Musique, ma patrie ! #42では、ドビュッシー（Claude Debussy）の《反復音のための練習曲（Etude pour les notes répétées）》（＊１）が紹介される。同じ鍵を繰り返し押すという行為自体は特別な技術ではないが、音楽において反復音は、既存の旋律に新たな性格を与えるだけでなく、旋律そのものを生み出す契機となる。反復される音は、互いに溶け合いながら脈動する連続体として聴かれるようになる。この現象は、印象派や点描主義に見られる視覚的感覚とも響き合う。ここで示されるのは、「同じ動作の反復」が単なる機械的行為にとどまらず、新たな音響的連続性を生み出すという事実である。そしてこの作品は、その単純な条件に対する作曲的応答として成立している。ここでは音楽は、反復によって点から連続へと変容する知覚の運動として提示される。
①hello ladies and gentlemen. as I have said, what I like to see in the kind of music called studies or etudes, 〔as I have said：「これまで言ったように」〕 〔what I like to see ~「私が見たいものは〜」〕②is that a composer is inspired by something which is suggested to him by the instrument. 〔is that ~：補語節〕 〔be inspired by ~「〜から着想を得る」〕 〔which is suggested ~：受動 〕③how can an instrument suggest something to a composer? ④well, it can be a mechanical trick that makes an interesting effect,〔it can be ~「それは〜でありうる」〕〔that makes ~：関係代名詞〕⑤and it can be the suggestion of musically elaborating something which is particularly easy or particularly hard to do on that instrument. 〔elaborate ~「発展させる」〕〔easy / hard to do：「〜しやすい／しにくい」〕⑥an obvious example is repeated notes. now, pressing one button over and over again is not an exotic skill, 〔obvious example「明白な例」〕〔over and over again「何度も」〕 〔not an exotic skill「珍しい技能ではない」〕⑦at least ever since video games are part of our culture. 〔ever since ~「〜以来ずっと」〕⑧but in music repeated notes can do unexpected things. let's take this cute little chicken tune. 〔unexpected「予想外の」〕〔let's ~：提案〕⑨without the repeated notes we would have which says absolutely nothing. 〔without ~「〜がなければ」〕〔would have ~：仮定〕 〔which says nothing「何も語らない」〕⑩so repeated notes not only give an existing tune a different character, but they can make a tune. 〔not only A but also B 構文（前半）〕〔make a tune「旋律を成立させる」〕⑪now, repeated notes on the piano can also do a rather beautiful and unexpected thing 〔rather「かなり」〕⑫and that is: they can blend into each other ⑬so that we no longer see repeated notes as, let's say, pixels, but as a continuity which is pulsating. 〔so that ~「その結果〜」〕〔no longer「もはや〜ない」〕〔continuity「連続性」〕〔pulsating「脈打つ」〕⑭this is of course something which the impressionists, the pointillists and the colourists relished. 〔relish「好む／味わう」〕⑮here I would like to show you a film from a concert I gave a couple of years ago in lucerne, 〔I would like to ~：丁寧〕〔a couple of years ago「数年前」〕⑯in their festival dedicated to the anniversary year of Claude Debussy, 〔dedicated to ~「〜に捧げられた」〕⑰with this nice compositional response of his to the fact of pushing a button over and over again〔response to ~「〜への応答」〕 〔pushing a button「鍵を押すこと」〕 出典元（音声）Debussy : Etude pour les notes répétées | Musique, ma patrie !
