Claude Debussy was born into a family without much money or cultural background. Despite this, he showed musical skill early on and was accepted at age ten to the Conservatoire de Paris, the top music school in France. He began with piano but found his true calling in composing new kinds of music, even though his teachers at the Conservatoire preferred more traditional styles. It took him many years to develop his unique voice, and he only became internationally famous around 1902 when he was nearly 40, with his only finished opera, Pelléas et Mélisande. Debussy created many important orchestral works like Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune, Nocturnes, and Images. His music was largely a response against the German styles of Wagner and others. He thought the classical symphony was outdated, so he composed alternative pieces like La mer, which he called "symphonic sketches." He wrote piano music including two sets of Préludes and Études. His songs, called mélodies, set different kinds of poetry to music, sometimes using his own words, and were influenced by the Symbolist poets of the late 19th century. Some of his works also include parts for choir, such as LaDamoiselleélue.Towardtheendofhislife,hefocusedonchambermusic,writingsonatasformedifferentinstruments. Debussy's style was shaped by early influences from Russian and East Asian music. He created his own approach to harmony and orchestral sound, though many musical leaders at the time criticized or did not accept his ideas. Despite this, his music greatly influenced many later composers, including Béla Bartók, Olivier Messiaen, George Benjamin, and jazz pianist and composer Bill Evans. Debussy's life ended early because of cancer. He died at his Paris home at age 55, after a creative career lasting just over 30 years.