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Composer:
Debussy, Claude
Year Composed:
1909
Arranger:
Terzer, Armin
Year Arranged:
2008
Original Instrumentation:
Piano
Type of Arrangement:
Transcription
Availability:
Free
Sheet Music Format:
A4, Score (2) & parts (4x1=4)
Approximate Duration:
2
Technical Difficulty:
Medium
Structure/Movements:
One movement.
Allegro giusto
Clefs:
Treble, bass
Key signatures:
None
Meters:
2/4
Range:
Horn 1: f - c3
Horn 2: A - g2
Horn 3: d - e2
Horn 4: D - c2
Credits:
Recording (all parts): Pascal Deuber
Sample Score:
Sample Audio:
You may need: Adobe Flash Player.
How hard can it be to find some information about a piece pretty much everybody knows, or has heard at least once before? Well, in the case of Le petit negre it can be a bit of a struggle.
Le petit negre, or The little negro, or The little nigar was written in 1909 and influenced by African-American music, incorporating some pre-jazz elements (mainly chords and rhythms). Its composer, Debussy (1862-1918), is of course one of the best known French Impressionistic composers. In the original version, Le petit negre is a brief piano piece, about a minute and a half long. The key is C major (however judging by the amount of accidentals that appear throughout the score, that key is not used exclusively).
This arrangement is not a sounding transposition, but a key shift to F major achieved by simple leaving the notes as they appear on the original score. The parts are distributed according to the standard 1-3-2-4 scheme, with a range from pedal D to top C. Decent bass clef reading skill is required for horns 2 and 4. Due to the range used and the syncopated rhythms, this piece is actually not as easy as it may seem, but great fun to play for quartets at intermediate level and above.