more mysterious than a consonant chord! Despite all
theories, both old and new, we are still not sure, first, why it is
consonant, and second, why the other chordshave to bear the stigma
of being dissonant.5
3See Debussy, "Musicin the Open Air," La Revue blanche, 1 June 1901,
in Francois Lesure, ed. Claude Debussy: Monsieur Croche et autres dcrits
(Paris: Gallimard, 1971), 45; Francois Lesure and Richard LanghamSmith,
eds. and trans., Debussy on Music (New York: Knopf, 1977), 41.
4FrancoisLesure, ed., Claude Debussy: Lettres1884-1918 (Paris: Her-
mann, 1980), 70-73; Francois Lesure and Roger Nichols, eds. and trans.,
Debussy Letters (Cambridge:Harvard University Press, 1987), 76-77.
SDebussy,"A propos de 'Muguette'.-Au ConcertLamoureux,"Gil blas,
23 March 1903, in Lesure, ed., MonsieurCroche, 129-30; Lesure and Smith,
Debussy on Music, 155. I have changed the translationsof the words parfait
and imparfait.
128 MusicTheory Spectrum
He likewise scoffed at those who prohibitedthe use of parallel
chords and proposed that tonality should be fully chromatic
and "enriched by other scales."6
Just as Debussy debunked many basic tenets of common-
practice tonality, so he also questioned conventional ap-
proaches to musical form, especially those found in sym-
phonic repertories. In an essay for La Revue blanche (6
March 1901), he dismissed a recent orchestral work by Wit-
kowski, claiming that it provided "only further proof of the
uselessness of the symphony since Beethoven."7 He added:
Mustwe concludethatdespiteso manyattemptsat transformation,
the symphony-in all its elegance and formal order ... -is a thing
of the past?Has not its wornout gilt merelybeen replacedby a
platingof shiningcopper,the shoddyfinishof present-dayorches-
tration?8
Some ten years later, the barbs were no less pointed. Writing
for SIM (1 November 1913), Debussy censured his colleagues
for imitating the stale symphonic forms of Franz Liszt and
Richard Strauss:
6In Debussy's conversationswith his teacher Guiraud, he questioned the
rules prohibitingparallel sonorities, claiming that "there is no theory. You
have merelyto listen. Pleasureis the law." In the same conversationsDebussy
also declared: "Music is neither major nor minor. Minor thirds and major
thirds should be combined, modulation thus becoming more flexible. The
mode is that which one happens to choose at the moment. It is not constant."
These conversationsare translatedin William Austin, ed., Debussy: Prelude
to "The Afternoon of a Faun," Norton Critical Scores (New York: Norton,
1970), 128-31. For a facsimile of Maurice Emanuel's original transcription,
see Leon Vallas, Claude Debussy: His Life and Works, trans. Maire and
Grace O'Brien (London: Oxford University Press, 1933), 84.
7Debussy, La Revue blanche, 1 April 1901, in Lesure, MonsieurCroche,
25; Lesure and Smith, Debussy on Music, 15.
8Lesure,MonsieurCroche, 26; Lesure and Smith, Debussy on Music, 16.
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Is it not our duty ... to try andfindthe symphonicformulaebest
suitedto the audaciousdiscoveriesof our moderntimes, so com-
mittedas theyareto progress?Thecenturyof aeroplaneshasa right
to a musicof its own!9
Besides disdaining textbook formal stereotypes, so Debussy
also praised composers, such as Mussorgsky, whose works
"are impossible to relate to (the) accepted forms-the 'of-
ficial' ones."10
Intentions are one thing, but actualities are often quite
another matter. While Debussy's radical goals are hard to
deny, we may still wonder whether he succeeded in freeing
himself from common-practice tonality and nineteenth-
century formal conventions. Did Debussy really create sym-
phonic forms fit for "the century of aeroplanes"?
Obviously, any answerto this question depends on the way
in which we decide to explain tonality and on the kinds of
analytical priorities we make in assigning formal functions.
Although there are many possible theories of tonality, this
paper will use Schenkerian theory. This decision, however,
requires some explanation. In particular, it contradicts the
prevailing view that Debussy's music cannot be analyzed by
strict Schenkerian paradigms. Surely, Schenker would have
disapproved;he made no secret of his dislike for Debussy's
music. In the preface to his edition of Beethoven's Piano
Sonata in A Major, Op. 101, he complained that the se-
quences of sounds found in impressionistpieces are valuable
as "an acousticphenomenon, but certainlynot as art."1'Else-
9Lesure, Monsieur Croche, 241; Lesure and Smith, Debussy on Music,
297.
'oLesure,MonsieurCroche,29; Lesure and Smith, Debussyon Music, 21.
""Von einer gewissen 'Linie' sprechen heute gern auch die Verfertiger
sogenannterimpressionistischerStiicke. Wo aber, wie in diesen, die Wirkung
erst auf ein Tongerauschhinauslauft(das wie jedes Gerauschnur als akustis-
che Erscheinung, aber noch nicht als Kunst gilt), dort sagt die 'Linie' des
Tongerauschesgewiss nicht mehr die Linien als die steigend, fallend ja auch
in anderenGerauschen(z.B. in Donner, Tischriicken,Wagenrollenusw.) sich
 Tonalityand Formin Debussy's Prelude a "L'Apres-midid'un faune"
where, he also condemned Debussy for pandering to the "me-
diocrity of French taste."12
For the most part, Schenker's followers have accepted the
limitations of their methods for explaining Debussy's music.13
Some, such as Felix Salzer, have seen these limitations as
grounds for modifying Schenker's original model and, in so
doing, expanding the notion of tonality in music. For ex-
ample, Salzer claims that, instead of being derived from a
Schenkerian Ursatz, Debussy's piano Prelude "Bruyeres" is
generated from a background progression built from a chain
of parallel fifths -I-3 in A ."14Others, such as Adele Katz,
acknowledge that only a few of Debussy's pieces follow strict
Schenkerian paradigms, and that many of them require some
new type of explanation.15 Most recently, Richard Parks has
claimed that, with some exceptions, only Debussy's early
scores (up to ca. 1889) conform in any consistent way.16 As
he puts it:
bemerkbarmachen konnen." See Schenker'sErliuterungsausgabeder Sonate
Op. 101, Ludwig van Beethoven(Vienna: Universal Edition, 1921), 23. Cited
by David Paul Goldman, "Esotericismas a Determinant of Debussy's Har-
monic Language," The Musical Quarterly75 (1991): 146, fn. 20.
'2"Undgar ein Debussy, der ware demnachnicht einmal noch ein Talent,
ein Musikeriiberhauptzu nennen, mag er auch dem Mittelmassin Frankreich
geniigen und dort aus Grtinden kunstpolitischerNatur-Frankreich treibt
Politik und Ranke auch in den Kiinsten-sogar als ein UberwinderWagners,
also schon aus diesem Grunde allein als ein Erneuerer nationaler Musik
gelten" (Schenker, Das Meisterwerkin der Musik, vol. 3 (1930), 108).
13AdeleKatz, Challengeto Musical Tradition(New York: Knopf, 1945),
chap. 7, 248-93; Felix Salzer, StructuralHearing (New York: Boni, 1952).
4Salzer, StructuralHearing, fig. 478.
'5According to Katz: "Therefore, as both harmonic analysis and the
Schenkermethod were evolved out of the tonal techniques, it is probablethat
a new system of analysis is needed to understandthe new concepts" (Chal-
lenge, 293). For a convenient summaryof Katz's position see James Baker,
"SchenkerianAnalysis and Post-Tonal Music," in David Beach, ed., Aspects
of SchenkerianTheory (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1983), 154-55.
'6RichardS. Parks, The Music of Claude Debussy (New Haven and Lon-
don: Yale University Press, 1989), 4, 18, 20.
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129
After the early works especially, one rarely finds tonic-dominant
closure in a structuralsense. In Schenkerianterms, this means that
bass arpeggiationis not an integral feature of underlyingstructure.
Linear progressions are far less common than in the works of
eighteenth- and nineteenth-centurymasters, as is the multilayered
concatenation of contrapuntal-harmonicrelationships which nor-
mally accompaniesthem. In Debussy, linear progressionstend to be
of the simplest sort and only of local significance.'7
He adds that structural levels are "few and uncomplicated,"
and that the richness of Debussy's music lies mostly in the
foreground. 18
Nevertheless, there are problems with both of these re-
sponses. In Salzer's case, his revisions modify Schenkerian
theory to such an extent that they erode the entire foundation
of the model. For example, by classifying chords according
to their degree of dissonance, Salzer contradicts Schenker's
claim that in tonal music there is an absolute distinction be-
tween the behavior of consonances and that of dissonances.
This distinction is crucial to the way in which Schenkerian
theory connects the rules of harmony and voice leading; once
the distinction is abolished, Schenker's notion of transfor-
mation becomes seriously weakened. To quote Edward
Laufer:
By and by one asks what is left, as all the specific techniques Schen-
ker describedmust all go by the board or be diluted into an indistinct
blur .... [I]f there is no technically consistent, non-speculative ba-
sis, then anything goes and likewise nothing.19
Similarly, while Katz and Parks are justified in restricting
the scope of Schenkerian theory-to be explanatory, all the-
ories must have boundaries-neither
they, nor any other
Schenkerians, have ever defined these limits in a systematic
17Ibid.,4.
s8Ibid.
"9Edward Laufer, "Review of Free Composition,"MusicTheorySpectrum
3 (1981): 161.
130 MusicTheorySpectrum
manner. In fact, both of them consistently underestimatenot
only the extent to which Debussy's mature music contains
orthodox tonal material, but also the degree to which Schen-
kerian theory can cope with extreme chromaticism,modal or
exotic harmonies, free dissonances, parallel chords and many
other anomalies in Debussy's style.20Of course, this does not
mean that Schenkeriantheory can explain every aspect of all
works by Debussy; it simply means that the model can help
us determine, case by case, how and why partially, or even
marginally, tonal pieces sometimes sound tonal and some-
times do not.
To show how Schenkeriantheory helps us understandthe
tonality of Debussy's music, this paper will examine the Pre-
lude a "L'Apres-midi d'un faune" (1891-94). The work is an
appropriatetest case for several reasons. On the one hand,
Debussy specifically drew attention to the novel tonal and
formal properties of the Prelude. In a letter to Henri
Gauthier-Villars(10 October 1896) he observed:
The Prelude a "L'Apres-midid'un faune," cher Monsieur, is it per-
haps the dream left over at the bottom of the faun's flute? . . . It
alsodemonstrates knowhow'which
a disdainfor the 'constructional
is a burdenuponourfinestintellects.Thenagain,it has no respect
for tonality!Rather,it's in a modewhichis intendedto containall
the nuances-I can give you a perfectlylogicaldemonstration of
this.21
20Forfurther details, see Matthew Brown, "A Rational Reconstruction
of SchenkerianTheory," (Ph.D. diss., Cornell University, 1989).
21Lesureed., Lettres,79; Lesure and Nichols, 84-85. It is hard to imagine
what this demonstrationwould have looked like because Debussy was ex-
tremelyskepticalabout the value of musicalanalysis.For example, in an essay
for La Revue blanche, 1 April 1901, he wrote: "Grown ups tend to forget
that as childrenthey were forbiddento open the insides of their dolls-a crime
of high treason against the cause of mystery. . . . And yet they still insist on
poking their aestheticnoses into thingsthat don't concernthem! Withouttheir
dolls to break open, they still try to explain things, dismantlethem and quite
heartlessly kill all their mystery" (Lesure, ed., Monsieur Croche, 23-24;
Lesure and Smith, Debussy on Music, 13). He especially abhorred "theme
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On the other hand, by graphingthe Prelude, we can answer
some of the intriguingformal questions posed by Debussy's
orchestralmusic. In particular,we will see how he developed
four techniques-incomplete progressions, parentheticalepi-
sodes, motivic compression, and tonal modeling-that fea-
ture prominentlyin the Nocturnes(1897-99), La Mer (1903-
5), and the Images for orchestra(1905-13), and that allowed
him to move away from nineteenth-centuryformal models.
It is hard to imagine a single work that captures the spirit
of Debussy's style more obviously than the Prelude a
"L'Apres-midi d'un faune"; ever since its premiere at the
Societe nationale on 22 December 1894, musicianshave tried
to explain the elusive logic alluded to by Debussy.22These
spotting," as he made clear in an essay for Gil bias, 23 February 1903 (see
Lesure, ed., MonsieurCroche, 102-4; Lesure and Smith, Debussy on Music,
126-27). Debussy occasionallyrebuked specific theorists: Riemann (Lesure,
ed., Lettres,165; Lesure and Nichols, eds., Letters, 183); Louis (Lesure, ed.,
Lettres,118;Lesure and Nichols, eds., Letters,128-30); Lenormand(Lesure,
ed., Lettres,227; Lesure and Nichols, ed., Letters,259-60); Dubois (Lesure,
ed., MonsieurCroche, 212; Lesure and Smith, Debussy on Music, 268-69);
and Emile Durand (Lesure, ed., MonsieurCroche,29-30; Lesure and Smith,
Debussy on Music, 21).
22Foranalysesof the Preludesee: WilliamAustin, "Towardan Analytical
Appreciation,"in Debussy: Preludeto "TheAfternoonof a Faun," ed. Aus-
tin, 71-96; Barraque,Debussy (Paris:Seuil, 1962), 85-91; LaurenceBerman,
"Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun and Jeux: Debussy's Summer Rites,"
Nineteenth-CenturyMusic 3 (1980): 225-38; Leonard Bernstein, The Unan-
swered Question (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1976), 238-59;
Charles Burkhart, "Schenker's 'Motivic Parallelisms,'" Journal of Music
Theory22 (1978): 155-58; John Crotty, "SymbolistInfluences in Debussy's
"Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun," In Theory Only 11 (1982): 17-30;
David Cox, Debussy's OrchestralMusic (London: BBC, 1974), 9-18; Denijs
Dille, "Inleiding tot het vormbegripbij Debussy," in Melanges: Homage a
Charles van den Borren (Anvers: De Nederlandsche Boekhandel, 1945),
145ff.; ChristianGoubault, Claude Debussy (Paris: Champion, 1986), 136-
40; Peter Gilke, "Musik aus dem Bannkreis einer literarischenAesthetik:
Debussys 'Prelude a l'Apres-midid'un Faune,' "Jahrbuch Peters1978, Auf-
satze zur Musik 1, ed. E. Klemm (Leipzig: Peters, 1979), 103-46; James
Hepokoski, "FormulaicOpenings in Debussy," Nineteenth-CenturyMusic 8
 Tonalityand Formin Debussy's Prelude a "L'Apres-midid'un faune"
analysesgenerallyagree about the location of the work'smain
formal divisions. As shown in Example 1, the piece is clearly
articulated at mm. 30, 37, 55, 79, 94, and 106. The famous
flute theme is presented in mm. 1-30 and 94-106 on Cf in
E major (mm. 1- 30 end in V of E). Measures 30-37 contain
whole-tone diminutions of the flute theme, and mm. 79-93
present sequential statements on E (mm. 79-85) and Eb
(mm. 86-93). The coda presents a simplified version of the
flute theme, again in E. A contrastingtheme in the new key
of Db is developed in mm. 55-78, while mm. 37-54 serve
both as a transition to the Db theme and as a development
of the flute theme.
Debates arise, however, when we try to explain the mo-
tivic significanceand tonal properties of each section.23Four
problems stand out: (1) Although mm. 1-30 center on E, the
opening phrases are extremely abstruse tonally; the tonic E
(1984): 56-57; Roy Howat, Debussy in Proportion (Cambridge:Cambridge
University Press, 1983), 149-53; Albert Jakobik, Debussy oder der lautlose
Revolution in der Musik (Wirzburg: Konrad Triltsch, 1977), 30-44; Parks,
Music of Debussy, especially 36-38, 224-25, 240-43, 263-67; Leonard B.
Meyer, Style and Music (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press,
1989), 223-25; David Neumeyer and Susan Tepping, A Guide to Schenkerian
Analysis (Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1992), 39-40; Walter Piston
and Mark DeVoto, Harmony, 4th ed., rev. (New York: Norton, 1976), 518-
20; Salzer, StructuralHearing, vol. 1, pp. 209-10 and vol. 2, Ex. 455; Arthur
Wenk, Claude Debussy and the Poets (Berkeley: University of California
Press, 1976), 148-70; and Wenk, Debussy and Twentieth-CenturyMusic,
57-61.
23Berman,Dille, and Goubault claim that the Prelude is best treated as
a continuous ternary form: A (mm. 1-30), transition (mm. 30-54), B (mm.
55-78), A' (mm. 79-106), Coda (mm. 106-10). Barraqueand Howat regard
the work as an arch form: A (mm. 1-30), A development (mm. 30-54), B
(mm. 55-78), A' development (mm. 79-93), A' (mm. 94-106), Coda (mm.
106-10). Crotty offers a two-partreading:A (mm. 1-30, 30-37, 37-54); A'
(mm. 55-78, 79-94, 94-106); Coda (mm. 106-10). Parks treats the Prelude
as a variation form: Theme (mm. 1-10), Variation 1 (mm. 11-20), Var. 2
(mm. 21-30), Var. 3 (mm. 31-54), Var. 4 (mm. 55-78), Var. 5 (mm. 79-93),
Var. 6 (mm. 94-99), Var. 7 (mm. 100-105), Var. 8 (mm. 106-10).
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131
does not appear until m. 13, and is not confirmedby a closed
progression until mm. 21-26. (2) It is not obvious how mm.
30-54 relate to their surroundings; the whole-tone chords
(mm. 30-37) are particularlyhard to fathom from a tonal
perspective. (3) While the B section (mm. 55-78) establishes
a new theme and key area, the precise layout of this passage
is far from obvious. (4) It is hard to decide whether mm.
79-106 are better regarded as two segments (mm. 79-93 and
94-106) or as a single span. To resolve these dilemmas, let
us examine the four sections in depth.
Few passages in the standardrepertory are more obscure
than the opening of the Prelude. At first sight, the sinuous
flute theme and its shimmering accompaniment seem quite
removed from the familiar world of common-practicetonal-
ity. Eventually E emerges as tonic in m. 13, but it is unclear
how the seventh chords on At, Bb, and D (mm. 4-12) pre-
pare the tonic. Opinions differ widely about the tonal func-
tion of these harmonies. Some, such as Felix Salzer and James
Hepokoski, propose that the tonic chord is implied from m.
1. Salzer's graph of mm. 1-30 adds a virtual tonic chord in
parentheses and treats the opening Ct of the melody as a
neighbor tone to the following B (m. 1). Although Salzer
marks very few roman numerals (the V-I progression at m.
13 is a notable exception), he adds two small arrows in mm.
4 and 5. These suggest that the A# and Bb sevenths arise
contrapuntally and link the virtual tonic of m. 1 to the D
seventh in m. 11. Hepokoski likewise marks a tonic at the
opening, and suggests that the opening flute arabesque ex-
pands the apparent "contradiction"between A#07 (VII of V
in E) and B,7 (V7 of D# or V7 of V in Gt). The latter
apparently acts as a German sixth to the D7 in m. 11, pre-
sumably with an elision to its normal resolution (V7 of D).
Hepokoski then proposes that the bass tones D (m. 11) and
DO (m. 13) are neighbors to the root E (m. 13).
Other writers, however, have been reluctantto make func-
tional ascriptionsof any sort. John Crotty regardsmm. 1-13
132 Music Theory Spectrum

Example 1. Debussy, Prelude a "L'Apres-midi d'un faune": main formal divisions

_--__ _----_-_ ___ . --___ _____________ _________________-__
A

(mm. 1-30)
r

Whole-toneepisode (

(min. 31 -36)
_______ ______'--_________J--__
__ _._ _ _ __ __ __
Transition

(mm. 37- 54)

(mm.55-78)
l ri .. -...:, r VP

A'
(D
----~_- -- -- --
of-
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- - -
---- -
_ ------------------------ -- v~~

Coda ( ,
-
(mm.,o16-,o) ^A^ i rt
^ ^.^ r

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 Tonalityand Formin Debussy's Prelude a "L'Apres-midid'un faune" 133

as part of a double-tonic complex E-C# that Debussy worked Example2. Tonal analysisof the Prelude,mm. 1-13
out during the rest of the Prelude. William Austin simply
shows the bass motion A#-Bb-D-B-E, and notes that al- a 6 5

A ii H.
though roman numerals could be added to some progres- f ""'f
k
o
Lt.

sions, "the effort to label every chord seems out of proportion

with any resulting insight."24Arthur Wenk takes a similar
1r
? Nb (
tack, claiming that the passage reflects Debussy's shift away S

from functional harmony to "static" or "circular" succes-

sions.25RichardParks, meanwhile, dispenses with tonal con-
cepts altogether and asserts that the Prelude "opens with a
complement relation: the flute melody's pcs form set 7-1,
while 5-1 is embedded prominentlywithin the sixteenths that b
6
^
5
descend to pc 7."26
Obviously, the differences between these interpretations
are partly matters of emphasis or context, and partly results
of the anomalies inherent to Debussy's score. It is perhaps 00 0
testimony to the work's ambiguitythat so many readingshave Nb
been advanced. Example 2, however, presents an alternative A.; ---
'I
Schenkerian analysis of mm. 1-13. Here, the passage is in-
terpreted as a transformation of the progression VII7 of VII7 of V V9 I

V-V9-I in E.27 This progression is given in Example 2a.

Example 2b shows how the dominant is arpeggiated in the
bass through its mixed third, D, and how the Ct in the upper
voice in m. 4 is suspended over the D and B to form seventh
A1 ^
and ninth chords in mm. 11-13. The resulting progression
VII7-V9 is very similar to those described by Schenker in
??
? Nb

24Austin, "Toward an Analytical Appreciation," 84-85.

25Wenk, Debussy and Twentieth-Century Music, 56-61. VII7 ofV V9 I
26Parks, Music of Debussy, 156-57.
d 6--- 5
27It might seem that this sonority might be more conveniently labeled
lIV7. However, as Dave Headlam and I showed in our paper "Schenkerian
Theory and the Limits of Tonality: The Problem of fIV" (Annual Meeting
of the Society for MusicTheory, Oakland, 1990), Schenkeriantheory assumes
that #IV Stufencannot be generated directlyfrom I in tonal contexts; instead,
00 0 113 0)()
they can only be derivedindirectlyeither from transformationsof other Stufen
(for example, III of III, IV of II, VII of V, etc.), or from interpolations. D5

' -I T 9$-8
VII 7 of V V I

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134 MusicTheory Spectrum
Der freie Satz.28Example 2c then shows how the initial VII7
of V in m. 4 is joined to the VII chord in m. 11 by a passing
Bb7. The latter chord arisescontrapuntally;the alto and tenor
F E
parts complete a chain of parallel thirds extending from
(m. 4) to E (m. 13). This chain is perhaps more obvious in
Debussy's draft and two-piano reduction than in the finished
score. Finally, Example 2d adds the overall motion--C -
B-AO -of the opening tune, along with the expansion of the
dominant Dt-B in m. 13.
Example 2 clarifies several important issues. First, the
graphssuggest that the tonal function of the opening four bars
is indeterminant;althoughthe pitch Ct is clearly emphasized,
its role is obscure. In fact, the G (mm. 1-2) implies that the
harmonies probably change in these bars; such a change al-
ways occurs when the theme is harmonized, even when it
raised to GO(mm. 100-101). To complicate matters further,
the goal of the opening phrase seems to be A# rather than
B. In m. 3, B seems to pass between C# and At, and only
in later statements do CKand AO serve as neighbors to B.
Second, whereas mm. 1-3 are ambiguous, mm. 4-13 can be
derived by orthodox tonal transformations. Indeed, the
rather strikingprogression bVII-V is actually quite common
in Debussy's early compositions, and even controls the mid-
dleground of entire works such as the song "C'est l'extase"
(Ariettes oubliees, 1887).29Third, the chromatic inner lines
found in Example 2c recur later in the Prelude. As we will
see, both mm. 20-30 and 79-106 are bound together by anal-
28Schenkerdiscussed VII-V progressions in various places in Der freie
Satz, especially par. 246, fig. 111 (fig. 1llc shows how VII7 can occur with
V9). See Heinrich Schenker, Derfreie Satz (Vienna: Universal, 1935); trans-
lated by Ernst Oster under the title Free Composition(New York, Longman,
1979). See also Matthew Brown, "The Diatonic and the Chromaticin Schen-
ker's Theory of Harmonic Relations," Journal of Music Theory 30 (1986):
1-33.
29Fora differentanalysisof this song, see WallaceBerry, MusicalStructure
and Performance(New Haven: Yale University Press, 1989), 144-216.
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ogous chains of parallel thirds. Fourth, Debussy veils our
sense of tonality by manipulatingthe way in which melodic
phrases intersect with their harmonic foundation. The pro-
gression VII7 of V-V9-I (mm. 1-13) actuallycuts across two
distinctstatements of the flute theme in mm. 1-10 and 11-20.
Having discussed the opening of the Prelude, let us now
turn to mm. 30-54. Jean Barraque has rightly observed that
this segment functions as some sort of development. He sug-
gests that it can be divided into three discrete phases: mm.
30-37 offer a "double presentation of the principal theme
harmonized by chords from the whole-tone scale"; mm.
37-50 introduce "the second theme . . . in the oboe" and
modulate towards the key of the middle section; and mm.
50-54 sustain "a pedal on the dominant of Dk."30When we
look more closely at the wider tonal and motivic context of
the passage, several other details seem significant. For ex-
ample, although the oboe theme does not appear before m.
37, this gesture is derived from the pentatonic motive in m.
28 (see Exx. 3a and 3b).31 Indeed, the links between this
section and its predecessor are reinforcedby the fact that the
oboe theme appears with fragments of the main flute theme
in mm. 46-47 (see Ex. 5b). More remarkably, as Charles
Burkharthas demonstrated, mm. 37-55 form a single span,
with a stepwise descent in the bass, from B (V of E) via Bb
and A to Ab (V of Db,), and with a series of nested repetitions
of the chromaticfigure B(C,)-C-Ct1(Db) in the upper parts
(see Ex. 3c).32 Significantly,this chromatic figure is embed-
ded within the main flute theme (see Ex. 3d). Burkhart's
30Barraque,Debussy, 88; translated in Austin, ed., Prelude, 163-64.
31Forelaborate accounts of the complex motivic connections see Austin,
"Towardan Analytical Appreciation,"especiallypp. 76-78. Peter Gilke has
stressed the significanceof pentatonicfiguresboth to the opening flute theme
(Gilke, Exx. 1, 3, and 5), the oboe theme at m. 37 (Gtilke, Ex. 4), and the
Db theme (Giilke, Ex. 2); see "Musikaus dem Bannkreis," 114ff. and 120ff.
32I have adaptedBurkhart'sEx. 9 very slightly;see Burkhart,"Schenker's
'Motivic Parallelisms,'" 156.
 Tonality and Form in Debussy's Prelude a "L'Apres-midi d'un faune" 135

Example 3. Prelude a "L'Apres-midi d'un faune," mm. 37-55

b I

@ 1 1 1 A '~~~
3 3 3

A
5

Af i -
R k I
_ -- I 1, I ,, I Ii ,,
I]I I
... "t ,. S'_ I1h., , ,_ . b, b'4 *.Ul I ~! d , ....... I I

000000 0 0

11--N
,:%. a__ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

9-8 9-8 6-5 9-8 '1 -

V 4-3 V

d O
0
V I N
L_ BI
1 IB- -
B- B#-Co

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136 MusicTheorySpectrum
readingnot only connects mm. 37-54 to mm. 1-30, but it also
shows how the transition functions as one, rather than two,
separate spans.
While mm. 37-54 are certainly unusual, they are a good
deal more orthodox than mm. 30-37; Burkhartis surely cor-
rect to state that the latter contains "the work's most radical
departure from traditional procedure."33His analysis shows
how the passage is built from the two whole-tone sets-
C-D-E-Ft-Gt-Af and Ct-Dt-F-G-A-B. It would be
wrong, however, to conclude that this passage cannot be de-
rived from tonal transformations.On the contrary, Example
4 shows that mm. 30-37 arise contrapuntally,from complex
passing motions in the inner voices. The upper line is created
by a motion from the inner voice: the Ft in the alto part (m.
30) ascends by step through G, A, B , and C to Cf (m. 37).
The inner parts mostly ascend by step: the viola part moves
up from B through Cl (m. 31-33) to D and E (mm. 34-36);
the second violin part moves up from F through G (mm.
31-33) Gt and A# (mm. 34-36); the cello, bass, and bassoon
parts move up from Ct through D and Dft (mm. 31-33) to
E, F, and F# (mm. 34-36). The bass part simply shifts from
G (mm. 32-33) via Bb (mm. 34-36) back to B (m. 37). The
final sonority at the end of m. 36 (F#-A#-Et-C~) functions
as an altered secondary dominant (V 7 of V), that resolves
to V9 of E.
The notion that whole-tone harmonies stem from altered
dominantsis, of course, one that has been advancedby many
writers, from Schoenbergto Tovey.34It is also consistent with
33Ibid., 157.
34See, for example, Arnold Schoenberg, Harmonielehre,chap. 20 (Vi-
enna: Universal, 1911; 3d ed., 1922); translatedby Roy E. Carterunder the
title Theory of Harmony (Berkeley; University of California Press, 1978),
390-98. See also Donald FrancisTovey, "Harmony,"reprintedin The Forms
of Music (Cleveland: World Publishing Co., 1965), 69.
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Example 4. Prelude a "L'Apres-midi d'un faune," mm. 30-39
5 6 5
AiM I
?@ (3t ? ?4 9b ?
'0-
(Vb5 of V) 9-8
vL V7 (I)
the basic tenets of Schenkeriantheory. As becomes clear near
the beginningof volume 1 of Kontrapunkt,Schenkerbelieved
that when composers use exotic scales in tonal contexts, they
do so "not to loosen [the] system in order to incorporate a
foreign one, but, on the contrary, to use [the] major-minor
system to express the foreign element."35Besides providing
a tonal derivationfor mm. 30-37, Example 4 also implies that
this passage does not advance the tonal flow of the Prelude;
rather, it acts as an aside or parenthesisthat delays the mod-
ulation to Db. Schenker described such "delays" very beau-
tifully in Der freie Satz:
In the art of music, as in life, motion toward the goal encounters
obstacles, reverses, disappointments, and involves great distances,
detours, expansions, interpolations,and, in short, retardationsof all
kinds. Therein lies the source of all artisticdelaying, from which the
creative mind can derive content that is ever new.36
35HeinrichSchenker, Kontrapunkt,vol. 1 (Stuttgart: Cotta, 1910), 44;
translatedby John Rothgeb and Jurgen Thym under the title Counterpoint
(New York: Schirmer, 1987), 28.
36Schenker,Der freie Satz, chap. 1, section 3, p. 18; Oster ed. and
trans., 5.
 Tonalityand Formin Debussy's Prelude a "L'Apres-midid'un faune"
In the case of the Prelude, this brief delay helps to evoke
the mysterious, dreamlike atmosphere that permeates Mal-
larme's eclogue.
So far, we have seen that the Prelude is built from two
main motives-the opening flute arabesque plus its deriva-
tives, and the Db theme. Austin, however, identifies two
other gestures, to which he refers as the syncopated and flow-
ing motives.37Since these ideas play a vital role in the sub-
sequent unfolding of the piece and help to clarify the formal
function of the B section, it is worth examining them closely.
Example 5 traces the life history of both ideas. Although
the origins of the syncopated motive can be traced back to
the horn parts in mm. 5 and 13, this gesture first becomes
prominent in m. 39 (Ex. 5a). Almost immediately, it is com-
bined with the opening flute motive (Ex. 5b). The flowing
motive, meanwhile, is first heard in m. 28 (Ex. 5c) and be-
comes the progenitor of the oboe theme at m. 37. In the Db
section, the flowing and syncopated motives are both ab-
sorbed into the B theme: the former appearsas a continuation
of the B theme in mm. 61-62 (Ex. 5d); the latter appearswith
the flowing motive beginning in m. 67 (Ex. 5e). The short
codetta (mm. 74-78) then combines the syncopated motive
in counterpointwith the B theme and flowingmotive (Ex. 5f).
This example of presenting themes simultaneouslyor in close
succession-what we might term "motivic compression"-
sets up the climax of the Prdlude in mm. 94-99, where the
syncopated and flowing motives both return in counterpoint
with the main flute theme (Ex. 5g).
Example 5 highlights three essential features of thematic
working in Debussy's music. First, it often includes very in-
tricate motivic relationships. This fact apparentlycontradicts
Debussy's frequent claims to simplifying symphonic compo-
sition. For example, in an essay for SIM (1 November 1913)
he declared:
37Austin,"Toward an Analytical Appreciation," 75-78.
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137
Let us purifymusic!Let us tryto relieveit of its congestion,to find
a less clutteredkindof music.And let us be carefulthatwe do not
stifle all feeling underneatha mass of superimposeddesignsand
motives:how can we hope to preserveour finesse,our spirit,if we
insiston beingpreoccupied withso manydetailsof composition? We
areattempting theimpossiblewhenwe tryto organizea brayingpack
of tinythemes,all pushingandjostlingeach otherfor a bite out of
poor old sentiment.38
Second, in Debussy's music, motives that initially seem in-
nocuous may end up playing a vital role later. Since this
process cuts across the main formal divisions of the Prelude,
it helps to erode the boundaries and autonomy of each sec-
tion. Third, Debussy's music is often extremely complex poly-
phonically, especially at critical moments in the form. In the
Prelude, the densest textures occur at the climax (beginning
in m. 94). This point is doubly ironic because Debussy is often
portrayed as the archenemy of polyphony, and because
Schenker traced the downfall of music in the twentieth cen-
tury to a "decline of counterpoint."39
Before leaving the B section, we must briefly consider its
harmonic structure. We have already seen how the thematic
38Lesure,ed., MonsieurCroche, 241; Lesure and Smith, Debussy on Mu-
sic, 297.
39Forpublisheddiscussionsof Debussy's contrapuntalpractices,see Peter
DeLone, "ClaudeDebussy: ContrapuntisteMalgreLui," CollegeMusic Sym-
posium 17 (1977): 48-63; and WilliamAustin, Musicin the TwentiethCentury,
(New York: Norton, 1966), especially p. 20. Debussy himself discussed the
significanceof counterpointin his music; see Lesure and Smith, Debussy on
Music, 84, 94, and 278. Schenker, of course, made frequent attacks on
twentieth-centurymusic, such as the following in Derfreie Satz: "The present
decline of counterpointhas brought about the decline of diatony. This is the
fault of the musicians, who still have not grasped the fact that as long as the
fifth determines the natural sonority-and that will always be so-a voice-
leading technique based on the fifth, as nature requires, cannot lead to any
diatony other than the diatony which our art has exhibited up to the present
day. All attempts to deprive nature of her rights will shatter against the wall
of her resistance" (Oster, ed. and trans., par. 4, p. 11).
138 MusicTheory Spectrum

Example 5. Motivic compression in the Prelude

^-- Syncopatedmotive
^~(g)D-~ __-
a* riI
--- I e'r

Flute theme

-j n0"g
n -'ig ?-
b II , 3 - I,
c
gem -J ?[| f\
II
-? 3 3 1

Flowing motive
Syncopated motive
B theme Flowing motive
0 I >
_
I
@ -
d
F rFrfr, vi I lt "
blbF r 3 3

B theme
?IQ I Syncopated motive Flowing motive
__ )
- (6 7)I
A I, I

t, r Ii' r l ' II r
B theme

A IL 3 3 I
f , I F.
-\'i ro rm
_:^Trr rr rr r,
I r II # F II Us
Syncopated motive Flowing motive Flowing motive

Flute theme Flowing motive

? '^
-S=Fmff_________?3 3mr^

g ,n I
)11"c 'c*1_- ,P. 7---- -I -I' -:_
.r r7--
r
Syncopated motive

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 Tonalityand Formin Debussy's Prelude a "L'Apres-midid'un faune" 139

Example 6. Prelude a "L'Apres-midi d'un faune," mm. 55-78

6 6

J 1 1 I hbJ,l.J 1 i
A . j

:b iJ J JJ b-bbb I. '/ i
- ~ 'b;

t) bbbb P-
6*^k b- 6 , 4~
b - < "bL
IV I1 V
IV
1IofVII
I IVb3 bVI aug. 6 I
of Vl
of VI

content changes between the first and the second statements second statement (see Ex. 6a). These measures present a
of the Db theme. Example 6 shows that this change coincides diatonic descent throughthe D octave in the upper part that
with a remarkableshift in the theme's harmonic support. To is supported by the simple progression I-IV-II-V-I. The
understand this transformation it is best to begin with the firststatement, however, is more complex (see Ex. 6b). Here,

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140 MusicTheory Spectrum
the octave descent is transformed chromatically: Db-Cb,-
Bb -Ab-Gb-Fb -Elb-C-Db. Notice how the augmented-
sixth chord resolves traditionally:D moves down by step in
the bass, while the tritone Ft-C in the upper voice resolves
inwards to F and Db (horns 2 and 4, violin 2). As shown in
Example 6c, the supportingprogression, with its mixed sub-
dominant, flat submediant, and augmented-sixthsonorities,
foreshadows the chromatic excursions found in Debussy's
later works, such as the piece "Reflets dans l'eau" (Images,
Book I, 1904-5). Here the upper line moves from I via
,I and t 3i to v and }.
We now come to the final sections of the Prelude. As
mentioned earlier, experts disagree about the formalfunction
of mm. 79-106. Some, such as Barraque and Howat, argue
that these measures are built from two distinct spans: mm.
79-93 develop the flute theme sequentiallyon E and Eb; mm.
94-106 restore the main theme to Ct for the start of the final
section proper.40Conversely, Denis Dille, LaurenceBerman,
and others suggest that these bars constitute a single span
analogous to that of the opening A section.41
Whichreadingshould we prefer?Certainly,there are good
reasons for dividing mm. 79-106 into two spans. Although
the flute theme is transposed to E in m. 79, it is not restored
to the original startingpitch COuntil m. 94. Furthermore,the
scherzandocharacterof the flute theme (mm. 79-93) recalls
the whole-tone variations (mm. 30-37). Tonally, however,
this reading is less convincing. No one would deny that the
tonic 6 returns in m. 79, but when the bass tone E returns
at m. 94, it no longer supports a simple tonic triad. Instead,
we find an E13identical to the one in m. 26. Dissonances of
this sort do not normally appear at the start of a span; still
40Barraqu6, Debussy, 88; translated in Austin, ed., Prelude, 164; Howat,
Debussy in Proportion, 149.
41Dille's view is summarized by Austin in "Toward an Analytical Ap-
preciation," 74; Berman, "Debussy's Summer Rites," 231.
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less do they initiate the final section of a piece. How, then,
can we explain their presence in m. 94?
Example 7a suggeststhat these dissonancesarise from con-
trapuntal lines that start in m. 79. The inner parts F, in m.
94 are part of a long chain of chromatic parallel thirds that
passes from G#(m. 79) via EC(m. 83), G (m. 86), and D (m.
F
90) to (m. 94). This line then descends to E (m. 96) before
shifting direction to join the upper line in m. 104. The so-
prano C# in m. 94, meanwhile, arises as an expansion of the
chromaticmotive B-B -C that is projected from m. 79. The
CO,which is even locally tonicized beginning in m. 96, even-
tually slides down through Ct and Bb to meet the inner thirds
at m. 104.
Besides demonstrating the overall integrity of mm. 79-
106, Example 7b also indicates that the final section is built
from the same tonal transformationsas mm. 20-30. In mm.
20-30, the upper line also expands the motive B-Bt-C#
while the inner parts contain a chain of chromatic thirds ex-
tending from G (m. 20) via B (m. 22), A (m. 23), Gd (m.
25), G (m. 25) to F (m. 26). As with mm. 79-106, these
thirds finally shift up to meet the upper line for the cadence.
As Leonard B. Meyer has noted, the cadences in mm. 29-30
and 103-6 are connected motivically; both contain the same
motives, marked x and y in Example 7c.42The significance
of this reading is twofold. It suggests that the final A' section
is not a simple repetition of the opening section, but is an
ingenious composing-out of a small segment, mm. 20-30.
Furthermore, since this passage conflates the main flute
theme with the syncopated and flowing motives and inflects
COas a local tonic, it provides a subtle reminiscence of the
B section. This allusion to the B section unifies the Prelude
and demonstrates the complex, long-range connections that
invariablybind Debussy's music together. Tonally, then, mm.
42Meyer, Style and Music, 223-25.
 1

Tonalityand Formin Debussy's Prelude a "L'Apres-midid'un faune" 141

Example 7. Tonal models in the Prelude 79-106 constitute a single unit, bound together by an elab-
orate contrapuntal framework; they do not subdivide con-
4 3 2 1 veniently into two separate tonal spans.
To sum up: When analyzed from a Schenkerianperspec-
A. I I F I II Nb k I II tive, Debussy's Prelude a "L'Apres-midi d'un faune" is best
regardedas a continuous ternaryform-A (mm. 1-30), tran-
sition (mm. 37-54), B (mm. 55-78), A' (mm. 79-106), and
coda (mm. 106-10). However, this scheme is obscuredin four
ways: by starting with an incomplete progression VII7 of
V-V9-I; by adding a parentheticalwhole-tone episode (mm.
I A .-.--\
L
30-36); by developing the syncopated and triplet figures
6I~ ---' V-6 !2 V-
V6 3 across the formal boundaries; and by modeling the final A'
section (mm. 79-106) on part of the opening section (mm.
20-30). Although these features are unusual in themselves,
especially when judged against the standardsof nineteenth-
century tonal theory, they do not represent a complete re-
-----
,V,1 -
pudiation of tonal paradigms. What is so remarkable about
IE the Prelude is that Debussy managed to combine these tech-
niques so boldly over such a large span. Perhaps we should
_ __3 3I3 view the rather elaborate explanations presented above as
signs of Debussy's cultural elitism and his love of the
4, - - ~;ttIa- d- esoteric-concerns that he described in a famous letter to
Ernest Chausson (3 September 1893):
Music really ought to have been a hermetical science, enshrined in
texts so hard and laborious to decipher as to discouragethe herd of
,c xt YI,... 1 people who treat it as casually as they do a handkerchief! I'd go
further and, instead of spreadingmusic among the populace, I pro-
pose the foundation of a "Society of Musical Esotericism."43

1? I<h
H.2 I2 I 43"Vraimentla musiqueauraitdfi tre une science herm6tique,gard6epar
des textes d'une interpretationtellement longue et difficile qu'elle auraitcer-
tainement d6courag6la tropeau de gens qui s'en servent avec la d6sinvolture
que l'on met a se servir d'un mouchoir de poche! Or, et en outre, au lieu
' u u de chercher a repandre Fart dans le public, je propose la fondation d'une
1 33 3 "Societe d'Esotericisme Musical" et vous verrez que M. Helman n'en sera
x

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142 MusicTheory Spectrum
As it happens, this letter dates from the time when Debussy
was finishing work on the Prelude.
Although it is beyond the scope of this essay to trace
Debussy's use of the four techniques enumerated above in all
his subsequentorchestralworks, a few examples are in order.
To begin with, of Debussy's remaining eleven orchestral
movements, all but one-"Par les rues et les chemins" (Ibe-
ria, first movement)-begin with some sort of incomplete
progression. For the most part, these works open with in-
troductions that move to the tonic for the start of the main
movement proper. However, "Les parfums de la nuit" and
"Le matin d'un jour de fete" (Iberia, second and third move-
ments) are more complex. The former is a classic example
of an auxiliary-cadence piece: the bulk of the movement
prolongs the dominant of Ft with the tonic finally occurring
near the end (m. 92).44The latter, meanwhile, not only be-
gins away from the tonic, but it actually ends somewhere
else: the movement starts in Eb, moves to C, and closes in
G with material from the middle section of "Par les rues et
les chemins."
We can also find parentheticalepisodes and interpolations
in Debussy's later orchestral scores. Perhaps the most ob-
vious examples occur in the transition between the final
movements of Iberia. Here Debussy added a subordinate
theme from "Le matin d'un jour de fete" near the end of "Les
parfums de la nuit" (mm. 127-28), and he inserted a flash-
back to one of the main themes in the second movement near
the beginning of the third (mm. 5-6). Significantly,the latter
"interruption"has connections with Debussy's piano Prelude
"La s6ernade interrompue":in mm. 80-84 and 87-89 of the
pas, ni M. de Monnieres non plus!" See Lesure, ed., Lettres,51; Lesure and
Nichols, eds., Letters, 52. This letter is normally connected with Debussy's
interest in the occult.
44Formore details of this and the following analytical observations, see
my forthcomingbook Debussy: 'Iberia'(Oxford: Oxford University Press).
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Prelude Debussy actually inserted the main theme from "Le
matin d'un jour de fete"! On a largerscale, the entire fanfare
section from the middle of "Fetes" (Nocturnes,second move-
ment) is a giant interpolation: mm. 116-73 are actually in-
serted within an ascending line that spans from m. 27 to m.
208. As in Iberia, the insert recalls material from another
work by Debussy: at the climax of the fanfare section, we
hear Rodrigue's leitmotiv from Debussy's aborted "Wagne-
rian" opera Rodrigue et Chimene (1890-92).45
Several interesting instances of motivic compression also
occur in La Merand the orchestralImages. A particularlyfine
example appears at the climax of "Jeux de vagues" (La Mer,
second movement).46In mm. 163-218, the main theme re-
turns and is combined contrapuntallywith other subordinate
themes as well as with its own diminutions and augmenta-
tions. The same phenomenon can be seen in "Rondes de
printemps"(Images). In two long sections (mm. 87-118 and
138-205), Debussy develops the folk tune "Nous n'ironsplus
au bois" contrapuntallywith itself, and with other themes,
including another folk tune "Do, do l'enfant do."
Lastly, Debussy relied on tonal modeling in several later
symphonicscores. In "Nuages" (Nocturnes, firstmovement),
he modeled the final section (mm. 80-93) on the last segment
of the opening A section (mm. 43-56). In recomposing the
earlier material, he inserted two repetitions of a horn motive
from mm. 23-24 and 27-28. More remarkably, the second
half of "De l'aube a midi sur la mer" (La Mer, first move-
ment), is an elaborate composing out of the contrapuntal
frameworkof mm. 31-84: both move from Db via BI to Ab
and back, via Gb to Ab. Similar experiments in tonal mod-
45Comparethe chromatic motive and Tristan chords (mm. 170-73) of
"Fetes" with Rodrigue's theme, transcribedby Orledge (Exx. 12 and 13) in
Debussy and the Theater(Cambridge:CambridgeUniversityPress, 1982), 31.
46See Wolfgang Domling, Claude Debussy: La Mer (Munich: Wilhelm
Finck Verlag, 1976).
 Tonalityand Form in Debussy's Prelude a "L'Apres-midid'un faune" 143

eling can also be found in "Par les rues et les chemins"; here,
the final A section and the coda are built from roughly the
same set of tonal transformations as the middleground of the
entire movement.
To what extent, then, did Debussy manage to move away
from nineteenth-century tonal and formal conventions? From
the preceding discussion, it seems that Debussy's path away
from traditional composition was gradual. Indeed, most of
the techniques used in the Prelude have clear precedents in
nineteenth-century tonal practice, at least as explained by
Schenkerian theory. This suggests that Debussy was not the
iconoclast that Boulez and others believe. His genius was
perhaps not so much in creating entirely new principles of
harmony and form, but rather in exploiting established tech-
niques in bold and unusual ways. In many ways, this essay
confirms the conclusions of Arnold Whittall:
Debussy, at his best, was always a dramatic composer. What is
dramatized, what brings tension and dynamism to the music, is the
skilfully balanced relationship between chromaticism and diatoni-
cism, both of which may show modal characteristicsbut which never
lose sight of the triadicconstructionsand progressionsof earliertonal
music. Debussy's harmony functions precisely in the sense that it
gives meaning, and movement, to this relationship. As a language
it can best be described as "expandedtonality", a language in which
tonality still acts as a basic term, giving perspective to all other
harmonic activity.47
Even if Debussy was unable to ignore common-practice to-
nality altogether, he did create a remarkable body of sym-
phonic music that was indeed fit for "the century of aero-
planes."
ABSTRACT
Debussy is often credited with revolutionizingmusical form by re-
jecting nineteenth-centurytonal and formalpractice. This essay con-
siders this claim by examining the tonal and thematic frameworkof
the Prelude a "L'Apres-midid'un faune." Although this analysis
shows that the Prelude can be explained by traditional tonal pro-
cedures, it identifies four techniques-incomplete progressions,par-
enthetical episodes, motivic compression, and tonal models-that
allowed Debussy to move away from conventional symphonicmod-
els. The paper ends by showing how he developed these techniques
in later orchestralworks such as the Nocturnes, La Mer, and Iberia.
47ArnoldWhittall, "Tonality and the Whole-Tone Scale in the Music of
Debussy," The Music Review 36 (1975): 271.

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