Both La Mer by Debussy and The Rite of Spring by his friend Stravinsky are now regarded as two of the most influential pieces of the twentieth century, although these achievements were accomplished in entirely different ways. The notoriously difficult solo piano re-arrangement of Stravinsky’s own piano duet version of The Rite of Spring by the Russian pianist Vladimir Leyetchkiss (1934-2016) met with the composer’s approval. The solo piano version of La Mer by Lucien Garban (1877-1959) reinterprets the work from the perspective of Debussy’s piano output, taking works such as Images, from the same period, as a model.
