String Ensemble Cello,Double Bass,Viola,Violin - Level 3 - Digital Download SKU: A0.1299870 Composed by Claude Debussy. Arranged by James M. Guthrie. 20th Century,Chamber,Contest,Festival,Historic,Standards. 14 pages. Jmsgu3 #889630. Published by jmsgu3 (A0.1299870). INSTRUMENTATION: 2 VIOLINS, 2 VIOLAS, 1 CELLO, 1 CONTRABASSBerceuse Heroique is a musical composition by Claude Debussy, composed in 1914 as a homage to King Albert I from Belgium and his soldiers. The piece was written for King Albert's Book, a collection of music sponsored by The Telegraph and put together by Hall Caine to raise funds for Belgian war relief. The work opens very dark and somber, with a sense of mourning and loss. The anthem is quoted in the middle of the piece, surrounded by music of gloom and despair. The quote from the Belgian national anthem that is squeezed into Debussy's Berceuse heroique is the first phrase of La Brabançonne by François van Campenhout.The composition expresses the misery of feeling powerless in events, combined with everyday unhappy shortages of necessities, which was a common experience during World War I. The life of French composer Claude Debussy was full of agony and challenges, from surviving in the 1st World War to his battle with cancer.Berceuse heroique is a significant piece in music history for its reflection of the somber and melancholic mood of the time, its tribute to the soldiers and their suffering, and its representation of Debussy's work during the war. The piece is still performed and recorded today, and is considered a significant work in Debussy's oeuvre.
