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Félicien-César David
French composer
Quick Facts
- Born:
- April 13, 1810, Cadenet, France
- Died:
- August 29, 1876, Saint-Germain-en-Laye (aged 66)
- Movement / Style:
- Orientalism
- Romanticism
Félicien-César David (born April 13, 1810, Cadenet, France—died August 29, 1876, Saint-Germain-en-Laye) was a composer whose music opened the door for the Oriental exoticism that was to become a fixture in French Romantic music. David was choirmaster at the Saint-Sauveur Cathedral at Aix-en-Provence (1829) and in 1830 studied at the Paris Conservatory. The following year he joined the socialist brotherhood of the Saint-Simonians, becoming their main artistic figure and composing chants for their services. From 1833 to 1835 he preached their doctrines in the Middle East. In his later music, David incorporated recollections of the music he had heard in ...(100 of 173 words)