Debussy’s legacy and the construction of reputation

241 Pages·2017·6.322 MB·English

by  Wheeldon, Marianne

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DEBUSSY’S LEGACY AND THE CONSTRUCTION OF REPUTATION
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Debussy’s Legacy and
the Construction of Reputation
Marianne Wheeldon

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© Oxford University Press 2017
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Library of Congress Cataloging- in- Publication Data
Name: Wheeldon, Marianne, author.
Title: Debussy’s legacy and the construction of reputation /
Marianne Wheeldon.
Description: New York, NY : Oxford University Press, 2017. |
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2016045660| ISBN 9780190631222 (hardcover) | 
ISBN 9780190631246 (epub)
Subjects: LCSH: Debussy, Claude, 1862– 1918—Appreciation—History—
20th century. | Music— France—20th century—History and criticism.
Classification: LCC ML410.D28 W47 2017 | DDC 780.92— dc23
LC record available at https:// lccn.loc.gov/ 2016045660
This publication is made possible in part by the Dragan Plamenac Endowment of the American
Musicological Society, funded in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities and the
Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.
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Printed by Sheridan Books, Inc., United States of America
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For Eric
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Contents
Acknowledgments ix
1 The Construction of Reputation and the Case of Debussy 1
2 Reputational Entrepreneurs 29
3 Debussyism, Anti- debussyism, Neoclassicism 65
4 The Controversy over the Ode à la France 98
5 Collective Memory and the Material Shaping of Debussy’s Legacy 133
Appendix: Le Florilège de Claude Debussy 169
Notes 189
Works Cited 209
Index 217
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Acknowledgments
This book would never have been written without the generous assistance
I received from numerous institutions and individuals. My research was made
possible through various departments at the University of Texas at Austin. Two
sabbaticals from the Faculty Development Program proved invaluable, the first
for providing the initial impetus to embark on this project and the second for the
much- needed time to complete the manuscript. In addition, support from a uni-
versity research grant, two creative research grants from the College of Fine Arts,
and a Sarah and Ernest Butler Faculty Development Award from the Butler School
of Music funded research trips to libraries and archives, without which this type
of project would have been impossible. Throughout my travels, I benefited greatly
from the expertise of librarians and archivists, who helped me access the materi-
als I needed and shared their knowledge of the collections. I thank all those who
assisted me at the Archives de Paris, the Médiathèque Musicale Mahler, the music
department of the Bibliothèque nationale de France, and the Fonds ancien of the
Bibliothèque municipale de Lyon. Closer to home, I received invaluable assistance
from the Harry Ransom Center at the University of Texas at Austin, the New York
Public Library, and the Frick Art Reference Library at the Frick Collection, where
my dear friend and archivist, Julie Ludwig, helped me with my request.
My project has benefited immensely from friends and colleagues who offered
crucial feedback at the various stages of this book’s preparation, from grant
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