[(Father Rachin leads Mathieu towards the classroom. At this moment, the curtain rises. A noisy classroom is revealed, filled with clamor, laughter, and the banging of tables and chairs...
About twenty boys of varying ages are chasing and wrestling, making faces while standing on tables, and shouting loudly... Among them, one boy is leading several companions in a loud song.)
Pierre: "Sister Manon has a cat,
Its tail sticks up so high, so high!
At night it doesn't catch mice,
But messes around in Manon's bed!"
(The other boys laugh and repeat the chorus, their voices growing louder.)
(Father Rachin walks over, his cane heavily striking Pierre's desk with a loud thud. The classroom instantly falls silent.)
Father Rachin: "Pierre! It's you again!
Your soul is truly steeped in filth and wickedness!
Do you think singing in this demonic language can show off your ability?
Can it defile this sacred place? No!
This will only add to your sins! Hold out your hand!"
(Pierre glares at Father Rachin, slowly extending his hand.)
Father Rachin: (Cruelly strikes Pierre's palm with the cane) "Pain! Remember this pain! This is the holy water that cleanses your filthy soul! This is the lashing that drives out the devil in your heart!
Only pain and punishment can make you unruly rascals remember the rules! Now, go stand facing the wall in the corner! No dinner tonight!"
(Pierre walks to the corner with his head down.)
Father Rachin: "And you! Every one of you who laughed, every one of you who joined in the commotion! Your silence is complicity, and your ears hearing filth is a sin! Everyone, copy Chapter 10 of the Canon fifty times! If you don't finish, you also get no dinner!"
(A chorus of 'wails rises from the children.)
Father Rachin: Mr. Mathieu, as you can see, this is your working environment and the 'lambs' you need to manage. This is their nature; only strict discipline 'can be effective. I hope you will not disappoint me. I'll leave them to you here.
(Father Rachin leaves the classroom, leaving Mathieu alone to face a room full of children.)
......]
Conflict, tension, suspense... In just a few pages, the script completely filled Debussy, the reader, with anticipation.
He hoped to immediately see how Teacher Mathieu would inspire and change these children through the magic of music.
But the script ended there, and he asked Lionel with some disappointment,
"Mr. Sorel, this... this is wonderful! Is there no more?"
Lionel: "..."
Are you being polite?!
He took a deep breath:
"I need you to compose music for the song Pierre just sang first."
That vulgar little tune, though its lyrics were coarse, perfectly suited the image of an unruly, undisciplined wild child.
Debussy looked up and remembered his task for the day, his face flushing with embarrassment.
Lionel smiled:
"That little tune needs to be lighthearted, amusing... even a bit clumsy in rhythm.
It should make people know it's not proper as soon as they hear it, but it shouldn't make the audience uncomfortable—after all, it's sung by children."
Debussy barely hesitated.
He looked at the script a few more times, then quickly walked to the piano and sat down.
He closed his eyes, his fingers hovering above the keys, seemingly searching and filtering for a certain melody and rhythm in his mind.
A few minutes later, Debussy's fingers fell.
A lively, even somewhat slick, melody rang out.
The rhythm was simple and brisk, with a clumsy, jumping feel, and a narrow vocal range, very suitable for a group of half-grown children to shout at the top of their lungs.
Debussy cleverly used a few dissonant notes and syncopated rhythms to add a touch of vulgar, quirky fun.
He even impromptu added an interlude played in the bass register, imitating clumsy dance steps.
As he played, he softly hummed along, deliberately mimicking the out-of-tune, loud singing style of country children:
"Sister Manon has a cat,
Its tail sticks up so high, so high!
At night it doesn't catch mice,
But messes around in Manon's bed!"
After playing and singing, Debussy himself couldn't help but laugh:
"Mr. Sorel, what do you think?
Is it... vulgar enough, and amusing enough?"
He used the adjective "vulgar" with a hint of embarrassment.
After listening, Lionel's face broke into a very satisfied smile.
Debussy had completely grasped his intention; such a little tune was indeed easy for him!
He not only captured the lighthearted and energetic spirit of a folk ditty but also, through some clever musical techniques, prevented it from sounding truly crude.
Lionel sincerely praised,
"Excellent, Achille! This is exactly what I wanted! This is the feeling! The sense of children messing around and making a ruckus comes out instantly!
When the audience hears this, and contrasts it with Father Rachin's sanctimonious appearance, the dramatic effect is immediate!"
This was the second reason Lionel dared to write this script—unlike novels, drama offers far richer forms of expression.
Just a change in background music can produce vastly different effects in the same scene.
All of this is difficult to appreciate through "reading" in a script—drama is essentially an engineering project, and until it is presented on stage, neither the script nor any rehearsal snippets can fully convey the final effect.
Receiving affirmation, Debussy breathed a sigh of relief, a smile appearing on his face—this meant he had secured his 200 francs.
Creating such a playful, folk-flavored tune was not difficult for him; it was far easier for him to express himself than with rigorous academic fugues.
But Debussy still had a slight worry:
"Mr. Sorel, I heard that 'The Chorus' will be performed at the Comédie-Française, and only high society attends there. Such a piece..."
Lionel said indifferently:
"Music should serve the characters—besides, the people in high society are the most depraved!"
Debussy was startled and asked no more questions.
He quickly pulled out his music notebook and rapidly jotted down the melody he had just improvised, marking the rhythm and the corresponding lyrics.
Lionel was in a cheerful mood:
"We've had a very smooth start, Achille. It seems partnering with you was absolutely the right decision.
Alright, now that the opening tune is settled, you can familiarize yourself with this melody, or think about the subsequent music.
Especially that 'choral piece' central to the theme. I need to continue writing the next part."
Lionel turned and walked into his study, closing the door.
The living room instantly fell silent, leaving only Debussy alone.
He once again surveyed the spacious, bright, and comfortable living room, his gaze finally settling on the beautiful piano.
A tremendous sense of happiness enveloped him.
This place, compared to the crowded, always-contested practice rooms at the Paris Conservatoire, was simply paradise!
He first played "Sister Manon's Cat" a few more times, ensuring the melody was ingrained in his memory, and made some subtle adjustments and embellishments to the score to make it more suitable for stage performance.
After completing this task, he put down his pen and began to ponder the "choral piece" Lionel had mentioned earlier.
That would be a melody that would run through the entire play, representing hope and salvation, the musical core that Teacher Mathieu would use to unite the children and ignite the light in their hearts.
This required a completely different emotion and style—pure, beautiful, full of power, and heartwarming.
He tried playing a few scattered chords and melodic fragments on the piano, searching for that feeling.
Sometimes gentle, sometimes slightly melancholic, sometimes rousing.
He was immersed in musical conception, his fingers unconsciously flowing over the keys with unformed musical ideas...
————
In his study, Lionel had just finished writing another segment requiring musical accompaniment.
Emerging from the immersion of his writing, he suddenly heard a series of intermittent piano notes.
It clearly wasn't Debussy playing; it sounded more like a beginner.
Lionel gently opened the study door a crack and looked out—
He saw Debussy standing by the piano, while Petty sat in front of it, fingers still on the keys, clumsily playing an out-of-tune piece according to Debussy's guidance.
Sunlight streamed onto Petty's face, as if an angel were playing music.
Seeing this, Lionel smiled slightly, did not disturb them, closed the door again, and continued writing.
(End of Chapter)
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