Claude Debussy
Founder of musical Impressionism
Most quoted
"I am trying to achieve something new – realities, as it were, what imbeciles call 'impressionism,' a term which is as ill-applied as possible, particularly by art critics who do not hesitate to apply it to Turner, the finest creator of mysterious effects in the whole world of art."
— from Letter to Jacques Durand, 1908
"The sound of the sea, the curve of the horizon, the wind in the leaves, the cry of a bird, these stir within us a multitude of impressions. And suddenly, without any previous agreement, one of these memories rises to the surface and expresses itself in the language of music."
— from Various interviews and letters
"The sound of the sea, the curve of a horizon, wind in leaves, the cry of a bird leave manifold impressions in us. And suddenly, without our wishing it at all, one of these memories spills from us and finds expression in musical language."
— from 'Monsieur Croche the Dilettante Hater', 1913
All quotes by Claude Debussy (297)
The public is never wrong, but it is often badly informed.
I have no desire to follow in the footsteps of others. I want to create my own path.
The greatest music is always the simplest.
Music is the expression of the movement of the waters, the play of curves described by the changing breezes.
I would like to write music that is as natural as a breath.
The true artist is one who is always seeking, never arriving.
I am trying to forget that I am a musician, so that I may hear music with a fresh ear.
Music is a dream from which the veils have been lifted.
The first duty of a work of art is to be beautiful.
I have always believed that music should be a discreet art, an art of suggestion, not of affirmation.
Music is the expression of the movement of the waters, the play of curves described by changing breezes.
People who make a fuss about the sea being too blue or too green haven't seen the sea.
The colour of my soul is iron-grey and sad bats wheel about the steeple of my dreams.
I want to compose music that is beautiful and simple, like a clear sky.
Chopin is my ideal; he is my father in music.
Music should be a source of joy and not a battlefield.
The study of the sea is so vast that it will never be exhausted.
I love music passionately, and my only regret is that I cannot hear all the music that exists.
Wagner's music is better than it sounds.
The sound of the sea is the most beautiful music.
Contemporaries of Claude Debussy
Other Musics born within 50 years of Claude Debussy (1862–1918).