Children's Corner - No. 1 背景資料

Children's Corner is a suite for solo piano by Claude Debussy, completed in 1908.

It is dedicated to Debussy's daughter Emma-Claude—known as "Chou-Chou"—who was three years old at the time. The pieces are not intended to be played by children—rather they are meant to be evocative of childhood.

There are six pieces in the suite, each with an English-language title. This choice of language reflects Debussy's anglophilia, and may also be a nod towards Chou-Chou's English governess. The pieces are:

Doctor Gradus ad Parnassum
Jimbo's Lullaby (This may well be a mis-translation from the English: Jumbo's Lullaby)
Serenade for the Doll
The Snow is Dancing
The Little Shepherd
Golliwog's Cakewalk
The title of the first alludes to Muzio Clementi's collection of instructional piano pieces, Gradus ad Parnassum. The most familiar piece is the last, Golliwog's Cakewalk. The middle section of this cakewalk is jokingly interrupted on several occasions by quotations of the opening of Richard Wagner's opera Tristan und Isolde, marked "avec une grande émotion" (with great feeling). Each quotation is followed by a sort of musical chuckle in staccato chords:


Children's Corner was published by Durand in 1908, and was given its world premiere in Paris by Harold Bauer on December 18 of that year. In 1911 an orchestration of the work by André Caplet received its premiere (on March 25) and was subsequently published. A typical performance of the suite would last about 15 minutes.


Use delight, light, vivid and playful musical style in playing. Imagine that you are playing to a group of children which will bring happiness to them.