It can be said that his “Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun” (1894) is the first musical work that truly belongs to the Twentieth Century; and his opera, Peleas and Melisande (started 1893, but not completed until 1902), charted new operatic waters – eschewing the aria and the big scene; instead using almost conversational understatement in front of sublimely delicate orchestration, and using a sound stage to suggest the drama and ultimate tragedy. | It can be said that his “Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun” (1894) is the first musical work that truly belongs to the Twentieth Century; and his opera, Peleas and Melisande (started 1893, but not completed until 1902), charted new operatic waters – eschewing the aria and the big scene; instead using almost conversational understatement in front of sublimely delicate orchestration, and using a sound stage to suggest the drama and ultimate tragedy. |