French composers for kids: ten to know

French classical music is known for color, wit, and dance. Its composers wrote about moonlight, animals, fairy tales, and a broom that will not stop carrying water. This list has ten French composers in order of birth, with a short story and one piece to hear for each. All ten have a full page on this site.

Ten French composers

1. Élisabeth Jacquet de La Guerre (1665 to 1729)

She played the harpsichord for King Louis XIV when she was about five years old, and she grew up at his court. She became one of the most admired musicians in France. Read Jacquet de La Guerre for kids.

Hear: A dance from one of her harpsichord suites.

2. Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges (1745 to 1799)

He was born in the Caribbean to an enslaved mother and grew up in France. He became a violinist, a composer, and one of the best fencers in Europe, and he led one of the finest orchestras in Paris. Read the Chevalier de Saint-Georges for kids.

Hear: The last movement of his Violin Concerto in A major, Op. 5, No. 2.

3. Hector Berlioz (1803 to 1869)

Berlioz was sent to Paris to become a doctor and became a composer in its place. He had wild ideas and wanted a huge orchestra to carry them out. Read Berlioz for kids.

Hear: The Hungarian March, four minutes that start soft and end in a blaze.

4. Camille Saint-Saëns (1835 to 1921)

Saint-Saëns wrote The Carnival of the Animals as a joke for his friends. He did not want it played in public while he lived. Read Saint-Saëns for kids.

Hear: “The Swan,” where a cello glides over two rippling pianos. See the Carnival of the Animals guide.

5. Georges Bizet (1838 to 1875)

Bizet wrote the opera Carmen and a set of piano duets about children’s games. He died three months after Carmen opened and never knew how famous it would become. Read Bizet for kids.

Hear: The Prelude to Carmen. See Carmen for kids.

6. Gabriel Fauré (1845 to 1924)

Fauré wrote songs, piano pieces, and chamber music. He was a famous teacher too, and he led the Paris Conservatory. Read Fauré for kids.

Hear: The Berceuse from his Dolly Suite, a lullaby for two players at one piano.

7. Claude Debussy (1862 to 1918)

Debussy’s music sounds soft and hazy. He wrote pieces about moonlight, the sea, and falling snow, and a set of piano pieces for his young daughter. Read Debussy for kids.

Hear: “Clair de lune.” Read what the title means.

8. Paul Dukas (1865 to 1935)

Dukas is known around the world for one piece. He was hard on his own work, and he burned much more music than he kept. Read Dukas for kids.

Hear: The Sorcerer’s Apprentice. See the listening guide.

9. Erik Satie (1866 to 1925)

Satie wrote short, calm piano pieces and gave some of them funny titles. Read Satie for kids.

Hear: Gymnopédie No. 1. See what to hear.

10. Maurice Ravel (1875 to 1937)

Ravel was a master at choosing which instrument plays each tune. He wrote Boléro, and he wrote Mother Goose for two children he knew. Read Ravel for kids.

Hear: “Empress of the Pagodas” from Mother Goose. See the Mother Goose guide and the Boléro guide.

Six more to hear

• Charles Gounod (1818 to 1893). Hear the Funeral March of a Marionette, a funny march about a broken puppet. Read Gounod for kids.
• Léo Delibes (1836 to 1891). Hear the Mazurka from the ballet Coppélia. Read Delibes for kids.
• Émile Waldteufel (1837 to 1915). Hear The Skaters’ Waltz. Read Waldteufel for kids.
• Cécile Chaminade (1857 to 1944). Hear her Concertino for flute. Read Chaminade for kids.
• Lili Boulanger (1893 to 1918). The first woman to win the top French prize for young composers. Read Lili Boulanger for kids.
• Francis Poulenc (1899 to 1963). Hear The Story of Babar, the Little Elephant, for a storyteller and a piano. Read Poulenc for kids.

Jacques Offenbach wrote the Can-can in Paris, and he was born in Germany. Read Offenbach for kids.

The big prize

For more than 150 years, France held a contest for its best young composers. The winner earned several years of study in Rome, paid for by the government.

Composer	The prize
Berlioz	Won in 1830, after several tries
Bizet	Won in 1857
Debussy	Won in 1884
Lili Boulanger	Won in 1913, the first woman to do so
Ravel	Tried five times and never won

Ravel’s last loss caused such an uproar that the head of the Paris Conservatory stepped down.

What makes music sound French

Color. Debussy and Ravel cared about the exact sound of each chord and each instrument. People compare their music to the paintings of the time, with their light and haze.

Dance. Ballet grew up at the French court, and French composers wrote for dancers for centuries.

Wit. French composers were not afraid to be funny. Listen to Satie’s titles, the Carnival of the Animals, and the broom in The Sorcerer’s Apprentice.

Short pieces. Much French music comes in small, polished pieces with a title that paints a picture.

Things to do together

Paint the moonlight. Play “Clair de lune.” Paint with watery blues and grays while it plays.

Name the animal. Play three parts of The Carnival of the Animals. Ask your child to name each animal before you say it.

Follow the broom. Play The Sorcerer’s Apprentice. March like the broom, and speed up when the music does.

Old and new. Play a harpsichord dance by Jacquet de La Guerre, and then a piano piece by Debussy. They are 200 years apart. Ask what changed.

Make a timeline. Write the ten names and birth years on cards and put them in order.

Print and play

Fill in a composer study notebook page for each composer you hear. Print the fact sheets for Debussy, Ravel, and Saint-Saëns.

For more lists by country, read Russian composers for kids and German composers for kids. For more composers by era, see classical composers for kids.