Édouard Lalo (1823-1892); FRA

Édouard Lalo (1823–1892) was born in Lille, France, into a family of Spanish ancestry. After studying violin and cello at the Lille Conservatory, he moved to Paris as a teenager and continued his training while earning his living as a performer and teacher. For many years he was better known as a violinist and chamber musician than as a composer, notably as a member of the Armingaud Quartet. Recognition came relatively late, when the success of his orchestral works in the 1870s established him as an important figure in the revival of French instrumental music.

Lalo’s music combines French clarity and elegance with strong rhythmic energy, colorful orchestration, and an attraction to exotic or national character. His best-known composition, the five-movement Symphonie espagnole for violin and orchestra, became one of the staples of the violin repertory. Other major works include the Cello Concerto in D minor, the Violin Concerto in F major, the Norwegian Rhapsody, the ballet Namouna, and the opera Le roi d’Ys. His vigorous instrumental writing helped prepare the way for the flourishing of French symphonic and chamber music later in the nineteenth century.

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Read biography at allmusic.com.