Children's Corner

Children's Corner is a suite for solo piano by Claude Debussy, completed in 1908.

Related Topics:
Suite - Piano - Claude Debussy

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It is dedicated to Debussy's daughter Emma-Claude—known as "Chou-Chou"—who was three years old at the time. The pieces are not intended to be played by children—rather they are meant to be evocative of childhood.

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There are six pieces in the suite, each with an English-language title. This choice of language reflects Debussy's anglophilia, and may also be a nod towards Chou-Chou's English governess. The pieces are:

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• Doctor Gradus ad Parnassum
• Jimbo's Lullaby
• Serenade for the Doll
• The Snow is Dancing
• The Little Shepherd
• Golliwog's Cakewalk

The title of the first alludes to Muzio Clementi's collection of instructional piano pieces, Gradus ad Parnassum. The most familiar piece is the last, Golliwog's Cakewalk. The middle section of this cakewalk is jokingly interrupted on several occasions by quotations of the opening of Richard Wagner's opera Tristan und Isolde, marked "avec une grande émotion" (with great feeling). Each quotation is followed by a sort of musical chuckle in staccato chords:

Related Topics:
Muzio Clementi - Gradus ad Parnassum - Cakewalk - Richard Wagner - Tristan und Isolde - Staccato

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Children's Corner was published by Durand in 1908, and was given its world premiere in Paris by Harold Bauer on December 18 of that year. In 1911 an orchestration of the work by André Caplet received its premiere (on March 25) and subsequently published. A typical performance of the suite will last around 15 minutes.

Related Topics:
Durand - Harold Bauer - Orchestration - André Caplet

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