Ambroise Thomas

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Ambroise Thomas

French composer

Also known as: Charles Louis Ambroise Thomas

Written and fact-checked by The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Article History

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In full:: Charles Louis Ambroise Thomas

Born:: August 5, 1811, Metz, France

Died:: February 12, 1896, Paris (aged 84)

Awards And Honors:: Prix de Rome

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Ambroise Thomas (born August 5, 1811, Metz, France—died February 12, 1896, Paris) was a French composer best known for his operas, particularly Mignon, written in a light, melodious style.

Thomas attended the Paris Conservatoire, concluding his studies by winning the Prix de Rome in 1832 for his cantata Hermann et Ketty. Upon his return from Rome in 1835 he launched a career as an opera composer. He began teaching at the conservatory in 1856.

After a series of pleasantly melodious works, he produced his masterpiece and one of the most successful operas in history, Mignon (1866), which by 1894 had received more than 1,000 performances by the Opéra-Comique alone. This and his next opera, Hamlet (1868), brought him international fame, and in 1871 he became director of the Paris Conservatoire.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Encyclopaedia Britannica.