Delibes for kids: his life, his music, and what to play first

Léo Delibes was a French composer who lived from 1836 to 1891. He wrote for the theater: ballets, comic operas, and one famous serious opera. Before him, ballet music was often written fast, to give the dancers a beat and little more. Delibes wrote ballet music that orchestras also play in concert. The best first piece for a child is the Mazurka from his ballet Coppélia.

Quick facts

• Born: 1836, in a village in western France
• Died: 1891, in Paris, France
• Era: Romantic
• Played: organ and piano, and he sang
• Known for: the ballets Coppélia and Sylvia, and the opera Lakmé

The life in short

Delibes’s mother was a musician and gave him his first lessons. His father died when Léo was 11, and the family moved to Paris.

He had a fine voice. He sang in a church choir, and as a boy he sang in the chorus at the Paris Opera.

At the Paris Conservatory, one of his teachers was Adolphe Adam, the composer of the ballet Giselle. Adam helped him find work in the theater.

For years, Delibes held two jobs at once. He played the organ in a church, and he worked as a rehearsal pianist and chorus master in theaters. He wrote light, funny stage shows on the side, more than a dozen of them.

His job at the Paris Opera brought him close to the ballet. In 1870, he wrote the full score for Coppélia. It was a success from the first night, and it has been danced ever since.

A second ballet, Sylvia, followed in 1876. Then came his opera Lakmé, set in India, in 1883.

The Russian composer Tchaikovsky admired Sylvia. He wrote to a friend that if he had known it sooner, he would not have written Swan Lake.

In his last ten years, Delibes taught composition at the Conservatory.

What the music sounds like

Delibes’s music is light on its feet. The tunes are graceful, the rhythms are crisp, and the orchestra sparkles. He had a gift for finding the right instrument for each moment: a flute for a doll, horns for a hunt, plucked strings for tiptoeing.

He borrowed dances from other countries. Coppélia has a mazurka from Poland and a czardas from Hungary.

Pieces to play first

Mazurka, from Coppélia. A proud, stamping dance in three beats. The weight often falls on the second beat.

Waltz, from Coppélia. A light, turning tune for the heroine, Swanhilda.

Pizzicato, from Sylvia. The strings pluck every note. It tiptoes and teases, and it has been used in many cartoons.

Flower Duet, from Lakmé. Two women’s voices float together as they gather flowers by a river. The tune is used in films and advertisements, and many people know it without knowing its name.

Music of the Automatons, from Coppélia. A tinkling tune for the toymaker’s mechanical dolls.

The story of Coppélia

Coppélia is a comedy. An old toymaker, Dr. Coppélius, has built a life-size dancing doll. He sits her on his balcony with a book. A young man named Franz sees her and falls for her, to the annoyance of his sweetheart, Swanhilda.

Swanhilda sneaks into the workshop with her friends and finds out the truth. When the toymaker returns, she dresses in the doll’s clothes and pretends to come to life. All ends well with a wedding.

The story comes from a tale by E. T. A. Hoffmann, the same writer who gave us the story of The Nutcracker.

Things to do together

Be the doll. Play the Music of the Automatons. Move with stiff arms and legs. Wind down at the end.

Pluck along. Play the Pizzicato and pluck an invisible violin on every note.

Stamp on two. In the Mazurka, count “one, two, three” and stamp on “two.”

Doll or girl? One person moves around the room. The others guess whether they are being a doll or a real person.

Print and play

Fill in a composer study notebook page for Delibes. To learn how ballet works, read ballet for kids. For another ballet from a Hoffmann story, read The Nutcracker story for kids. For the composer who admired him, read Tchaikovsky for kids.

For the full story, act by act, read the Coppélia story for kids. For more composers by era, see classical composers for kids.