Clair de lune translation

CHAMOD SAMARASINGHE

Classical music is an unusual art. It is dominated by a few pieces which are far more popular than everything else which has been composed within the past few centuries. When compared to Beethoven’s fifth symphony, Bach’s toccata in d minor, Handel’s messiah and fur Elise (and a few others), everything else is a comparative blur to most.

Scholars could argue that this is due to their memorable nature and overall simplicity (for the listener, not the composer), but there is one notable exception to this rule: Clair de Lune by Claude Debussy. While the opening melody is certainly ear-catching and repetitive, everything else seems deliberately ambiguous, perfectly melancholy, and at times downright unusual. 

Its adaptability could be the reason that is used so often in film and TV.

It is famously played in the opening of the purge, where the gentle piano creates an intense juxtaposition with the scenes of violence which play out alongsi