“Arabesque” and Debussy’s Piano Works

• Main Authors: Ying Lin, 林瑩
• Other Authors: Chen Han - Jin
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2006
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/20548319656697297692

碩士 === 東吳大學 === 音樂學系 === 94 === General public views Debussy’s composition as ‘Vague Impressionism’. In fact, his music lines much more close to the characteristic of symbolism. The author points out reasons why performers and directors have given Debussy’s music more clear and transparent texture for the last two decades. Also, Debussy’s arabesque melodic lines not only break the rule of western and eastern traditional aesthetic, but also typical ‘Germanic’ aesthetic. Integrating and associating things with Debussy’s “linear arabesque” is the main goals of the thesis. It also includes the definitions, categories and characteristics of visual arabesque. In addition, the different presentations between Islamic art, Symbolic arabesque and Art Nouveau arabesque are fully compared. In auditory aspects, main points are sum up as follows: elements that influence Debussy’s music, such as culture activities of late 19 century and ancestral melodic gestures before middle 19 century, especially the music of François Couperin, Jean-Philippe Rameau and J. S. Bach. Further more, the significance of arabesque elements in Debussy’s ‘middle period’（1893–1912） piano works are discussed. Moreover, the author digs into the differences among Debussy, Schumann and Germanic arabesque; the linear differences between eastern and western polyphonic texture. Also, how Debussy was affected by the music and modes of Medieval and Renaissance are emphasized. Nevertheless, his arabesque lines are consisted of western church modes, oriental Gypsy scale, exotic pentatonic, whole-tone scales and octatonic scales. The author apprehends melody, harmony, rhythm and timbre of visual and auditory arabesque in the end. Obviously, Debussy’s arabesque own narrow and broad definitions those are similar to Islamic and Art Nouveau arabesque.