Suite bergamasque

The Suite bergamasque is one of the most famous piano suites by Claude Debussy. The first version of this work—started in around 1890—was published in 1891, but the author continued to redraft it until 1905. In fact, during the first few months of 1890, after the failure of his Fantaisie, Debussy found himself in a difficult economic situation. He started to write his solo piano composition—more profitable than his symphonies—in order to sell them in book form by the Frères Choudens. They include many different musical genres: some Tarentelles, some Mazurkas, a romantic Waltz, a Ballade, a Scottish march, a Rêverie. The Suite bergamasque, on the other hand, is excluded from the collection because it was bad business due to its unusual character. It saw the light of day 15 years later, in its final form, in four movements: Prélude, Menuet, Clair de lune, and Passepied. It was published in 1905 by the publishing house Fromont.