I usually have just the cover and the inside cover (where I usually put the lyrics) before the score begins, but with two extra pages, and no lyrics to put in the inside cover, I now have three pages for editor's notes. Actually, it ends up being two and a half, because there will also be a glossary of French musical terms. I've been working on writing things up, and I've got about a page already. There's a lot to explain! I've definitely made some Choices.

The score itself is coming along nicely, and I may have another draft to show you guys soon.

Here's my current draft.

It's mostly just notes at this point, though I did add some dynamics in the first few pages and do some light formatting for readability.

So for the vocal parts, while I've kept all pitch content the same, I'm making some pretty significant changes, including:

rearranging and relabeling the voices as two choruses each with a soprano and alto section, rather than two sections of sopranos and two sections of mezzo-sopranos

assigning parts to voices to fit the vocal ranges in this new voicing while preserving the antiphonal effects of the original

Basically I'm trying to make something that's more accessible for modern choral musicians.

For the piano reduction, I referenced the public domain sources available to me, including the original score from 1900, and Ravel's reduction for two pianos from 1909. There's also a revised score from 1930, which entered the public domain just this year, but from the research I've done, I've gathered that this edition is not the best resource, so I haven't used it as much. All of these are available on IMSLP (the Ravel reduction is under Arrangements and Transcriptions).

I've decided on this for a few reasons: first because there isn't a public domain piano/vocal score, just the vocal parts by themselves, and also because the vocal parts were really written for sixteen vocal soloists rather than a choir, and having sung this work in my symphony chorus a few years ago, I know how awkward a transition that is, and I'd like to come up with a version that makes more sense for choral musicians.

But also, I just really love the music, it's so pretty!

(ngl these voices could lure me out to sea)

The revoicing is pretty much already done. That's the easy part. All the pitch content remains the same, of course, and I'm preserving the antiphonal effects in there (and in fact, in places, I'm intensifying the antiphonality), but I'm voicing it in two choirs, each with a soprano and alto section (Debussy originally scored for 8 sopranos and 8 mezzo-sopranos), and arranging the voices so the ranges correspond better to those parts throughout.

The hard part, of course, is the piano reduction, but IMSLP does have a reduction for two pianos by Ravel, and I'm kind of going between that and the full score to hopefully arrive at something playable by your average accompanist. (When I sang it a few years ago, I think (don't quote me) our accompanist was working with the Ravel reduction and... just doing his best, bc the orchestra library didn't have a piano/vocal score, though I searched recently and found that piano/vocal scores of this movement do exist.) Anyway, I think this will give me more good practice with piano writing. I'm getting better! But I would like to get more confident and less anxious about it.

One final aside is that this piece brings me back to my college saxophone playing days in a very interesting way, because one of the main themes is very melodically similar to a main theme in another Debussy piece, Rhapsodie for saxophone and orchestra, which I played twice in college (once for juries, and then I brought it back for my recital because I liked it so much) (of course I played it with piano accompaniment, not with orchestra).

Fryderyk Chopin’s Nocturne No. 1 in B♭ Minor

Given we’ve had no Chopin so far, and I’m beginning to learn this, I figured I’d include it.

Not much to say about it, other than it’s bloody beautiful and you should go listen to it now if you haven’t already.