Claude Debussy, who died 100 years ago in March 1918, is one of history's greatest composers and the most influential of all French composers. A father of modern music, Debussy lived in the early days of the recording era.

All the artists who appear in this 10CD set, Debussy: His First Performers, were in some way pioneers in the performance of his music in the first half of the 20th century. All the recordings in this collection provide an authoritative and illuminating point of reference in our appreciation of Debussy.

The roster of performers is led by musicians who knew the composer personally, some of whom gave world premieres of his works. They also made some of the earliest recordings that feature on this set. Covering a period that extends from 1904 to 1963, Debussy: His First Performers also embraces landmark interpretations by artists, born during Debussy's lifetime, who have come to define our understanding of the composer's genius.

Among the most significant names in this collection - which covers piano, chamber and orchestral music, song and opera - are: pianists Ricardo Viñes, Alfred Cortot, Marcelle Meyer, Marguerite Long, Walter Gieseking - and Debussy himself (recordings made on piano rolls); violinist Jacques Thibaud; singers Mary Garden, Jane Bathori, Ninon Vallin, Claire Croiza (accompanied by Francis Poulenc at the piano), Maggie Teyte and Charles Panzéra; conductors Désiré-Émile Inghelbrecht, Arturo Toscanini, Pierre Monteux, Ernest Ansermet, Roger Désormière and Charles Munch.

Artists

Claude Debussy (piano), Ricardo Viñes (narrator, piano), Alfred Cortot (piano), Marguerite Long (piano), Walter Gieseking (piano), Marcelle Meyer (piano), Quatuor Calvet (string quartet), Maurice Maréchal (cello), Robert Casadesus (piano), Marcel Moyse (flute), Lily Laskine (harp), Eugène Ginot (viola), Jacques Thibaud (violin), Mary Garden (soprano), Ninon Vallin (soprano), Gustave Cloëz (piano), Claire Croiza (mezzo-soprano), Francis Poulenc (piano), George Reeves (piano), Camille Maurane (baritone), Hugues Cuénod (tenor), Jacqueline Blancard (piano), Maggie Teyte (soprano), Jane Bathori (mezzo-soprano), Unknown Piano (piano), Charles Panzéra (baritone), Germaine Cernay (mezzo-soprano), Paul Cabanel (bass), Leïla Ben Sedira (soprano), Irène Joachim (soprano), Henri-Bertrand Etcheverry (bass-baritone), Jacques Jansen (baritone), Émile Rousseau (baritone), Armand Narçon (bass), Marthe Nespoulos (soprano), Yvonne Brothier (soprano), Vanni-Marcoux (baritone), Hector Dufrane (baritone), Orchestre des Concerts Lamoureux, Orchestre des Concerts Straram, Paris Conservatoire Orchestra, Orchestre des Festivals Debussy, Unknown Chorus, Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Orchestre des Concerts Colonne, Unknown Orchestra, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre National de la Radiodiffusion Française, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Women of the Berkshire Festival Chorus, London Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre National de France, Grand Orchestre, Orchestre Symphonique, Choeurs Yvonne Gouverné, Orchestre des Concerts Pasdeloup, Camille Chevillard, Walther Straram, Philippe Gaubert, Désiré-Emile Inghelbrecht, Charles Munch, Ernest Ansermet, Gabriel Pierné, Piero Coppola, Arturo Toscanini, Henri Büsser, Pierre Monteux, Jean Fournet, Roger Désormière, Georges Truc