Georges Bizet.

Georges Bizet entered the Conservatoire de Paris at nine in 1847. He studied under Antoine Marmontel, François Benoist, and Jacques Halévy, the latter later becoming his father-in-law. His father Adolphe Armand Bizet was a singing teacher. By 19, Bizet won the Prix de Rome and composed his first opera, Le Docteur Miracle.

Bizet wrote Les Pêcheurs de perles in 1863, followed by La jolie fille de Perth 1867 and Djamileh, but none achieved major success. He remained obscure until 1872, when his incidental music for Daudet’s L’Arlésienne brought him recognition. At Camille du Locle’s suggestion, director of the Opéra-Comique, Bizet composed Carmen in 1875. Librettists Henri Leilhac and Ludovic Halévy adapted Prosper Mérimée’s novel. Initial reviews were bad, but Carmen later became the world’s most performed opera. Johannes Brahms and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky called it their favorite; Richard Strauss kept the score on his piano.

Bizet married Geneviève Halévy on June 3, 1869; their son Jacques was born in 1872. In 1862, Bizet’s family maid had borne his out-of-wedlock son. He died of a heart attack on June 3, 1875, in Bougival, France, at age 36.

Bizet’s Carmen became the favorite opera of Johannes Brahms and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. Richard Strauss kept its score on his piano, saying he never stopped learning from it. Bizet was posthumously awarded the Knight of the Legion of Honour.