Gustave Charpentier (June 25, 1860 ? February 18, 1956) was a French composer, best known for his opera Louise. He was born in Dieuze, the son of a baker, and after studying at the conservatoire in Lille entered the Paris Conservatoire in 1881. There he studied compositions under Jules Massenet and in 1887 won the Prix de Rome for his cantata Didon. During the time in Rome that the prize gave him, he wrote the orchestral Impressions d'Italie and began work on the libretto and music for what would become his best known work, the opera Louise. Charpentier returned to Paris, and continued to compose, including songs on texts by Charles Baudelaire and Voltaire. He eventually completed Louise, and it was accepted for production by the Opéra-Comique. A realistic portrait of Parisian working-class life, it is sometimes considered a French example of verismo opera. The premiere of Louise

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