Impressionism

Critical term describing modern French and French-influenced compositions of the early 20th century.

By analogy to the late 19th-century artistic movement, subtle impressions rather than emphatic descriptions are conveyed through the use of MODAL and nondiatonic HARMONIES in free MODULATION and colorful INSTRUMENTATION. CLAUDE DEBUSSY, considered the first impressionist, disliked the term and considered his music closer in spirit to the symbolist literary movement. Perhaps the music of this period synthesizes these two elements.

See also EXPRESSIONISM.