Au clair de la lune Au clair de la lune "" (, lit. "By the Light of the Moon") is a French folk song of the 18th century. Its composer and lyricist are unknown. Its simple melody () is commonly taught to beginners learning an instrument. Some sources report that "plume" (pen) was originally "lume" (an old word for "light" or "lamp"). 19th-century French composer Camille Saint-Saëns quoted the first few notes of the tune in the section "The Fossils", part of his suite "The Carnival of the Animals". Claude Debussy, composer of the similarly named "Clair de lune" from his "Suite bergamasque", uses "Au
Suite bergamasque Throughout most of its duration, the piece is played with staccato arpeggios in the left hand. The "Suite bergamasque" has been orchestrated by many conductors, including André Caplet, Leopold Stokowski, and Lucien Cailliet. "Clair de lune" in particular has been arranged for a wide variety of instrumental combinations. One such is Dimitri Tiomkin's arrangement for organ in the score for the 1956 film "Giant". "Clair de lune" was originally set to be included as a fully orchestrated piece in Walt Disney's "Fantasia", but was not included in the final cut of the film due to running time issues, with the