harmonia mundi (en)

'The great twin reed on which we lay beneath the sky.' Stéphane Mallarmé was very impressed by the way in which Debussy had expanded on the moods of his poem, L'Après-midi d'un faune. The flute is not the most widely used instrument in Debussy's music, but he wrote one or two masterpieces for it. With the exception of his famous last Sonata for flute, viola and harp, all of the pieces on this recording were associated with theatrical or literary performances - an opportunity to put Syrinx back in context (Gabriel Mourey's drama, Psyché) and to hear Pierre Louÿs' Chansons de Bilitis as they were performed (with a small instrumental ensemble and reciter) on a day in February 1901.