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Un Essentiel amazon.fr:
"Comment oublier la souplesse, la caresse, la profondeur de son toucher ! En même temps qu'il glissait avec une douceur si pénétrante sur son clavier, il le serrait et en obtenait des accents d'une extraordinaire puissance expressive... Il jouait presque toujours en demi-teintes, mais avec une sonorité pleine et intense, sans aucune dureté dans l'attaque, comme Chopin", rapportait Marguerite Long à propos de Claude Debussy, auprès duquel elle travailla de 1914 à 1917. Trop souvent qualifié d'"impressionniste", Debussy ne doit pas être réduit aux sujets de prédilection de son inspiration - les soleils couchants, la mer, les odeurs campagnardes, la nuit, les rêves... - mais plutôt compris par sa manière de les rendre expressifs. Le génial Benedetti-Michelangeli est l'un des plus grands interprètes de Debussy. Un disque absolument indispensable, à compléter par les Préludes. --Pierre Massé

The Debussy's nature:
This album is marvellous. Michelangeli plays in this CD thefinest Debussy you can find in the world. The album's commentaries arefantastic and they introduce you in the CD, into Debussy's world. But the sound can improve a lot.

One of the Top 10 Debussy Keyboard Albums of All Time:
...which is quite a mouthful considering that it was released in 1971, long after the "Golden Era" of virtuoso pianism had ended. But with the so-called "mad genius of the keyboard" known as A.B. Michelangeli (1920 - 1995) at the helm, it became a huge winner both for Debussy and Deutsche Grammophon, as well as for the world of recorded music at large. As a matter of fact, this was one of the most swiftly and unanimously praised albums to come out of "The Little Yellow Flower" label's catalog. Indeed, Michelangeli's Debussy garnered such instant recognition that even the earliest pressings left the factory having their jackets already affixed with numerous gold stickers trumpeting the disc's critical prize-winnings. Among these were the Edison Prize (United States), the Prix du Disq (France) and the Deutscher Schall Platten Preis (Germany). Despite Michelangeli's justifiably deserved reputation for delivering the goods in performances of Ravel and Rachmaninov's piano concertos, his Scarlatti and Brahms, and occasional flashes of brilliance with the standard lineup of titanic composers, this Debussy solo piano album is possibly the most repeatedly enjoyable offering from his rather small recorded legacy. Michelangeli comes as close to "owning" these pieces as have any of the legends more celebrated or strongly linked to the interpretation of the French repertoire, foremost being Gieseking, Casadesus and Moravec. Yes, it's almost regrettable to say it, but this album is likely to move into the front-runner position in your collection, even if you've gotten used to some old tried-and-true favorites. It is a fairly indisputable fact that nobody has ever played nor ever again will play Debussy like Walter Gieseking did in the 1930s; but distant, scratchy monaural sound does not constitute a benchmark for most modern ears. This album does. Which brings us to the sound. The stereo taping was a well-engineered room-filler with just the right touch of reverberation. No single channel is overbearing in tone or timbre, and harshness, even in the more volatile passages of the second Images book, is a non-existent detriment. Mind you, this album never exactly had the presence of an RCA shaded dog, but the quality is more than adequate. As for the transfer, this was an early vinyl-to-CD jump dating all the way back to 1987. (It is also the only Michelangeli on DG which remains in print, attesting to its popularity lo, these many years.) Consequently, you will find that it neither deviates from the original analog tapes, nor does it quite come up to the vinyl pressing's standard. In other words, it's like 99% of the compact disc re-issues out there; not great but pretty darned acceptable. Luckily, it's hard to foul up solo piano recordings, as there isn't much to lose in the transfer. Not to mention that DG's vinyl pressings of the 1970s were pretty flimsy affairs, and hardly audiophile candidates. A decent CD player is going to bring this classic through A-okay. At any rate, you'll be too entranced to notice anything else but keyboard artistry at an exceeding standard. Add this one to the top of the pile, and never regret it; here is one of Claude Debussy's shining hours. There can be no mystery as to how the album remains a slice of perfection to this day when you consider the reclusive, inscrutable pianist's own words from the original LP liner notes: "Asked when it was that the tonal world of Debussy's had disclosed itself to Benedetti Michelangeli, he answered without the slightest hesitation: 'It has always been my world; this music has always been my music from the very start.' "

One Of The All Time Great Recordings:
This album, originally released about 1973, is one of the most beautiful I have ever heard. Twenty five years later I still cannot believe that one man with ten fingers could produce the sounds Michelangeli coaxes and caresses from the keyboard. The blending of techinique and emotion is so balanced and seamless it's as if he becomes one with the piano and the music. "Reflections in the Water" and "Poissons D'Or" shimmer and the climax in "Movement" will raise the hair on the back of your neck. "Homage a Rameau" is stunning as Michelangeli builds and layers sonorities. "Children's Corner" is given a warm and lovely interpretation, with "The Snow Is Dancing" a particular highlight. Whenever I hear it I am all of a sudden catching snowflakes on my tongue in a perfect winter wonderland. The recording is flawless and the transfer to CD retains all the warmth and excitement of the original.

DEBUSSY AT HIS BEST:
Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli, es sin lugar a dudas el mejor interprete que ha tenido la música de Debussy, en su repertorio pianístico, en los últimos 50 años. Y es precisamente este disco el mejor testimonio de ello. La lectura que hace Michelangeli, es expresiva y sensual, llevándonos al fantástico mundo de impresionismo de Debussy, muchas veces imitado, nunca igualado.

• Images I: I. Reflets dans l'Eau. Andantino molto
• Images I: II. Hommage a Rameau. Lent et grave
• Images I: III. Mouvement. Anime
• Images II: I. Cloches a travers les Feuilles. Lent
• Images II: II. Et la Lune Descend sur le Temple qui Fut. Lent
• Images II: III. Poissons d'Or. Anime
• Children's Corner: I. Doctor Gradus ad Parnassum. Moderement anime
• Children's Corner: II. Jimbo's Lullaby. Assez modere
• Children's Corner: III. Serenade For The Doll. Allegretto ma non troppo
• Children's Corner: IV. The Snow Is Dancing. Moderement anime
• Children's Corner: V. The Little Shepherd. Tres modere
• Children's Corner: VI. Golliwogg's Cake-walk. Allegro giusto