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Debussy's muse Mme Vasnier inspired the young composer, barely into his twenties, to produce twenty-seven of the forty-odd songs he wrote between 1880 and 1884.

Over the course of the week Donald Macleod explores the musical fruits of Debussy's friendships 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.

Moonlight, evening and the trials and tribulations of love were subjects that preoccupied Debussy as a young man. Setting texts by the Parnassian poets, he wrote prolifically, with Madame Vasnier's high, soaring soprano voice very much in mind. With Donald Macleod.

Debussy, orch. André Caplet
Clair de lune
Orchestra National de Lyon
Jün Markl, conductor

Fantoches
Donna Brown, soprano
Stéphane Lemelin, piano

Trio in G, 1st movement - Andantino con moto allegro
The Florestan Trio

La Damoiselle élue
Ileana Cotrubas, soprano
Glenda Maurice, mezzo
Südfunkchor und Radio-Sinfonieorchester Stuttgart
Gary Bertini, conductor

Pour le piano
Jean-Efflam Bavouzet, piano

Regret
Donna Brown, soprano
Stéphane Lemelin, piano.