Leo Delibes Biography
French Composer Famous for Opera Lakmé and Ballet 'Coppélia'
The life and works of French composer Léo Delibes, famous for his ballets and operas.
French composer Léo Delibes is known for his successful opera masterpiece Lakme, a lyric evocation of India for which he was indebted to Georges Bizet for its oriental color and characterization. Others contend that his most famous work is the ballet Coppélia, premiered when he was 34.
Delibes, a son of a government employee, was born on February 21, 1836 in St. Germain du Val, but he and his mother moved to Paris, after the death of his father.
At the age of 12, he entered Paris Conservatory and became a pupil of Adolphe Adam, French composer of many popular stage works and famous for ballet Giselle. Adam would have a lasting influence in his life.
Delibes became a church organist, however, he was strongly drawn to the theatre, writing sparkling operettas in the style of his teacher Adolphe Adam, then becoming chorus master at the Theatre-Lyrique and the Paris Opera.
His first operetta which he produced at the age of 19, Deux Sous de Charbon, led to series of popular short works in this genre.
His classical ballet Coppélia is known for its charming character numbers, and the tuneful but more sophisticated Sylvia, both admired by Piotr Tchaikovsky.
It is noteworthy that in the same year he was successful with Coppélia, Tchaikovsky had his Romeo and Juliet Overture and Wagner, his Die Walkure (The Valkyrie), the second of his ring operatic cycle Der Ring des Nibelungen (The Ring of the Nibelungs).
Delibes also wrote the opera Le Roi l’a dit (The King has Spoken) and his serious Jean de Nivelle, where Giacomo Meyerbeer’s influence is evident.
At the time of his death, Léo Delibes left an unfinished opera Kassya. This was posthumously orchestrated by Jules Massenet, the composer known for his famous meditations from opera Thais.
While Verdi (in Italy) and Wagner (in Germany) were revolutionizing and enriching the opera, Delibes in Paris was providing his audiences with sparkling light music in their night out at the theatre.
Delibes' Operas
- Le Roi l'a dit (The King has Spoken), 1873
- Lakmé, including the famous 'Flower Duet' and the 'Bell Song', 1883
Delibes' Ballets
- La Source (known as Naila), 1866
- Coppélia, 1870
- Sylvia, 1876
Delibes also wrote an incidental music based on Victor Hugo's play, Le Roi s'amuse (The King's Pleasure), 1882
Sources:
The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Opera by Harold Rosenthal and John Warrack, OUP (1972)
The Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, 2nd Ed, edited by Stanley Sadie (2000)
The Oxford Companion to Music, edited by Alison Latham, Oxford (2002)
