''Reflets dans l'eau
opens in a slow tempo (andantino molto'') (which is repeated through much of the piece) while the right hand is playing a set of chords to
accompany the melody. The piece has several brief melody statements and climaxes that are more glimpses of music than full ideas, which is typical of Debussy's middle and late piano works. Writing "images", Debussy was purposely intending not to create linear musical progression, but a sonic representation of water. ''Reflets dans l'eau'' is also an example of the new tone colors Debussy discovered for the piano in this part of his life, and although he later refined this style, it is representative of a major breakthrough in piano writing. The
golden ratio is apparent in the organization of the sections in the music as "the sequence of keys is marked out by the intervals and and the main climax sits at the phi position". The musicologist
Roy Howat has observed that the formal boundaries correspond exactly to the golden section. Trezise finds the intrinsic evidence "remarkable", but cautions that no written or reported evidence suggests that Debussy consciously sought such proportions. ==Notes==