Debussy/ Arnold - Ecoutez

Claude Debussy left a profound mark on music history when he dissolved functional harmony under the influence of the music of the Far East. Toru Takemitsu had to distance himself from his own culture in order to listen to Japanese music with the ears of a Western-trained musician- adopting, for instance, the approach of John Cage. He came to realize that Japan's venerable musical tradition had long been highlighting individual notes as complex sonorities in their own right, instead of treating them as part of a series of several notes. From the human need for sound as well as silence, John Cage drew the most extreme conclusions. The concept of a "beautiful" sound was never static in music history: it has changed over the centuries, and it differs from one culture to another. Western musical aesthetics tend to differentiate between "noises" and "notes": the latter feature well-ordered harmonics. The concept of "dissonance" has also changed throughout different musical periods. What is more, musicians and their audiences have always felt the need to "savor" a dissonance- to listen to it consciously, to experience it- before it is resolved. This release showcases Debussy, Cage, and Takemitsu as they explore these ideas, as Sheila Arnold exploits the sound of the grand piano, bringing the listener into the space between the notes.