Quick Facts
I am Hector Berlioz, the wildest romantic of them all! My music bursts with passion, drama, and orchestral color no one had imagined before. From the fevered visions of the Symphonie fantastique to the epic sweep of Les Troyens, I have expanded what music can express. The orchestra is my instrument, and I play it with the full range of human emotion.
Conversation Starters
Life Journey
Born in southeastern France to a physician
Sent to Paris to study medicine
Entered conservatory after abandoning medicine
Saw Irish actress, fell into obsessive love
Revolutionary symphony premiered
Won prestigious prize on fourth attempt
Finally married his obsession, troubled union
Viola symphony commissioned by Paganini
Massive Requiem premiered
Published influential orchestration manual
Concert opera premiered to financial failure
Finished epic opera, never saw complete performance
Final opera premiered at Baden-Baden
Died in Paris, bitter and exhausted