Complete Preludes, Books 1 and 2 (Dover Classical Piano Music)

Dover's book of Debussy preludes is made of extremely high quality print on heavier paper than usual. The beams on even the 32nd notes are very easy to distinguish - many printers do not get such a high resolution and the spaces between 2 or 3 beams are often poorly defined (resulting in fat black patches instead of distinct lines). The print is somewhat larger than normal which is very good for playing these beautiful, difficult pieces.This book is no different than any other music book as far a keeping it open at the keyboard is concerned. - it is easy to open and keep opened. As the author states, "this edition of the complete Preludes ... has been carefully printed on durable paper and sturdily bound to provide students and lovers of fine music a lifetime of study and enjoyment...".A glossary of French Terms is a very welcomed addition (I wish so much that I could speak French).The two books of 24 Preludes, are printed on 118 pages.This is a profound edition at a great price and it will serve me forever. I have several other copies of all Debussy's piano works, but this book is the best for print and paper quality!I hope my review helps you decide on purchasing this book, if not for just reading the notes while listening to the music.

Great edition. I love the translation of french musical terms.The only thing I'm picky about is orginally the titles are supposed to be and the end of the piece, as to not influence the performer's interpretation, which is what Debussy wanted.Also some rhythms were written incorrectly, just the proportions, made some parts hard to read.So far I have had no big problems with book one. I would buy!

I love Debussy music, but a lot of his solo piano pieces have gone overlooked, masked by overly-exposed favorites like "The Moonlight Sonata." This book contains some very interesting and unique sounding preludes, and the editing has been top-notch as far as I can tell. The music is easy to see/read, the spacing between staves is just right, and I haven't been able to find a single mistake yet (though, finding a wrong accidental in Debussy's music because of an editorial mistake would be comparable to finding a needle in a haystack). Some French terminology is also explained in the front of the book. I've had this for close to a year now, and though I do take very good care of my music, there have been NO issues with binding/pages tearing/whatever. Want some Debussy preludes? Buy this edition.Oh, if you want to hear some of these preludes performed by a reputable Debussy interpreter, look up "Michelangeli" on YouTube and you'll find a series of videos where he plays the majority (if not all) of these preludes.

I'm a music major in college, and I bought this book to use for analysis. There's plenty of room between staves to write notes or mark the chords and whatnot, unless you have freakishly large handwriting. But I definitely have to agree with Davey's review. This book would be HORRIBLE for playing along with. The pages will not stay and lie flat on a music stand unless you use paper clips or something, which is obviously not so doable when there's several page turns per piece. I was able to make it a LITTLE better by folding the cover back, but still not useable for playing.Still, this is worth buying if you want an affordable score to read along with a recording or analyze the pieces. The engraving in this book is crisp and easy to read, not to mention it comes with a VERY useful glossary of the French words used in the scores.

This is a very, very good edition originally published by the Soviet State Music Publishing Agency that rivals the original Durand et Fils. edition. It even manages to fit a little more music per page than what Durand did. The only quibble I have is its putting the titles at the HEAD of each piece: Debussy deliberately wanted them at the END in order to indicate that these were impressions and NOT pieces of "programme music" 'per se', even though enough times the works do have such content as well (e.g., "La Cathédrale Engloutie", #10 in Book 1).Definitely a warm recommendation both for pianists (of all levels) AND for listening plus study!!!

This edition is great, the music is a good size and clear to read. The only thing I’m dissatisfied with is the “lay-flat” pages, since it won’t stay open at the piano.

Dover did a good job with Debussy Preludes. The music may appear somewhat smaller than "standard", however, still a good purchase to supplement a student's piano music library. These preludes are not simplified. Most of the preludes are appropriate for intermediate-advanced to advanced pianists.

I ordered this for my son. This was nice because books 1 and 2 were combined into one book. Debussy is beautiful. How can one go wrong?

Great book! These pieces are a bit more experimental/textured than Debussy's most famous works (images, estampes etc.). In terms of difficult it's probably the same as these books.. late intermediate ABSRM grade 6,7,8.Stand out pieces for me , Le Vent dans la plaine, Les Collines d'Anacapri, La Cathédrale engloutie, Brouillards, Bruyères, Ondine, Feux d'artifice!But each of them has there merits and I hope to be able to play then all one day!

A good edition. Occasionally the ink can wear a little thin and the notes become more difficult to read. It would be nice to have more critical views on the sources though. But overall a great edition for the low price!

Perfect! I received it immediately, at a cheap price, very nice edition. Also, it lays flat quite easily, which helps...

Many thanks!

Doesn't have titles at the end of the piece in brackets which is a key element to these preludes! Titles are at beginning. Other than that, very good book.