43 - DEBUSSY, Claude (1862–1918).

DEBUSSY, Claude (1862–1918). Autograph letter, Villa Medici, September 16, [1885], to Henri VASNIER; 4 pages, in-8, in his small handwriting. A lovely letter describing his boredom during his stay in Rome at the Villa Medici. Note: [Debussy writes to the husband of his mistress, Marie Vasnier, who had encouraged him to go to the Villa Medici after he won the Prix de Rome in June 1884.] Life in Rome continues to weigh heavily on him, despite the beauty that surrounds him: “I must admit that I lack the necessary intellectual qualities to make a living from it [...] my work suffers greatly as a result, with each day plunging me into deeper mediocrity; I can no longer find anything good in it—you must admit that this gives me the right to reflect on the future. [...] that semblance of joy provided by easier work—it didn’t take me long to see through its falseness and futility. So I am beginning to feel that this one-year experiment is enough to prove that I will never amount to anything here; it has been a complete waste of time for me and has only set me back. I sincerely believe that forcing me to start over a second time would be doing me a disservice; it would only serve to hold me back even further and completely strip me of the ease with which I used to work. [...] Therefore, my intention is to resign at the end of the year [...] I am no longer speaking for myself, but for my future"...