Cello Sonata (Debussy)

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The Cello Sonata is a late work by the French composer Claude Debussy. It was the first of a planned series of 'Six sonates pour divers instruments', however Debussy only completed two others, the sonata for violin and the sonata for flute, viola and harp. The sonata for cello and piano was written in 1915, and is notable for its short length, most performances not exceeding 10 minutes.

It is divided into three short movements:

• I. Lent, sostenuto e molto risoluto
• II. Sérénade: Modérément animé
• III. Final: Animé, léger et nerveux

The two final movements are joined by an attacca. Instead of sonata form, Debussy structures the piece in the style of the eighteenth-century monothematic sonata, and was particularly influenced by the music of François Couperin The piece makes use of modes and whole-tone and pentatonic scales, as is typical of Debussy's style. It also utilises many types of extended cello technique, including left-hand pizzicato, spiccato and flautendo bowing, false harmonics and portamenti. Not surprisingly, the piece is considered technically demanding.