Images

It was incomprehension and failure that greeted Debussy’s Images for orchestra when they were first performed on 20 February 1910 (Iberia), 2 March of the same year (Rondes de printemps under the direction of the composer) and 26 January 1913 (Gigues). Only Maurice Ravel was “embraced to tears” while the young Ernest Ansermet had attentively followed Debussy’s rehearsals at the podium and spent an entire afternoon with the composer. Rarely given in full concert, the Images are colourful paintings of the soul at the same time as they describe a fantasized Spain, ending with an orchestral study of great refinement. Without having become popular, they are at the pinnacle of French music of the early 20th century.

Gone are the days when the Geneva press treated Concerto No. 2 in B flat major as a “great cadaver”. Brahms has long been adored by the public, who constantly ask for more.