FRANZ SCHUBERT

QUICK FACTS

NAME

Franz Schubert

OCCUPATION
Composer

BIRTH DATE
January 31, 1797

DEATH DATE
November 19, 1828

EDUCATION
Stadtkonvikt

PLACE OF BIRTH
Himmelpfortgrund, Austria

PLACE OF DEATH
Vienna, Austria

AKA
Franz Schubert

FULL NAME
Franz Peter Schubert

SYNOPSIS
Born on January 31, 1797, in Himmelpfortgrund, Austria, Franz Peter Schubert, the son of a schoolmaster,
received a thorough musical education and won a scholarship to boarding school. Although he was never rich,
the composer's work gained recognition and popularity, noted for bridging classical and romantic composition.
He died in 1828 in Vienna, Austria.

EARLY LIFE
Born on January 31, 1797, in Himmelpfortgrund, Austria, Franz Peter Schubert demonstrated an early gift for
music. As a child, his talents included an ability to play the piano, violin and organ. He was also an excellent
singer.

Franz was the fourth surviving son of Franz Theodor Schubert, a schoolmaster, and his wife, Elisabeth, a
homemaker. His family cultivated Schubert's love of music. His father and older brother, Ignaz, both instructed
Schubert early in his musical life.

Eventually, Schubert enrolled at the Stadtkonvikt, which trained young vocalists so they could one day sing at
the chapel of the Imperial Court, and in 1808 he earned a scholarship that awarded him a spot in the court's
chapel choir. His educators at the Stadtkonvikt included Wenzel Ruzicka, the imperial court organist, and,
later, the esteemed composer Antonio Salieri, who lauded Schubert as a musical genius. Schubert played the
violin in the students' orchestra, was quickly promoted to leader, and conducted in Ruzicka's absence. He also
attended choir practice and, with his fellow pupils, practiced chamber music and piano playing.
In 1812, however, Schubert's voice broke, forcing him to leave the college, though he did continue his
instruction with Antonio Salieri for three more years. In 1814, under pressure from his family, Schubert
enrolled at a teacher's training college in Vienna and took a job as an assistant at his father's school.

YOUNG COMPOSER
Schubert worked as a schoolmaster for the next four years. But he also continued to compose music. In fact,
between 1813 and 1815, Schubert proved to be a prolific songwriter. By 1814, the young composer had
written a number of piano pieces, and had produced string quartets, a symphony, and a three-act opera.

Over the next year, his output included two additional symphonies and two of his first Lieds, "Gretchen am
Spinnrade" and "Erlkönig." Schubert is, in fact, largely credited with creating the German Lied. Boosted by a
wealth of late 18th-century lyric poetry and the development of the piano, Schubert tapped the poetry of
giants like Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, showing the world the possibility of representing their works in
musical form.

In 1818, Schubert, who had not only found a welcome audience for his music but had grown tired of teaching,
left education to pursue music full-time. His decision was sparked in part by the first public performance of
one of his works, the "Italian Overture in C Major," on March 1, 1818, in Vienna.

The decision to leave school teaching seems to have ushered in a new wave of creativity in the young
composer. That summer he completed a string of material, including piano duets "Variations on a French Song
in E minor" and the "Sonata in B Flat Major," as well as several dances and songs.

That same year, Schubert returned to Vienna and composed the operetta "Die Zwillingsbrüder (The Twin
Brothers), which was performed in June 1820 and met with some success. Schubert's musical output also
included the score for the play "Die Zauberharfe" (The Magic Harp), which debuted in August 1820.

The resulting performances, as well as Schubert's other pieces, greatly expanded his popularity and appeal. He
also showed himself to be a visionary. His composition "Quartettsatz [Quartet-Movement] in C minor," helped
spark a wave of string quartets that would dominate the music scene later in the decade.

But Schubert had his struggles as well. In 1820, he was hired by two opera houses, the Karthnerthof Theatre
and Theatre-an-der-Wein, to compose a pair of operas, neither of which fared very well. Music publishers,
meanwhile, were afraid to take a chance on a young composer like Schubert, whose music was not considered
traditional.

MATURITY
His fortunes began to change in 1821, when, with the help of some friends, he began offering his songs on a
subscription basis. Money started coming his way. In Vienna especially, Schubert's harmonious songs and
dances were popular. Across the city, concert parties called Schubertiaden sprung up in the homes of wealthy
residents.

By late 1822, however, Schubert encountered another difficult period. His financial needs going unmet, and
his friendships increasingly strained, Schubert's life was further darkened when he became severely sick—
historians believe he almost certainly contracted syphilis.
And yet, Schubert continued to produce at a prolific rate. His output during this time included the renowned
"Wanderer Fantasy" for piano, his masterful, two-movement "Eighth Symphony," the "Die Schöne Müllerin"
song cycle, "Die Verschworenen" and the opera "Fierrabras."

None of the finished pieces, however, brought him the fortune he deserved or so greatly needed. Battling
health problems, Schubert again turned to music for escape. In 1824, he turned out three chamber works, the
"String Quartet in A Minor," a second string quartet in D minor and "Octet in F Major."

For a time, Schubert, almost constantly penniless, returned to teaching. He also continued to write, producing
piano duets such as "Piano Sonata in C Major" (Grand Duo), and the "Divertissmement à la Hongroise."

LATER YEARS
In 1826, Schubert applied for the job of deputy musical director at the Stadtkonvikt. While certainly a top
candidate, he failed to land the job. Still, his fortunes during this period began to improve. His impressive
musical output continued, and his popularity in Vienna increased. He was even in negotiations with four
different publishers.

His work during this time included the "String Quartet in G Major" and the "Piano Sonata in G Major." In 1827,
no doubt influenced by the passing of Ludwig van Beethoven and his impressive musical legacy, Schubert
channeled a bit of the late composer and created a string of pieces. This work included the first 12 songs of
the "Winterreise," as well as the "Piano Sonata in C Minor" and two piano solos, "Impromptus" and "Moments
Musicaux."

In 1828, the last year of his life, Schubert, though obviously ill, stayed committed to his craft. It was during this
time that he produced what is quite possibly his greatest piano duet, "Fantasy in F Minor." His other work
from this time included the "Great Symphony," the cantata "Mirjam's Siegesgesang," and his last three piano
sonatas, in C Minor, A Major, and B-flat Major. In addition, Schubert finished "String Quintet in C Major,"
considered by musical historians to be the classical era's final piece.

Oddly enough, Schubert's first and final public concert took place on March 26, 1828, and it proved successful
enough that it allowed the great composer to finally buy himself a piano. Exhausted, and with his health
continuing to deteriorate, Schubert moved in with his brother, Ferdinand. He died on November 19, 1828, in
Vienna, Austria.

IMPACT
It was only after Schubert's passing that his musical genius received the kind of recognition it deserved. His
talent lay in is ability to adapt to almost any kind of musical form. His vocal contributions, more than 500 in all,
were written for male and female voices, as well as mixed voices.

Like the poets whose work he wrote his music around, Schubert was an unrivaled master of lyrical beauty. It is
no secret that Schubert adored Beethoven—he was awed by him, to the point that he was too timid to even
introduce himself to the musical giant when the two passed one another on the streets of Vienna. But it is far
from a stretch to mention these two musical giants in the same sentence. Schubert produced masterful works
with rich harmonies and legendary melodies for a variety of genres, and his influence proved considerable
with later composers like Robert Schumann, Johannes Brahms and Hugo Wolf. And for some musical
historians, his much praised "Ninth Symphony" opened the way for other greats like Anton Bruckner and
Gustav Mahler.
In 1872, a memorial to Schubert was constructed in the Stadtpark in Vienna. In 1888, his grave, along with
Beethoven's, was relocated to Zentralfriedhof, the Viennese cemetery that is among the largest in the world.
There, Schubert was placed alongside fellow musical giants Johann Strauss II and Johannes Brahms.
 GIUSEPPE VERDI
QUICK FACTS
NAME
Giuseppe Verdi
OCCUPATION
Composer
BIRTH DATE
c. October 9, 1813
DEATH DATE
January 27, 1901
PLACE OF BIRTH
Le Roncole, Parma, Italy
PLACE OF DEATH
Milan, Italy
AKA
Giuseppe Verdi
FULL NAME
Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi

SYNOPSIS
Giuseppe Verdi was born in Italy in 1813, prior to Italian unification. Verdi produced many successful operas,
including La Traviata, Falstaff and Aida, and became known for his skill in creating melody and his profound
use of theatrical effect. Additionally, his rejection of the traditional Italian opera for integrated scenes and
unified acts earned him fame. Verdi died on January 27, 1901, in Milan, Italy.

EARLY LIFE
Famed composer Giuseppe Verdi was born Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi on October 9 or 10, 1813, in
the community of Le Roncole, near Busseto in the province of Parma, Italy. His mother, Luigia Uttini, worked
as a spinner, and his father, Carlo Giuseppe Verdi, made a living as a local inkeeper.

Verdi first developed musical talents at a young age, after moving with his family from Le Roncole to the
neighboring town of Busseto. There, he began studying musical composition. In 1832, Verdi applied for
admission at the Milan Conservatory, but was rejected due to his age. Subsequently, he began studying under
Vincenzo Lavigna, a famous composer from Milan.

'Oberto' and Family Tragedy

Verdi got his start in Italy's music industry in 1833, when he was hired as a conductor at the Philharmonic
Society in Busseto. In addition to composing, he made a living as an organist around this time. Three years
later, in 1836, Verdi wed Margherita Barezzi, the daughter of a friend, Antonio Barezzi.

In 1838, at age 25, Verdi returned to Milan, where he completed his first opera, Oberto, in 1839, with the help
of fellow musician Giulio Ricordi; the opera's debut production was held at La Scala, an opera house in Milan.
While working on Oberto, the composer suffered what would be the first of many personal tragedies: His and
Margherita's first child, daughter Virginia Maria Luigia Verdi (born in March 1837), died in infancy on August
12, 1838; just one year later, in October 1839, the couple's second child, son Verdi Icilio Romano Verdi (born in
July 1838), died, also as an infant.
Verdi followed Oberto with the comic opera Un giorno di regno, which premiered in Milan in September 1840,
at Teatro alla Scala. Unlike Oberto, Verdi's second opera was not well-received by audiences or critics. Making
the experience worse for the young musician, Un giorno di regno's debut was painfully overshadowed by the
death of his wife, Margherita, on June 18, 1840, at age 26.

EARNING WIDE ACCLAIM

Dispirited by the loss of his family, Verdi entered the 1840s disheartened, struggling to find inspiration to
continue creating music. He soon found solace in his work, however, by composing two new, fourt-part operas
in 1842 and '43, Nabucco and I Lombardi alla Prima Crociata (best known simply as I Lombardi), respectively.
Both pieces earned the composer a great amount of success. Subsequently, Verdi held a prominent reputation
in Italy's operatic theater scene and, later, in the country's political scene as well. He became known for his
skill in creating melody and his profound use of theatrical effect. His rejection of the traditional Italian opera
for integrated scenes and unified acts only added to his fame.

For the rest of the 1840s, and through the 1850s, '60s and '70s, Verdi continued to garner success and fame.
Comprising a popular operatic series throughout the decades were Rigoletto (1851), Il trovatore (1853), La
traviata (1853), Don Carlos (1867) and Aida, which premiered at the Cairo Opera House in 1871. Four years
later, in 1874, Verdi completed Messa da Requiem (best known simply as Requiem), which was meant to be
his final composition. He retired shortly thereafter.

FINAL WORKS
Despite his retirement plans, in the mid-1880s, through a connection initiated by longtime friend Giulio
Ricordi, Verdi collaborated with composer and novelist Arrigo Boito (also known as Enrico Giuseppe Giovanni
Boito) to complete Otello. Completed in 1886, the four-act opera was performed for the first time at Milan's
Teatro alla Scala on February 5, 1887. Initially meeting with incredible acclaim throughout Europe, the opera—
based on William Shakespeare's play Othello—continues to be regarded as one of the greatest operas of all
time.

Never one to rest on his laurels, even in his old age, Verdi followed Otello's success with Falstaff, another
collaboration with Boito. Completed in 1890, when Verdi was in his late 70s, Falstaff—a comedic adaptation of
the Shakespearean plays The Merry Wives of Windsor and Henry IV, and consisting of three acts—debuted at
Milan's La Scala on February 9, 1893. Like Othello, early reactions to Falstaff were, by and large, tremendously
positive, and the opera continues to earn great renown today.

DEATH AND LEGACY

Giuseppe Verdi died on January 27, 1901, in Milan, Italy.

Composing over 25 operas throughout his career, Verdi continues to be regarded today as one of the greatest
composers in history. Furthermore, his works have reportedly been performed more than any other
performer's worldwide.
 GIACOMO PUCCINI,
QUICK FACTS
NAME
Giacomo Puccini
OCCUPATION
Composer
BIRTH DATE
December 22, 1858
DEATH DATE
November 29, 1924
PLACE OF BIRTH
Lucca, Italy
PLACE OF DEATH
Brussels, Belgium
FULL NAME
Giacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini

-in full Giacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini, (born December 22, 1858, Lucca, Tuscany
[Italy]—died November 29, 1924, Brussels, Belgium), Italian composer, one of the greatest exponents of
operatic realism, who virtually brought the history of Italian opera to an end. His mature operas included La
Bohème (1896), Tosca (1900), Madama Butterfly (1904), and Turandot (left incomplete).

EARLY LIFE AND MARRIAGE

Puccini was the last descendant of a family that for two centuries had provided the musical directors of the
Cathedral of San Martino in Lucca. Puccini initially dedicated himself to music, therefore, not as a personal
vocation but as a family profession. He was orphaned at the age of five by the death of his father, and the
municipality of Lucca supported the family with a small pension and kept the position of cathedral organist
open for Giacomo until he came of age.

He first studied music with two of his father’s former pupils, and he played the organ in small local churches. A
performance of Giuseppe Verdi’s Aida, which he saw in Pisa in 1876, convinced him that his true vocation was
opera. In the autumn of 1880 he went to study at the Milan Conservatory, where his principal teachers were
Antonio Bazzini, a famous violinist and composer of chamber music, and Amilcare Ponchielli, the composer of
the opera La gioconda.

On July 16, 1883, he received his diploma and presented as his graduation composition Capriccio sinfonico, an
instrumental work that attracted the attention of influential musical circles in Milan. In the same year, he
entered Le villi in a competition for one-act operas. The judges did not think Le villi worthy of consideration,
but a group of friends, led by the composer-librettist Arrigo Boito, subsidized its production, and its premiere
took place with immense success at Milan’s Verme Theatre on May 31, 1884.

Le villi was remarkable for its dramatic power, its operatic melody, and, revealing the influence of Richard
Wagner’s works, the important role played by the orchestra. The music publisher Giulio Ricordi immediately
acquired the copyright, with the stipulation that the opera be expanded to two acts. He also commissioned
Puccini to write a new opera for La Scala and gave him a monthly stipend: thus began Puccini’s lifelong
association with Giulio Ricordi, who was to become a staunch friend and counselor.
After the death of his mother, Puccini fled from Lucca with a married woman, Elvira Gemignani. Finding in
their passion the courage to defy the truly enormous scandal generated by their illegal union, they lived at first
in Monza, near Milan, where a son, Antonio, was born. In 1890 they moved to Milan, and in 1891 to Torre del
Lago, a fishing village on Lake Massaciuccoli in Tuscany. This home was to become Puccini’s refuge from life,
and he remained there until three years before his death, when he moved to Viareggio.

But living with Elvira proved difficult. Tempestuous rather than compliant, she was justifiably jealous and was
not an ideal companion. The two were finally able to marry in 1904, after the death of Elvira’s husband.
Puccini’s second opera, Edgar, based on a verse drama by the French writer Alfred de Musset, had been
performed at La Scala in 1889, and it was a failure. Nevertheless, Ricordi continued to have faith in his protégé
and sent him to Bayreuth in Germany to hear Wagner’s Die Meistersinger.

MATURE WORK AND FAME

Puccini returned from Bayreuth with the plan for Manon Lescaut, based, like the Manon of the French
composer Jules Massenet, on the celebrated 18th-century novel by the Abbé Prévost. Beginning with this
opera, Puccini carefully selected the subjects for his operas and spent considerable time on the preparation of
the librettos. The psychology of the heroine in Manon Lescaut, as in succeeding works, dominates the
dramatic nature of Puccini’s operas. Puccini, in sympathy with his public, was writing to move them so as to
assure his success.

The score of Manon Lescaut, dramatically alive, prefigures the operatic refinements achieved in his mature
operas: La Bohème, Tosca, Madama Butterfly, and La fanciulla del west (1910; The Girl of the Golden West).
These four mature works also tell a moving love story, one that centres entirely on the feminine protagonist
and ends in a tragic resolution. All four speak the same refined and limpid musical language of the orchestra
that creates the subtle play of thematic reminiscences. The music always emerges from the words,
indissolubly bound to their meaning and to the images they evoke. In Bohème, Tosca, and Butterfly, he
collaborated enthusiastically with the writers Giuseppe Giacosa and Luigi Illica. The first performance
(February 17, 1904) of Madama Butterfly was a fiasco, probably because the audience found the work too
much like Puccini’s preceding operas. For a 1908 recording of Emma Eames singing “Vissi d’arte” from Tosca,
see Emma Eames.

In 1908, having spent the summer in Cairo, the Puccinis returned to Torre del Lago, and Giacomo devoted
himself to Fanciulla. Elvira unexpectedly became jealous of Doria Manfredi, a young servant from the village
who had been employed for several years by the Puccinis. She drove Doria from the house threatening to kill
her. Subsequently, the servant girl poisoned herself, and her parents had the body examined by a physician,
who declared her a virgin.

The Manfredis brought charges against Elvira Puccini for persecution and calumny, creating one of the most
famous scandals of the time. Elvira was found guilty, but through the negotiations of the lawyers was not
sentenced, and Puccini paid damages to the Manfredis, who withdrew their accusations. Eventually the
Puccinis adjusted themselves to a coexistence, but the composer from then on demanded absolute freedom
of action.

The premiere of La fanciulla del west took place at the Metropolitan in New York City on December 10, 1910,
with Arturo Toscanini conducting. It was a great triumph, and with it Puccini reached the end of his mature
period. He admitted “writing an opera is difficult.” For one who had been the typical operatic representative of
the turn of the century, he felt the new century advancing ruthlessly with problems no longer his own. He did
not understand contemporary events, such as World War I. In 1917 at Monte-Carlo in Monaco, Puccini’s opera
La rondine was first performed and then was quickly forgotten.

Always interested in contemporary operatic compositions, Puccini studied the works of Claude Debussy,
Richard Strauss, Arnold Schoenberg, and Igor Stravinsky. From this study emerged Il trittico (The Triptych; New
York City, 1918), three stylistically individual one-act operas—the melodramatic Il tabarro (The Cloak), the
sentimental Suor Angelica, and the comic Gianni Schicchi. His last opera, based on the fable of Turandot as
told in the play Turandot by the 18th-century Italian dramatist Carlo Gozzi, is the only Italian opera in the
Impressionistic style. Puccini did not complete Turandot, unable to write a final grand duet on the triumphant
love between Turandot and Calaf. Suffering from cancer of the throat, he was ordered to Brussels for surgery,
and a few days afterward he died with the incomplete score of Turandot in his hands.

Turandot was performed posthumously at La Scala on April 25, 1926, and Arturo Toscanini, who conducted
the performance, concluded the opera at the point Puccini had reached before dying. Two final scenes were
completed by Franco Alfano from Puccini’s sketches.

Solemn funeral services were held for Puccini at La Scala in Milan, and his body was taken to Torre del Lago,
which became the Puccini Pantheon. Shortly afterward, Elvira and Antonio were also buried there. The Puccini
house became a museum and an archive.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS
The majority of Puccini’s operas illustrate a theme defined in Il tabarro: “Chi ha vissuto per amore, per amore
si morì” (“He who has lived for love, has died for love”). This theme is played out in the fate of his heroines—
women who are devoted body and soul to their lovers, are tormented by feelings of guilt, and are punished by
the infliction of pain until in the end they are destroyed. In his treatment of this theme, Puccini combines
compassion and pity for his heroines with a strong streak of sadism: hence the strong emotional appeal but
also the restricted scope of the Puccinian type of opera.

.
The main feature of Puccini’s musicodramatic style is his ability to identify himself with his subject; each opera
has its distinctive ambience. With an unfailing instinct for balanced dramatic structure, Puccini knew that an
opera is not all action, movement, and conflict; it must also contain moments of repose, contemplation, and
lyricism. For such moments he invented an original type of melody, passionate and radiant, yet marked by an
underlying morbidity; examples are the “farewell” and “death” arias that also reflect the persistent
melancholy from which he suffered in his personal life.

Puccini’s approach to dramatic composition is expressed in his own words: “The basis of an opera is its subject
and its treatment.” The fashioning of a story into a moving drama for the stage claimed his attention in the
first place, and he devoted to this part of his work as much labour as to the musical composition itself. The
action of his operas is uncomplicated and self-evident, so that the spectators, even if they do not understand
the words, readily comprehend what is taking place on the stage.

Puccini’s conception of diatonic melody is rooted in the tradition of 19th-century Italian opera, but his
harmonic and orchestral style indicate that he was also aware of contemporary developments, notably the
work of the Impressionists and of Stravinsky. Though he allowed the orchestra a more active role, he upheld
the traditional vocal style of Italian opera, in which the singers carry the burden of the music. In many ways a
typical fin de siècle artist, Puccini nevertheless can be ranked as the greatest exponent of operatic realism.
 RICHARD WAGNER
QUICK FACTS
NAME
Richard Wagner
OCCUPATION
Conductor, Composer
BIRTH DATE
May 22, 1813
DEATH DATE
February 13, 1883
PLACE OF BIRTH
Leipzig, Germany
PLACE OF DEATH
Venice, Italy
AKA
Richard Wagner
FULL NAME
Wilhelm Richard Wagner

SYNOPSIS
Born in Germany on May 22, 1813, Richard Wagner went on to become one of the world's most influential—
and controversial—composers. He is famous for both his epic operas, including the four-part, 18-hour Ring
Cycle, as well as for his anti-semitic writings, which, posthumously, made him a favorite of Adolf Hitler. There
is evidence that Wagner's music was played at the Dachau concentration camp to "re-educate" the prisoners.
Wagner had a tumultuous love life, which involved several scandalous affairs. He died of a heart attack in
Venice on February 13, 1883.

EARLY LIFE
Wilhelm Richard Wagner was born on May 22, 1813, in Leipzig, Germany, and went on to become one of the
world's most influential—and controversial—composers.

Richard Wagner was famous for both his complex operas, such as the four-part, 18-hour Ring Cycle, as well as
for his anti-semitic writings, which, posthumously, made him a favorite of Adolf Hitler. There is evidence that
Wagner's music was played at the Dachau concentration camp to "re-educate" the prisoners.

Wagner's parentage is uncertain: He is either the son of police actuary Friedrich Wagner, who died soon after
Richard was born, or the son of the man he called his stepfather, the painter, actor and poet Ludwig Geyer
(whom his mother married in August 1814).

As a young boy, Wagner attended school in Dresden, Germany. He did not show aptitude in music and, in fact,
his teacher said he would "torture the piano in a most abominable fashion." But he was ambitious from a
young age. When he was 11 years old, he wrote his first drama. By age 16, he was writing musical
compositions. Young Wagner was so confident that some people considered him conceited.

The New York Times would later write in its obituary of the famous composer, "In the face of mortifying
failures and discouragements, he apparently never lost confidence in himself."
ACCLAIMED WORKS
Wagner attended Leipzig University in 1831, and his first symphony was performed in 1833. He was inspired
by Ludwig van Beethoven and, in particular, Beethoven's Ninth Symphony, which Wagner called "that mystic
source of my highest ecstasies." The following year, in 1834, Wagner joined the Würzburg Theater as chorus
master, and wrote the text and music of his first opera, Die Feen (The Fairies), which was not staged.

In 1836, Wagner married the singer and actress Minna Planer. The couple soon moved to Königsberg, where
Wagner took the position of musical director at the Magdeburg Theatre. There, also in 1836, Das Liebesverbot
was produced, with Wagner writing both the lyrics and the music. He called his concept "Gesamtunkstwerk"
(total work of art)—a method, which he frequently used, of weaving German myths with larger themes about
love and redemption.

After moving to Riga, Russia, in 1837, Wagner became the first musical director of the theater and began work
on his next opera, Rienzi. Before finishing Rienzi, Wagner and Minna left Riga, fleeing creditors, in 1839. They
hopped on a ship to London and then made their way to Paris, where Wagner was forced to take whatever
work he could find, including writing vaudeville music for small theaters. Wagner was part of the quasi-
revolutionary "Young Germany" movement, and his leftist politics were reflected in Rienzi; unable to produce
Rienzi in Paris, he sent the score to the Court Theatre in Dresden, Germany, where it was accepted. In 1842,
Wagner's Rienzi, a political opera set in imperial Rome, premiered in Dresden to great acclaim.

The following year, The Flying Dutchman was produced to critical acclaim. Considered a great talent by this
time, Wagner was given the Prussian order of the Red Eagle and appointed director of the Dresden Opera. In
1845, Wagner completed Tannhäuser and began working on Lohengrin. In 1848, while preparing for a
production of Lohengrin in Dresden, the revolutionary outbreak in Saxony occurred and Wagner, who had
always been politically vocal, fled to Zurich.

Unable to enter Germany for the next 11 years due to his political stances, Wagner wrote the notoriously anti-
semitic Jewishness in Music, as well as other criticisms against Jews, composers, conductors, authors and
critics. He also wrote Opera and Drama and began developing what would become his famous Ring Cycle,
which consisted of four separate operas tied together by leitmotifs, or recurring musical themes which link
plot elements.

The Ring Cycle was ahead of its time in that it combined literature, visual elements and music in a way that
would anticipate the future of film. Film composers, including John Williams, were inspired by Wagner's use of
leitmotifs. His work would later influence modern film scores, including those of the Harry Potter and Lord of
the Rings film series.

After meeting and falling in love with Mathilde Wesendonck, the wife of Otto Wesendonck, Wagner was
inspired to write Tristan and Isolde. His interest in Wesendonck, coupled with other events in his life,
eventually led to his separation with his wife, Minna.

In 1862, Wagner was finally able to return to Germany. King Ludwig II, a fan of Wagner's work, invited Wagner
to settle in Bavaria, near Munich, and supported him financially. Wagner didn't stay long in Bavaria, once it
was discovered that he was having an affair with Cosima, the wife of the conductor Hans van Bülow, and Franz
Liszt's illegitimate daughter. Bülow, who apparently condoned the affair, directed Tristan and Isolde in 1865.
Wagner and Cosima had two children together before finally marrying in 1870.
The first two operas of The Ring Cycle, Das Rheingold and Die Walküre, were presented in Munich in 1869 and
1870. The Ring Cycle was finally performed in its entirely—all 18 hours—in 1876. Wagner completed his last
opera, Parsifal, in January 1882, and it was performed at the Bayreuth Festival that same year.

DEATH AND LEGACY

Wagner died of a heart attack on February 13, 1883, at age 69, while vacationing in Venice, Italy for the
winter. His body was shipped by gondola and train back to Bayreuth, where he was buried.

In the 20th century, Adolf Hitler was a fan of Wagner's music and writings, only making Wagner's legacy more
controversial.

New York Times writer Anthony Tommasini wrote of Wagner in 2005: "How did such sublime music come
from such a warped man? Maybe art really does have the power to
ferret out the best in us."
 GEORGES BIZET

Quick Facts
Birthday: October 25, 1838
Nationality: French
Famous: Composers French Men
Died At Age: 36
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Born In: Paris, France
Famous As: Composer
Family:
Spouse/Ex-: Geneviève Halévy (M. 1869–1875)
Children: Jacques Bizet
Died On: June 3, 1875
City: Paris

Georges Bizet was a Romantic era French composer best known for his final work, ‘Carmen,’ an opera in four
acts. Trained at the Paris Conservatoire under well-known teachers like Antoine François Marmontel, Pierre-
Joseph-Guillaume Zimmermann, Charles Gounod and Fromental Halévy, he won the prestigious Prix de Rome
at the age of nineteen.

Thereafter, he spent three years in Rome before returning to Paris, where he spent the rest of his short life,
composing music. Although he was a great pianist, he hardly ever performed in public and spent his time and
energy on composing marvelous pieces.

Unfortunately, very few of them received attention during his lifetime and many of the manuscripts were lost
in the intervening years. It was only from the end of the nineteenth century that his works started being
rediscovered or revived.

However, their true worth started being recognized only from the early twentieth century. Today he has been
acclaimed as a brilliant composer, whose early death was a tremendous loss to French music.

CHILDHOOD & EARLY YEARS

Georges Bizet was born on 25 October 1838 in Paris. Although he was registered as Alexandre César Léopold,
for some unknown reason, he was baptized on 16 March 1840 as Georges and from that point he began to be
known by that name.

His father, Adolphe Armand Bizet, was originally a hairdresser and wigmaker but later he took up music
teaching as his vocation. He also composed a few pieces and at least one of them was published.
His mother, Aimée Léopoldine Joséphine née Delsarte, was an accomplished pianist. She came from an
impoverished, but highly cultured family. Her brother, François Delsarte, was a distinguished singer, who used
to perform at the courts of King Louis Philippe and Emperor Napoleon III.
Georges, their only child, showed an aptitude for music early in his life. He probably received his first piano
lesson from his mother. Standing at the door, listening to his father giving music lessons to his students, he
learned to sing difficult songs accurately from memory.

In the same way, he also learned to identify and analyze structure of chords, some of which were quite
complex. This convinced his parents that their son was ready for formal training at the Conservatoire de Paris
even though he was yet to reach ten, the minimum age for admission to the Conservatoire.

Subsequently, at the recommendation of François Delsarte, Georges appeared for an interview before horn
virtuoso Joseph Meifred, who was also a member of the Committee of Studies of the Conservatoire.
Impressed by the boy’s skill, he agreed to bypass the age restriction and take him as soon as there was a
vacant seat.

AT THE CONSERVATOIRE
On 9 October 1848, sixteen days before his tenth birthday, Georges entered the Conservatoire de Paris. Here,
apart from studying organ and theory, he also studied piano with Antoine François Marmontel, benefiting
much from the association.

At the Conservatoire, Georges made an early impression, winning within six months the first prize in solfège. It
impressed Pierre-Joseph-Guillaume Zimmermann, who had just retired from service, to such an extent that he
offered to give young Georges private lessons in counterpoint and fugue.

Thus along with studying at the Conservatoire, Georges started studying with Zimmermann. It was during one
of these classes that he came in contact with Charles Gounod, who left a lasting impression on his young mind.
Marmontel also yielded a great impression on young Georges. Under his tutelage, his skills in piano began to
develop rapidly. In 1851, he won the second prize and in 1852, the first prize for piano.

Thereafter from 1853, he started studying composition with Fromental Halévy. While his first recorded
composition dates back to 1850, under Halévy’s guidance, the quality of his works became more sophisticated.

In 1855, he wrote his first recorded symphony, ‘Symphony in C Major’. It was soon lost but fortunately it was
rediscovered decades later and performed in 1935. Although Charles Gounod’s influence can be detected in
this piece it also reveals his own musical personality.

In 1856, he unsuccessfully competed for the Prix de Rome. In the following year, Bizet composed ‘Le Docteur
Miracle’, which he submitted in a competition organized by Jacques Offenbach, receiving the first prize jointly
with Charles Lecocq.

Offenbach was looking for new material for his Théâtre des Bouffes-Parisiens and when ‘Le Docteur Miracle’
was performed at the theater in 1857 it got noticed by well known musicians. Bizet soon received entry into
the right circles and was invited by Gioachino Rossini to his famous Saturday evening soirées.

Also in 1857, Bizet was awarded Prix de Rome for his cantata ‘Clovis et Clotilde’ and with it, he received a
financial grant for the next five years. However, it also required him to spend first two years in Rome, the third
year in Germany and the last two years in Paris.
IN ROME
Georges Bizet reached Rome on 27 January 1858. Here he put up at Villa Medici, which housed the French
Académie in Rome and offered a very convivial environment. He now began to study the works of Robert
Schumann, Carl Maria von Weber, Mendelssohn, and Gounod.

Subsequently, he wrote ‘Te Deum’ for a competition on religious work, open to Prix de Rome winners.
However, it failed to impress the judges. As a result it remained forgotten until it was rediscovered in 1971.
Moreover, Bizet was so disappointed that he vowed not to take up religious works anymore.

But, the rules required that each year he submit an original envoi and the first one should be a mass. Breaking
the rule, Bizet decided to submit 'Don Procopio', a two-act opera buffa with an Italian libretto. Although he
was apprehensive about the breach of rule it was well received by the authority.

For his second envoi he submitted ‘Ode Symphony Vasco de Gama', which was based on Luís Vaz de Camões'
epic poem ‘The Lusiad.’ It is possible that he did not complete any other work during this period but used the
opportunity to travel around in Italy.

On his return to Rome, he successfully persuaded the Académie to allow him to spend the third year in Italy.
While on a trip to Rimini in 1860, he planned to write ‘Symphony in C Roma’ in which he thought of dedicating
the four movements to four different Italian cities – Rome, Venice, Florence and Naples.

It is possible that he started the work here. But in September, he came to known that his mother was seriously
ill and so he immediately returned to Paris.

BACK TO PARIS
With two years of the grant remaining, Georges Bizet lived in Paris with comparative ease. Here he resumed
his work on ‘Roma’ and also on his third envoi. However, it all got delayed, as his mother died in September
1861. Bizet was now plunged into grief.

Eventually he submitted a trio of orchestral works for his envoi: an overture, a scherzo and a funeral march.
The overture had been lost since then and the others were absorbed in his later works. Next in 1862, he
submitted a one-act opera, ‘La guzla de l'émir’ as his final envoi.

In 1863, he wrote ‘Les pêcheurs de perles’, based on a libretto by Michel Carré and Eugène Cormon. It was
moderately successful even though the libretto lacked dramatic effect. However, it was revived in 1891; but by
then the Bizet was long dead.

PROFESSIONAL STRUGGLES
As the grant came to an end, he now began to support himself by giving piano lessons. His career as a
composer was not very successful either and money remained a constant worry. He wrote a number of songs,
which he hoped to sell.
In 1864, he wrote ‘Ivan IV’, but it could not be premiered until 1946. His next work, ‘La jolie fille de Perth’ had
comparatively better luck. Although he completed the work by 1866, it was premiered sometime in December
1867 but had only a handful of performances.

‘Marlborough s'en va-t-en guerre’, also performed in December 1867, was perhaps the only noteworthy
success. This was also the period, when he finally completed ‘Symphony in C Roma’.
Although he later reworked on it, ‘Roma’ was first premiered in 1869 and received a fair share of applauds,
hisses and catcalls. He jokingly noted that it was a success.

THE YEAR 1870 & AFTER

In July 1870, when the Franco-Prussian War broke out, like many others, Georges Bizet too was swept with
nationalism and joined the Paris National Guard. His fervor turned into disappointment when he came across
the old fashioned arms with which they were supposed to fight.

He did not have to take part in actual war. On 2 September, Napoleon III was captured and deposed and by 17
September the Prussian armies surrounded Paris. While many fled from the city, Bizet refused to do so
because he thought that would be cowardly.

However, when La Commune de Paris, a radical socialist and revolutionary government, was established in
Paris on 18 March 1871, Bizet did not feel safe any longer. He and his wife escaped first to Compiègne and
from there they moved to Le Vésinet, returning to Paris sometime after 28 May.

As normalcy returned to Paris, Bizet set to work once again. Among other incomplete works, he also wrote
two complete pieces, a piano duet entitled ‘Jeux d'enfants’, and a one-act opera, ‘Djamileh’.

Among them, ‘Djamileh’ opened at the Opéra-Comique in May 1872. But poorly staged and sung, it closed
after only eleven performances. In spite of that, his professional expertise was there for everyone to see and
therefore, it led to further commissions from the theatre. Incidentally, the opera was revived much later in
1938.

Commissioned by Opéra-Comique, Bizet now began to work on ‘Carmen’, a four act opera based on a novella
of the same name by Prosper Mérimée.’ The libretto was written by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy. It was
premiered in Paris on 3 March 1875.

MAJOR WORK
Bizet is best remembered for his last opera, ‘Carmen’. Going into production in September 1874, it opened on
3 March 1875. The audience, who was expecting a comic opera, was presented with this revolutionary work. It
shocked them into silence.

On the second night, the audience who came prepared was mesmerized. But the reviews continued to be
negative. The opera staggered on for 48 performances, never having a full house.

In spite of its initial failure, it achieved international acclaim within ten years. Today, it has become one of the
most popular and frequently performed operas in the western canon, bridging the gap between the tradition
of opéra comique and the verismo of the late nineteenth century.
AWARDS & ACHIEVEMENTS
The only major award that Georges Bizet received in his short lifespan was the Prix de Rome Award of 1857.
In the morning of March 3, 1875, the day ‘Carmen’ was to be premiered, it was announced that Bizet was
nominated for the Légion d'honneur. He died within three months of the announcement and nothing came
out of it.
PERSONAL LIFE & LEGACY
On 3 June 1869, Georges Bizet married Geneviève Halévy, the younger daughter of composer Jacques-
Fromental Halévy. The couple had one son, Jacques Bizet, born in 1871. Initially they were happy. But later
difference cropped up between them, mainly because of Geneviève's nervous instability.

Bizet had been Halévy’s student and over the years he had become very close to the family. Having good
relations with Madam Halévy, he allowed her to interfere in their personal affairs. Contrarily, Geneviève had a
difficult relationship with her mother and this was another reason for their strained relationship.

Bizet also had another son, Jean Reiter, born in 1862, out of a liaison with the family's housekeeper, Marie
Reiter. However, Jean believed that he was Adolphe Bizet's child and came to know about his true paternity in
1913, years after Bizet’s death.

Bizet was a heavy smoker and suffered from recurrent throat problems throughout his life. In 1874, while he
was working on ‘Carmen’ he was severely afflicted with throat issues, which recurred again in March 1875 and
then in May.

At that time, he was also suffering from depression not only due to marital problems but also because of the
apparent failure of ‘Carmen’. As a result, his recovery was very slow. At the end of May, he moved to his
holiday home at Bougival.

There on 1 June, he developed high fever and pain, which might have led to a heart attack. Although he
recovered temporarily, on 3 June 1875 he had a second attack and died from it. He was then only 36 years old.
Eventually it was determined that he died from "a cardiac complication of acute articular rheumatism". The
funeral was held on 5 June at the Église de la Sainte-Trinité in Montmartre. It was attended by 4,000 people
among whom there were many well known musicians like Gounod, Thomas, Ludovic Halévy, Léon Halévy and
Massenet.

Later, he was buried at Père Lachaise Cemetery. On his death, he got the felicitation, which he missed in his
lifetime. The media, which had previously condemned his works, especially ‘Carmen’, now called him a
master.

After his death, Geneviève showed little interest in preserving his works. Many of his manuscripts were lost
while others were tampered with. Apart from ‘Carmen’ and the ‘L'Arlésienne suite’, few other works were
performed.

It was only in the twentieth century that his true worth was recognized. It is also believed that it was his
realistic approach, which influenced the verismo school of opera towards the end of the nineteenth century.