Japonisme and its curious relationship with classical music

First, let us take a look at Japonisme.
Japonisme refers to the wave of enthusiasm for Japanese culture that spread across the West in the late 19th century, as well as the artistic movement that incorporated techniques and ideas from Japanese art.
Its origins can be traced back to 1854, when Japan—previously under a policy of national isolation—opened its doors following the signing of the Convention of Kanagawa. As trade and travel with foreign countries were permitted by the shogunate, a large number of Japanese artworks and crafts began to flow into Europe.
Among these, it was ukiyo-e that played a particularly significant role in accelerating the spread of Japonisme.
The bold compositions and vivid colors of artists such as Katsushika Hokusai and Utagawa Hiroshige provided powerful inspiration to many Western painters of the time, including Vincent van Gogh and Claude Monet.

Japonisme influenced not only the visual arts and crafts, but also music.
Here, we introduce three representative works.

Claude Achille Debussy (1862–1918) was a French composer.

Debussy is said to have had close relationships with many poets and painters, and reportedly remarked that he loved painting as much as music.

He showed a particular fascination with Japanese art. On the mantelpiece of his salon stood a Buddhist statue, while around his desk were bamboo writing tools, a Nabeshima-style ink bottle, and a tobacco pouch decorated with carp motifs. In his study, he displayed The Great Wave off Kanagawa from Katsushika Hokusai’s Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji.

The symphonic poem La Mer was inspired by this very work, The Great Wave off Kanagawa. As a piece of program music that depicts scenes of the sea, it is notable that on the cover of the score, the right half—where Mount Fuji appears—is deliberately cropped, suggesting that the composition focuses on the dynamic movement of the waves.

Debussy once said, “Music is time colored with rhythm.” True to his words, La Mer vividly expresses the undulating sea through rich tonal colors and distinctive rhythms.

Watch the performance here

Maurice Ravel (1875–1937) was, like Debussy, a French composer.

He too had a deep interest in Japanese art, even displaying ukiyo-e prints in his home.

“Une barque sur l’océan,” the third piece from the piano suite Miroirs, was inspired—like Debussy’s La Mer—by Hokusai’s The Great Wave off Kanagawa from Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji.

However, Ravel approached the subject from a different perspective than Debussy. Rather than focusing on the vast sea or Mount Fuji, Ravel turns his attention to three small boats tossed about by the waves.

The undulating motion of the sea is expressed through arpeggios in the left hand, and from within those surging waves, the boats seem to appear and disappear. The music vividly captures their helpless drifting—swaying back and forth, at the mercy of the sea.

Watch the performance here

Giacomo Puccini (1858–1924) was an Italian composer. His opera Madama Butterfly, set in Nagasaki, depicts a tragic love story between Cio-Cio-San, the daughter of a fallen samurai family, and Pinkerton, an officer in the United States Navy.
Three years have passed since Pinkerton returned to America. Cio-Cio-San continues to wait for his return with their child and her maid, Suzuki. In “Un bel dì, vedremo,” she sings with heartfelt conviction to reassure Suzuki—who believes Pinkerton will never return—that he surely will. It is a deeply emotional and sorrowful aria.
In this opera, not only the subject matter but also musical elements reflect Japan. Traditional Japanese melodies and scales, such as “Sakura Sakura” and “Edo Nihonbashi,” are actively incorporated. These elements are skillfully blended with the long, lyrical lines and rich harmonies characteristic of Italian opera.

Watch the performance here

Music is often described as the art of “time,” because it exists only along the irreversible flow of time.

In contrast, painting is considered the art of “space,” with its essence rooted in permanence. Since a painting does not change in its existence, it does not consume time in the same way.

Debussy and Ravel may have sought to translate the sense of “time” embedded within the spatial world of Japanese art into music. It is fascinating to see how different forms of art, each with their own dimensions, influence one another to create new expressions.

Understanding the context in which these works were composed allows us to appreciate music on a deeper level.

We invite you to take the time to listen carefully and immerse yourself in these works.

 Reference: Classical works influenced by Japonisme, including Debussy and Hokusai’s “La Mer”
 Reference: What is Japonisme? Its origins, influence, and artists explained
 Reference: Innovative and unconventional? The art collection behind Debussy’s works