Charles Gounod

Charles-François Gounod (French: Charles-François Gounod, pronounced: [ʃaʁl fʁɑəswa ɡuno]; June 17, 1818 – October 17, 1893) was a French composer whose representative work was the opera Faust. Gounod was born in Paris, his mother was a pianist and his father was a painter. Musical talent emerged early. In 1836, he entered the Paris Conservatoire and studied under Fromental Allévi. In 1839, he won first place at the Prix de Rome for his oratorio "Ferdinand". He then received the opportunity to further his studies in Italy at public expense, studying the religious music of Palestrina and others. On his way back to China in 1842, he came into contact with many famous German and Austrian writers and works, including Mendelssohn, and was deeply affected. In Paris, he served as organist and conductor of several orchestras and choirs. Gounod created his first opera "Sappho" in 1851, but the response was mediocre. The second opera, "The Cruel Nun" in 1852, also failed. The opera "Faust" adapted from Goethe's work in 1859 was a great success because of its popular melody, rich colors and soft lyrics. It created a new trend and established his worldwide status. In addition, his famous opera works include "Romeo and Juliet" (1867), which was adapted from Shakespeare's work. Gounod was a devout Christian, so he created a large number of works on religious themes. His gorgeous and simple style is also unique in religious music. His main representative works include the popular "Ave Maria" (a melody based on Bach's works), "Saint Cecile Celebration Mass", "Puppet Funeral March" and the Vatican's national anthem "Pope March", etc.