Debussy

American  

[deb-yoo-see, dey-byoo-, duh-byoo-see, duh-by-see] / ˌdɛb yʊˈsi, ˌdeɪ byʊ-, dəˈbyu si, də büˈsi /

noun

1. Claude Achille 1862–1918, French composer.

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Debussy British  

/ ˈdeɪbjuːsɪ, dəˈbjuːsɪ, dəbysi /

noun

1. ( Achille ) Claude (klod). 1862–1918, French composer and critic, the creator of impressionism in music and a profound influence on contemporary composition. His works include Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune (1894) and La Mer (1905) for orchestra, the opera Pelléas et Mélisande (1902), and many piano pieces and song settings

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Other Word Forms

• Debussyan
  adjective

Example Sentences

Titled My Life In Music, it included touching performances of pieces by Rachmaninoff, Bach and Debussy - approached with a sense of tender nostalgia, as she reflected on her career.

From BBC • Apr. 23, 2026

The French have given us Delacroix, Debussy, Claire Denis and Simone de Beauvoir, along with some of the goofiest of goofball comedies.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 21, 2026

Puccini died in 1924 before finishing “Turandot,” which represented a new direction for the composer, away from melodrama and, instead, embraced a new air in music, be it from Mahler, Debussy, Schoenberg or Stravinsky.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 6, 2024

“I’m connected with Debussy because he corresponds to my deepest sensibility.”

From New York Times • Dec. 7, 2023

The other great composers of Western music lived during other periods: Bach and Handel were Baroque era composers, for example; Brahms and Wagner, Romantic53 ; and Ravel and Debussy, Impressionist.

From "Understanding Basic Music Theory" by Catherine Schmidt-Jones and Russel Jones