DEBUSSY, CLAUDE

born Aug. 22, 1862, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France died March 25, 1918, Paris in full Achille-claude Debussy French composer whose works have been a seminal force in the music of the 20th century. He developed a highly original system of harmony and musical structure that expressed in many respects the ideals to which the Impressionist and Symbolist painters and writers of his time aspired. His major works include Clair de lune (Moonlight, in Suite bergamasque, 18901905), Prlude l'aprs-midi d'un faune (1894; Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun), the opera Pellas et Mlisande (1902), and La Mer (1905; The Sea). Additional reading Edward Lockspeiser, Debussy: His Life and Mind, 2 vol. (196265, reprinted 1978), a biographical, aesthetic, and psychological investigation, contains details of the 10 publications of Debussy's correspondence and a discussion of Debussy's critical articles and librettos. Lon Vallas, Claude Debussy: His Life and Works (1933, reprinted 1973), is the first and most reliable of the early source books on Debussy.