François Benoist (10 September 1794 – 6 May 1878) was a French organist, composer, and pedagogue. Benoist was born in Nantes. He took his first music lessons under Georges Scheuermann. Benoist studied music at the

Conservatoire de Paris The Conservatoire de Paris (), also known as the Paris Conservatory, is a college of music and dance founded in 1795. Officially known as the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris (CNSMDP), it is situated in the avenue ...

and won the

Prix de Rome The Prix de Rome () or Grand Prix de Rome was a French scholarship for arts students, initially for painters and sculptors, that was established in 1663 during the reign of Louis XIV of France. Winners were awarded a bursary that allowed them t ...

in 1815 for his cantata ''Œnone''. In 1819, he became organist (''organiste du roi'') and professor of organ at the Conservatoire; he held the latter post for half a century. His students included

César Franck César-Auguste Jean-Guillaume Hubert Franck (; 10 December 1822 – 8 November 1890) was a French Romantic composer, pianist, organist, and music teacher born in modern-day Belgium. He was born in Liège (which at the time of his birth was pa ...

, Camille Saint-Saëns,

Charles Lecocq Alexandre Charles Lecocq (3 June 183224 October 1918) was a French composer, known for his opérettes and opéras comiques. He became the most prominent successor to Jacques Offenbach in this sphere, and enjoyed considerable success in the 1870 ...

, Georges Bizet, Louis Lefébure-Wely,

Léo Delibes Clément Philibert Léo Delibes (; 21 February 1836 – 16 January 1891) was a French Romantic music, Romantic composer, best known for his ballets and French opera, operas. His works include the ballets ''Coppélia'' (1870) and ''Sylvia (ba ...

, and

Adolphe Adam Adolphe Charles Adam (; 24 July 1803 – 3 May 1856) was a French composer, teacher and music critic. A prolific composer for the theatre, he is best known today for his ballets ''Giselle'' (1841) and '' Le corsaire'' (1856), his operas '' Le po ...

. As composer, he was comparatively unimportant, but he wrote two operas, four ballets, one Requiem Mass, and numerous works for organ. He died in Paris.

Selected compositions

* ''Léonore et Félix'', opéra-comique, 1821 * ''Chœur d'adieu'', 1836 * ''La Gipsy'',

ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...

, 1839 * '' Le Diable amoureux'', ballet, 1840 * ''Bibliothèque de l'organiste'', 12 volumes, 1841–1861 * ''Messe de Requiem pour trois voix d'homme et une d'enfant, avec accompagnement d'orgue ad libitum'', 1842. * ''Othello'',

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libr ...

, 1844 * ''L'Apparition'', opera, 1848 * ''Nisida ou les Amazones des Açores'', ballet (book by Eugène Deligny), 1848 * '' Paquerette'', ballet (with Arthur Saint-Léon), 1851 * ''Deux Préludes'', 1860 * ''Recueil de quatre morceaux pour orgue : Andante, Fugue sur le "Pange lingua", Marche religieuse, Communion'', 1878 * ''Messe à 4 voix, orgue et orchestre'', 1861 * ''Ave Maria pour mezzo-soprano'' * ''Kyrie à 4 voix'' * ''O Salutaris à une voix'', * ''Cantique à la Sainte Vierge''

External links

François Benoist : un maître nantais oublié
(in French) *
La Gipsy, ballet, 3 acts
by Francois Benoist, French, digitized by

BYU Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day S ...

on archive.org {{DEFAULTSORT:Benoist, Francois 1794 births 1878 deaths 19th-century classical composers Conservatoire de Paris faculty Breton musicians Composers for pipe organ French ballet composers French classical organists French male classical composers French opera composers Male opera composers French male organists Musicians from Nantes Prix de Rome for composition 19th-century French male musicians Male classical organists 19th-century organists

Selected compositions

See also

External links