Debussy
French musical impressionist
Claude Debussy was a French composer (1862–1918) whose work marked a departure from Romantic tradition and helped establish musical impressionism.
His compositions—Clair de Lune, La Mer, Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune—emphasize atmosphere, color, and suggestion over dramatic structure.
Debussy's influence on twentieth-century music was profound, opening paths toward atonality and new approaches to harmony.
- ChopinPolish Romantic pianist-composer
- LisztHungarian Romantic-era pianist-composer
- orchestrationScoring for instrumental ensemble
- pianoKeyed percussion instrument
Stravinsky · score · melody · harmony · sonata · prelude · étude · conductor
French Impressionist surname
- symbolismRepresenting concepts through images
- atmosphereGaseous layer around planets
- nuanceSlight shade of difference
- colorVisual hue property
light · evocation · suggestion · texture · fluidity · dreamlike · ethereal · shimmering
France's chief city
- SeineMajor French waterway
- MontmartreHilltop artists' district in Paris
- chansonFrench vocal composition
- salonGrooming establishment or gathering
Use of non-scale tones
- pentatonicScale of five tones
- modalityParticular form or type
- atonalityAbsence of key signature
- dissonanceLack of harmony
unresolved · unconventional · experimental · gamelan · non-Western · revolutionary · modernist
Ravel
- ChopinPolish Romantic pianist-composer
- LisztHungarian Romantic-era pianist-composer
- orchestrationScoring for instrumental ensemble
Stravinsky · piano · score · melody · harmony · sonata · prelude · étude · conductor · conservatoire
Monet
French Impressionist surname
- symbolismRepresenting concepts through images
- atmosphereGaseous layer around planets
- nuanceSlight shade of difference
color · light · evocation · suggestion · texture · fluidity · dreamlike · ethereal · shimmering · hazy
Paris
France's chief city
- SeineMajor French waterway
- MontmartreHilltop artists' district in Paris
- chansonFrench vocal composition
salon · francophone · Parisian · bohemian
chromaticism
Use of non-scale tones
- pentatonicScale of five tones
- modalityParticular form or type
- atonalityAbsence of key signature
dissonance · unresolved · unconventional · experimental · gamelan · non-Western · revolutionary · modernist
DebussyWagner
German Romantic opera composer
Brahms · Bruckner · John Philip Sousa · military march · Beethoven