Identifier: favouriteoperasf00hadd (find matches)
Title: Favourite operas from Mozart to Mascagni : their plots, history and music
Year: 1910 (1910s)
Authors: Hadden, J. Cuthbert (James Cuthbert), 1861-1914
Subjects: Operas
Publisher: New York : Thomas Nelson
Contributing Library: Harold B. Lee Library
Digitizing Sponsor: Brigham Young University

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family, his father beinga singing-master, his mother a pianist. Georgesproved himself something of a prodigy. He coulddistinguish the degrees of the scale as soon as theletters of the alphabet. When he was eight, hisfather took him in hand musically, and the boyshowed sfuch astonishing aptitude, that the delightedparent decided to send him to the Conservatoire.Unfortunately he was as yet too young, according tothe rules, to be admitted there. Thinking over thematter, however, Bizet pere concluded that if theConservatoire authorities could only hear and testhis boy, they would waive the question of age. Sothe pair had an interview with M. Meifred, a pro-minent member of the Conservatoire committee. Your child is very young, said Meifred, castinga supercilious glance at the little Georges. Thatstrue, replied the father, but if he is small bymeasurement, he is great in knowledge. ** Really IAnd what can he do? Place yourself at thepiano, strike chords, and he will name them all with- 124
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CABMSN THE COMPOSER out a mistake. The test was applied with success.Other tests followed, and the result was that thedoors of the Conservatoire opened to the gifted childout of due time. Bizets student career was a seriesof distinguished triumphs. In 1851, at his firstcompetition, he took second prize for piano, beingthen only thirteen, and next year he divided the firstprize with another. Bizet was, in fact, so good apianist as to excite (later) the praise of Liszt.Rapidly he rose to the highest place. By-and-by Offenbach put an opera up to com-petition, promising to produce the successful work.Bizet tried his luck, and in the result was bracketedat the head of the competition with a class-mate,M. Lecocq, whose farcical operas were vastly popularat one time. Bizet went on to better things. Hewon, like his friend the composer of ** Faust, thegreatly coveted Prix de Rome at the Conservatoire,and in January 1858 set out for the Eternal City.There he studied hard for three years. Just a

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