Jennifer Nicole Campbell's Music Musings on "Clair de lune"

“Clair de lune” by late 19th and early 20th century French composer Claude Debussy is one of the world’s most beloved pieces written for the piano. In this special episode of “A Musical Life”, I’ve invited award-winning pianist, composer, and Peabody Conservatory graduate Jennifer Nicole Campbell to share her insights into what makes “Clair de lune” such a special musical experience.

On this show, we share stories about making music and the things that move our souls. Up to this point, these stories have been centered around musicians and composers living remarkable lives and creating incredible musical experiences. For this episode, I thought we’d try something a little different. Music is a fascinating language, and even when there aren’t any words being sung, you can definitely sense an atmosphere, characters, and a narrative arc being created through the collage of sounds, silence, and time. But like any language, it really helps when you understand the syntax and meaning to fully appreciate and enjoy the poetry of sound we call music. To that end, I’m delighted to introduce you to today’s guest artist and music “translator”.

Jennifer Nicole Campbell is a remarkable young pianist, composer and educator who recently launched a new series of videos called, “Music Musings”. Her first episode tells the musical story of “Clair de lune”, by Claude Debussy. She did such a wonderful job explaining the inner workings of this popular piece that I invited her to be a guest contributor for the show.