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PAN PIPES • SUMMER 2017 • sai-national.org 22 A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z A World of Music A World of Music A WORLD OF MUSIC Musée Claude Debussy: A Small, Unexpected Treasure By Jayne i. hanlin Late one Saturday aernoon, I learned that both Louis XIV and Claude Debussy had been born in Saint-Germain-en-Laye. However, I was really excited to find out that in this suburb about twenty kilometers from Paris, there was the Musée Claude Debussy. Our guide casually mentioned these facts just before the bus stopped for us to spend an hour-and-a-half of free time in the town. But it was already 5:15 PM! Frantically, I asked her, "Will the museum still be open?" "Maybe," she replied, giving me directions and pointing the way. Arriving at my destination fieen minutes later, I was thrilled to find out that the museum didn't close until 6. So I had one-half hour to explore the two exhibit rooms upstairs— practically by myself the entire time. As it turned out, it didn't matter that I hadn't known about the proximity of the museum to the cruise ship's dock upon my arrival in France the preceding Sunday: like the title of the 1960 movie, the museum is open Never on Sunday. Debussy (1862-1918) was born in this 17th- century house and lived there for two years — but only on the ground floor, which is now the location of the Municipal Tourism Office. In the open inner courtyard near the building's beautiful wooden balustrade, I immediately noticed Monument to Debussy, the statue of a faun and goat by Antoine Bourdelle (1861-1929). No, this is not the French spelling of "fawn" or young deer. is mythological faun (or lustful rural deity) is a man with goat's horns, ears, legs, and tail portrayed musically in Debussy's symphonic poem Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune. As I am familiar with his compositions, figuring out this English title on the French plaque was like choosing the correct answer on a multiple choice test: Prelude to the Aernoon of a Faun. I quickly climbed up the steps to the museum to see the displayed objects and artifacts. e first thing that caught my eye was Homage à Debussy, a marble sculpture of a kneeling woman, by Aristide Maillot (1861-1944). e subject matter is unusual because it is the artist's only reference to anything musical. I later learned that a bronze cast of this statue is on the grand staircase of Debussy's death mask from his museum in St-Germain-en-Laye, France, and (below) the composer on his bicycle in 1865.

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