Léo Delibes

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(b StGermain du Val, 21 Feb 1836; d Paris, 16 Jan 1891). French composer. A church, organist until 1871, he was drawn to the theatre, first writing light operettas in the style of his teacher Adolphe Adam (roughly one a year from 1856 to 1869), then becoming chorus master at the Théâtre-Lyrique and the Opéra. He is best known for his appealing classical ballets Coppélia (1870), with its charming character numbers, and the tuneful but more sophisticated Sylvia (1876), both admired by Tchaikovsky. Meyerbeer's influence is evident in his serious opera Jean de Nivelle (1880), and a gift for witty pastiche in his dances for Hugo's play Le roi's′amuse (1882). His masterpiece is Lakmé (1883), a highly successful opera indebted to Bizet and memorable for its oriental colour, strong characterization and fine melodies.

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Delibes, Clément Philibert Léo (b St-Germain-du-Val, 21 Feb. 1836, d Paris, 16 Jan. 1891). French composer. He studied under Adam and was commissioned to write part of the score for Saint-Léon's La Source (Paris Opera, 1866). Delibes composed Act II and the first scene of Act III; Minkus composed the rest. In 1867 he contributed to the score for Le Corsaire and in 1870 was commissioned to compose Coppélia (chor. Saint-Léon, Paris Opera, 1870). Influenced by Adam, this score made extensive use of leitmotifs for character and mood but its vivid scene painting was surpassed in his score for Sylvia (chor. Mérante, Paris Opera, 1876) which is renowned for its brilliant and varied orchestration. Tchaikovsky both admired and was influenced by Delibes's ballet music.

Delibes, Léo (1836–91), French composer of opera and ballet. At the Paris Conservatoire Delibes studied composition with Adolphe Adam, whose influence helped him secure the post of accompanist at the Théâtre Lyrique in 1853. In the same year he also took on the post of organist at St Pierre de Chaillot. There then followed a series of operettas, the second of which, Deux vieilles gardes (The Patient) in 1856, was much praised. The ballet La Source (1866) marked a turning point in his career.

Delibes's wealth of melodic invention and assured style suited him for work as a composer of ballet music, the culmination of which was his masterpiece, Coppélia (première Paris Opera, 1870). The work is in three scenes and is based on a fairy tale by E. T. A. Hoffmann. The toymaker, Coppelius, has produced a number of lifelike mechanical dolls which are able to dance. One, Coppélia, is especially beautiful, and for a time it causes jealously between the lovers Swanhilda and Franz. They are eventually reconciled and the story ends happily.

A later work, Sylvia (1876), has been styled as a grand mythological ballet and is based on a drama by the Italian poet Torquato Tasso (1544–95). Delibes's last significant work was the opera Lakmé (1883). Set in mid‐19th‐ century India, it tells of a doomed love story between a British officer and the daughter of a Brahmin priest (Lakmé).

— Tom Higgins

Delibes, Léo (lāô' dəlēb'), 1836-91, French composer. After studying at the Conservatory in Paris, he became an accompanist at the Théâtre-Lyrique in 1853, and, ten years later, at the Paris Opéra. He achieved great success with his ballets, especially Coppélia (1870) and Sylvia (1876). Delibes also wrote many operettas and several operas, of which Lakmé (1883) is the most famous. His music, profusely melodic and vividly orchestrated, is admirably suited for stage performance. He was also an organist and composed religious music.

(də-lēb') , (Clément Philibert) Léo 1836-1891.

French composer of melodic orchestral works, such as the ballets Coppélia (1870) and Sylvia (1876).

• Genres: Classical

Biography

Comic opera, ballet, and opera bouffa were the forte of Delibes. He was a student of his mother and uncle (the organist Batiste) and worked with Minkus with admirations for Wagner, Meyerbeer, and Bizet. He was an important influence on Tchaikovsky, D'Indy, Saint-Saens and Debussy. The ballet "Coppelia" was his most noted and renowned revealing the charming qualities of his music; elegance, melodic abundance, and character numbers characterize this ballet. His "piesta resistance" was "Lakme" with a flare for the dramatic and revealing soprano and well-developed principle male characters. Melodic, picturesuqe and theatrically strong "Lakme" was and is an exemplar of the operatic stage that illustrates the idea that opera is the most complete artistic form. Notable off-stage settings by Delibes included choruses. ~ Keith Johnson, Rovi

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