LDV84

PHILIPPE BIANCONI 17 You already recorded Debussy’s two books of Préludes a few years ago. Does it seem natural to you today to tackle the twelve Études , which form the final apex of his output for piano? Do you think they take their place in a kind of continuity for Debussy? What evolution do you think they reflect? Philippe Bianconi: Yes, after a disc devoted to Debussy’s early maturity ( Estampes, Images etc.), then the recording of the Préludes , for me the next step was bound to be the Études , which I regard as his supreme masterpiece for piano. If I hesitated before embarking on this new adventure, it was because the fascination I had always felt for them was significantly dampened by the terror I felt at how difficult they are! In my opinion, it’s possible to see Debussy’s entire œuvre for piano – the fabulous evolution of whose language over some thirty years is a source of wonder – as representing a form of continuity, with the notable exception of the Estampes , which introduce a genuine break in that continuum. Some of the Préludes already contain the seeds of many of the moments of searing intensity found in the Études , not tomention the prélude entitled Les Tierces alternées , which amounts to a preview of the Études , and indeed is much stricter than any of them. However, the Études go so far in their rhythmic, sonic, formal and structural experimentation that they can certainly be seen as the culmination of a creative process, but probably even more as a door opened towards the future. It seems to me that Debussy never turns his back on his musical advances, which constantly enrich his language, but constantly opens new doors, right up to the blistering radicalism of the Études .