Melody in Impressionism

Whereas melody was in a leading role in Romantic music, here it became passive. It floats over the music but rarely governs the harmony or rhythm. Instead of melody, the principal element in Impressionist music stems from brief motifs. There are no principal or secondary subjects, and the melodies rarely involve large leaps. The 7th degree of the scale, or the leading tone, is used only rarely because by its nature it creates a tension requiring a particular resolution.