Classical Music / Composers Datebook: February 21
Brief biography of French composer Léo Delibes – his life, influence, ballets and operas. Best known for opera Lakme and ballet Coppélia.
Clement Philibert Leo Delibes (b. February 21, 1836, St. Germain du Val - d. January 16, 1891, Paris), was a French composer and organist. He was a son of a government employee, but he ans his mother moved to Paris after the death of his father. He is known for his highly successful opera masterpiece Lakme, a lyric evocation of India for which he was indebted to Georges Bizet for its oriental colour and characterization. Others contend that his most famous work is the ballet Coppelia, premiered when he was 34.
Early age
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.
Career in Music
Delibes became a church organist until 1871, 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.
Delibes's first operetta which he produced at the age 19, Deux Sous de Charbon, led to series of popular short works in this genre.
His classical ballet Coppelia is known for its charming character numbers, and the tuneful but more sophisticated Sylvia, both admired by Piotr Tchaikovsky.
Below video: Why The Royal Ballet love dancing Coppélia. YouTube, uploaded by the Royal Opera House. Accessed February 21, 2023.
It is noteworthy that in the same year he was successful with Coppelia, 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.
Delibes also wrote an incidental music based on
Victor Hugo's play, Le Roi s'amuse ('The King's Pleasure'), 1882
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' Ballet
La Source (known as Naila), 1866
Coppélia, 1870
Sylvia, 1876
Photo credit:
Leo Delibes. Wikipedia commons / Public Domain
Resources:
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)
(c) February 21, 2008. Tel. Inspired Pen Web. All rights reserved.
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