Hector Berlioz
Born: 11th December 1803, La Cote Saint Andre, France
Died: 8th March 1869, Paris
Nationality: French
Louis-Hector Berlioz was a French Romantic composer and conductor. His output includes orchestral works such as the Symphonie fantastique and Harold in Italy, choral pieces including the Requiem and L'Enfance du Christ, his three operas Benvenuto Cellini, Les Troyens and Béatrice et Bénédict, and works of hybrid genres such as the "dramatic symphony" Roméo et Juliette and the "dramatic legend" La Damnation de Faust.
The elder son of a provincial physician, Berlioz was expected to follow his father into medicine, and he attended a Parisian medical college before defying his family by taking up music as a profession. His independence of mind and refusal to follow traditional rules and formulas put him at odds with the conservative musical establishment of Paris. He briefly moderated his style sufficiently to win France's premier music prize – the Prix de Rome – in 1830, but he learned little from the academics of the Paris Conservatoire.
Read more at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hector_Berlioz
Browse: Berlioz
Further Reading: Berlioz
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Klaus Mäkelä conducts Berlioz and Ravel
6th Jun 2025
The Finnish conductor and the Orchestre de Paris present an incredibly colourful and terrifying reading of Berlioz's Symphonie fantastique alongside a riotously chaotic account of Ravel's La valse.
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Berlioz's Les nuits d'été & Harold en Italie from John Nelson in Strasbourg
18th Nov 2022
Vocal shape-shifter Michael Spyres tackles the song-cycle in the original orchestral keys, whilst viola-player Timothy Ridout is a warmly collegiate soloist in Harold on this clear-eyed, affectionate recording from Strasbourg.
Popular Genres: Berlioz
Popular Works: Berlioz
- Ballet des Sylphes (from La Damnation de Faust, Op. 24) (27)
- Béatrice et Bénédict, Op. 27: Overture (46)
- Benvenuto Cellini (13)
- Benvenuto Cellini Overture (57)
- Chasse royale et Orage (from Les Troyens) (24)
- Cléopâtre - Scène lyrique, H36 (38)
- D'amour l'ardente flamme (from La Damnation de Faust) (18)
- Devant la maison (from La Damnation de Faust) (12)
- Grande Messe des Morts, Op. 5 (Requiem) (72)
- Grande Symphonie funèbre et triomphale, Op. 15 (15)
- Harold en Italie, Op. 16 (86)
- Herminie - Scène lyrique, H29 (11)
- King Lear Overture, Op. 4 (34)
- L'Enfance du Christ, Op. 25 (23)
- L'Enfance du Christ, Op. 25 - L'Adieu des bergers (34)
- La belle voyageuse (11)
- La captive, Op. 12 (21)
- La Damnation de Faust, Op. 24 (34)
- La Damnation de Faust, Op. 24: Nature immense, impénétrable et fière (12)
- La Damnation de Faust, Op. 24: Rákóczi March (64)
- La Mort d’Ophélie (19)
- Le carnaval romain Overture, Op. 9 (180)
- Le Corsaire Overture, Op. 21 (81)
- Le Jeune Pâtre Breton, Op. 13 No. 4 (16)
- Lélio, ou Le Retour a la vie (19)
- Les Francs-juges Overture, Op. 3 (41)
- Les Nuits d'été, Op. 7 (93)
- Les Troyens (20)
- Menuet des Follets (from La Damnation de Faust, Op. 24) (17)
- Merci, doux crépuscule! (from La Damnation de Faust, Op. 24) (11)
- Reverie et Caprice, Op. 8 (28)
- Rob Roy Overture (16)
- Roméo et Juliette, Op. 17 (41)
- Roméo et Juliette, Op. 17: Love Scene (20)
- Symphonie fantastique, Op. 14 (349)
- Te Deum, Op. 22 (16)
- Tristia, Op. 18 (13)
- Villanelle (from Les nuits d'été, Op. 7) (12)
- Waverley Overture Op. 1 (19)
- Zaïde Op. 19 No. 1 (11)
Recent Best Sellers: Berlioz
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Special offer. Berlioz: Symphonie fantastique & Waverley Overture
London Symphony Orchestra, Valery Gergiev
SACD + Blu-ray Audio: Original price $11.75 Reduced $8.81Download from $8.00 -
Special offer. Berlioz: Symphonie fantastique
London Symphony Orchestra, Sir Colin Davis
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Building a Library, October 2011, First Choice
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Gramophone Magazine, May 2001, Editor's Choice
CD: Original price $8.25 Reduced $7.01Download from $5.00 -
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Claudio Abbado: The Last Concert | Recorded in May 2013, Philharmonie Berlin
Deborah York (soprano) & Stella Doufexis (mezzo-soprano) Berliner Philharmoniker, Claudio Abbado
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International Classical Music Awards, 2017, Winner - Symphonic
2 CDs + Blu-ray: $68.50Download from $16.50 -
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Paganini: 24 Caprices | plus Caprices by Berlioz, Cervelló, Kreisler, Ortiz, Saint-Saëns, Sarasate, Wieniawski
María Dueñas (violin), Itamar Golan (piano), Boris Kuschnir (violin), Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, Mihhail Gerts
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Presto Recording of the Week, 14th February 2025
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Gramophone Magazine, March 2025, Recording of the Month
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Gramophone Awards, 2025 Winners, Instrumental
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Presto Recordings of the Year, Finalist 2025
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The New York Times, Best Classical Music Albums of 2025
2 CDs: $24.25Download from $13.25 -
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New. Berlioz: Romeo and Juliet, Op. 17 (Remastered)
Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Carlo Maria Giulini
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New. Berlioz: Symphonie fantastique
Queensland Symphony Orchestra, Umberto Clerici
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