Le Petit Berger

Le Petit Berger from The Children’s Corner

Claude Debussy (1862 – 1918)

SATB Saxophone Quartet

Le Petit Berger (The Little Shepherd) by Debussy arranged for saxophone quartet SATB. This is the fifth movement of a set of piano pieces entitled “The Children’s Corner” that Debussy wrote for his daughter. The shepherd in the piece seems sad and lonely as he improvises a melancholy tune on his pipe. Later a little dance-like motif is introduced. The shepherd’s pipe returns and alternates with the dance tune and then the piece quietly fades away.

• The range for each saxophone part is shown below.
• Audio and score excerpts are available above.
• Registered users can download a complete sample score and full length audio file of Le Petit Berger on the ‘Samples’ tab.

Debussy was a prominent French composer in the impressionist or symbolist style. He is a crucial figure in the transition to the modern era in Western music. He remains one of the most famous and influential of all composers. Saxophone players know him for his Rapsodie for Orchestra and Saxophone.