Louis Hector Berlioz was born in a small French town called La Côte Saint-André, France, on December 11, 1803. He was born in a turbulent time in France’s history, after the French revolution of 1790. During this time, the Church of France has lost a significant amount of power and anti-religious philosophy was not punishable by law. Hector was the eldest son of Louis Berlioz, who was a surgeon and an atheist, while Hector’s mother, Marie-Antoinette-Josephine was a staunch Catholic. Throughout Berlioz’s life, his father would have a profound impact on his education. Berlioz’s father instructed him in French and Latin literature, history, geography, and particularly the literature of Virgil, which Berlioz showed a deep interest in.
Berlioz began composing at the age of 13 or 14, acquiring much of his knowledge of harmony from a copy of the Traité de l’harmonie (‘Treatise on Harmony’) by Rameau. Berlioz’s first formal musical training was in May of 1917 at the age of 14.
By 1826, at age twenty-three, Berlioz entered the Paris Conservatoire, studying composition with Jean-Francois Le Sueur. Starting that year, Berlioz would enter the competition for the Prix de Rome for the first time, unsuccessfully. Berlioz stubbornly persisted his competing in for the Prix de Rome and in 1828, he won second prize for his piece Herminie, whose melody would be used as the idée fixe for his Symphonie Fantastique. Finally in 1830, Berlioz succeeded with his composition La Mort de Sardanapale. His success in the competition was largely due to the fact that Berlioz created a more conventional style in his composition, rather than presenting his individual and “unacceptable” style. The upheaval of his initial restraints would come to characterize Berlioz’s ideals and significance as a composer, musician and critic.
Berlioz was a self-proclaimed idealist; despite criticism and discouragement, it only served to further reinforce his ideals. He determined that there was an ideal orchestra, and an ideal city, Euphonia, where the greed associated with money did not exist, only art in its purest form. Berlioz’s importance as a critic revealed much about his ideals. As a critic, he wrote about operas, reviewed concerts, and wrote biographies of composers like Gluck, Beethoven and himself. He criticized the success of mediocre musicians as well as their managers and additions or ornamentations to the music of the likes of Beethoven and Mozart. He thought that music should be “enshrined” in its original unadulterated state.
Berlioz’s treatment of themes, expressive variation and contrast of colors and mood, rhythmic intensity, and unorthodox instrumentation was largely unheard of among French composers of his time. Berlioz’s idiosyncratic character as composer and critic did not give him the same prestige in his time. However, like most progressives, the originality of his ideas and music would later receive its respect and appreciation in 20th century and to this day.
Posted 29 November 2007