Question

The music features woodwinds primarily. The music seems to flow with no strict rhythm or meter, and the music has an eerie and suspensful theme. The instruments play very short phrases, sometimes sustaining in specific notes, and imitates the sounds of a forest at night. There is no evidently audible harmony applied.

what time period might this have been created in?

Answer 1

Short answer: most likely late‑19th to mid‑20th century — either Impressionist (c. 1890–1920) or early/mid‑20th‑century modernism (c. 1900–1970).

Why:
- Free, flowing rhythm with no strict meter and emphasis on timbre rather than pulse is a hallmark of Impressionism (Debussy, Ravel) and later modern composers who explored non‑metric textures.
- Use of woodwind color, short/pointillistic phrases and nature‑imitating motifs points toward either Impressionist orchestral tone‑painting or 20th‑century techniques (pointillism/aleatoric writing and bird‑imitation).
- The near absence of obvious functional harmony fits Impressionist modal/planing textures or certain modernist works (Messiaen’s modal/melodic approach, Webern’s pointillist textures).

Listening suggestions to compare:
- Claude Debussy — Prélude à l’après‑midi d’un faune (dreamy, flute‑led, free‑flowing)
- Maurice Ravel — Daphnis et Chloé (orchestral nature textures)
- Olivier Messiaen — Oiseaux exotiques or other bird works (woodwind bird imitations, non‑functional harmony)
- Anton Webern — short, pointillistic movements (if the piece sounded very sparse and atomized)

If you can say where you heard it (film, concert, radio) or upload/describe a short clip (melody fragments, specific instruments), I can narrow it down further.