Jules Massenet

Jules Émile Frédéric Massenet (12 May 1842 – 13 August 1912) was a French composer of the Romantic era, renowned for his operas, including over thirty works with 'Manon' and 'Werther' being the most frequently performed. A prodigious talent, he won the Prix de Rome in 1863. Massenet was influential within the Paris Conservatoire as a professor of composition and had notable students like Charpentier and Chausson. His music, while facing criticism of being conservative, has endured, especially his operas that are now recognized as Belle Époque masterpieces.