Bizet was born on 25th October 1838 in Paris. He was registered with the legal name Alexandre-César-Léopold Bizet, but was baptised Georges Bizet and was always known by the latter name. A child prodigy, he entered the prestigious Paris Conservatory of Music a fortnight before his tenth birthday.
In 1857 he shared a prize offered by Jacques Offenbach for a setting of the one-act operetta Le docteur Miracle, and won the Prix de Rome. As per the conditions of the scholarship, he studied in Rome for three years. There, his talent began to mature with such works as the opera Don Procopio. Apart from this stay in Rome, Bizet lived in the Paris area for his entire life.
On his return from Rome, he dedicated himself to composition. In 1863 he composed the opera Les pêcheurs de perles for the Theatre-Lyrique. During this period Bizet also wrote the opera La jolie fille de Perth, his well-known L'arlésienne (written as incidental music for a play), and the piano piece Jeux d'enfants. He also wrote the romantic opera Djamileh, which is often seen as a percursor of Carmen. His first symphony, the symphony in C major, was written at the Paris Conservatory when he was only seventeen years old, evidently as a student assignment. It seems that Bizet completely forgot about it himself, and it was not discovered again until 1935, in the archives of the Conservatory library. Upon its first performance, it was immediately hailed as a junior masterwork and a welcome addition to the early Romantic period repertoire. he symphony is noteworthy for bearing a strong stylistic resemblance to the music of Franz Schubert, whose work was virtually unknown in Paris at that time (with the possible exception of a few of his songs). A second symphony, "Roma" was not completed.
Bizet's best-known work is his 1875 opera, Carmen, which was based on an 1846 novel of the same name by Prosper Mérimée. Influenced by Giuseppe Verdi, Bizet composed the title role in Carmen for a mezzo-soprano. The opera was not an immediate success, and Bizet became despondent over the perceived failure, but praise came from such luminaries as Camille Saint-Saëns, Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky, and Claude Debussy, who recognised its greatness. Their views were prophetic, as the public eventually made Carmen one of the most popular works in operatic history.
Although best known as a composer, Bizet was also a fine pianist, whose playing was praised by no less a judge than Franz Liszt. After Bizet flawlessly sightread a complex piece, Liszt said he considered him one of the three finest pianists in Europe.
Bizet had long suffered from quinsy, a painful inflammation of the tonsils associated with angina, and never got to enjoy Carmen's success. Just a few months after the opera's debut, he died on his sixth wedding anniversary, 3rd June 1875, at the early age of thirty-six, the official cause of death being listed as a failed heart due to "acute articular rheumatism". He was buried in the Père Lachaise Cemetery, Paris.
Habanera from Carmen
Georges Bizet Lyrics
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Que nul ne peut apprivoiser
Et c'est bien in vain qu′on l'appelle
S'il lui convient de refuser
Rien n′y fait, menace ou prière
L′un parle bien, l'autre se tait
Et c′est l'autre que je préfère
L'amour! L′amour! L'amour! L'amour!
L′amour est enfant de Bohême
Il n′a jamais jamais connu de loi
Si tou ne m'aimes pas, je t′aime
Si je t'aime, prends garde à toi!
Si tou ne m′aimes pas, si tou ne m'aimes pas, je t′aime
Mais si je t'aime, si je t'aime, prends garde à toi!
L′oiseau que tu croyais surprendere
Battit d′aile et s'envola
L′amour est loin, tu peux l'attendre
Tu ne l′attends pas, il est là
Tout atour de toi, vite vite
Il vient, s'en va, puis il revient
Tu crois le tenir, il t′evite
Tu crois l'eviter, il te tient
The lyrics to Georges Bizet's song "Habanera" from the opera Carmen speak about the elusive nature of love. The singer describes love as a rebellious bird that cannot be tamed or controlled by anyone. It refuses to be summoned and does not yield to threats or prayers. The singer confesses a preference for the silent one, the one who hasn't said anything but still captivates her.
The song continues to explore the unpredictable and lawless nature of love. Love is depicted as a Bohemian child who has never known any rules or boundaries. It states that if you do not love me, I love you, but if I love you, be careful. Love is portrayed as a force that cannot be contained or predicted.
The lyrics also emphasize the fleeting nature of love. The bird of love that one thought they had caught suddenly flaps its wings and flies away. Love is always distant, even when one waits for it. It comes and goes, teasing and eluding those who try to hold onto it. Love seems to play a game of avoidance and pursuit, always slipping through one's grasp.
Overall, the lyrics of "Habanera" convey the idea that love is a wild and untamed force that cannot be controlled or fully understood. It is both captivating and elusive, capable of bringing joy or causing harm.
Line by Line Meaning
L′amour est un oiseau rebelle
Love is a rebellious bird
Que nul ne peut apprivoiser
That no one can tame
Et c'est bien in vain qu′on l'appelle
And it is in vain that we call it
S'il lui convient de refuser
If it is suitable for it to refuse
Rien n′y fait, menace ou prière
Nothing works, neither threat nor prayer
L′un parle bien, l'autre se tait
One speaks well, the other remains silent
Et c′est l'autre que je préfère
And it is the other one that I prefer
Il n′a rien dit mais il me plait
He hasn't said anything but I like him
L'amour! L′amour! L'amour! L'amour!
Love! Love! Love! Love!
L′amour est enfant de Bohême
Love is a child of Bohemia
Il n′a jamais jamais connu de loi
It has never, never known any law
Si tou ne m'aimes pas, je t′aime
If you don't love me, I love you
Si je t'aime, prends garde à toi!
If I love you, beware!
Si tou ne m′aimes pas, si tou ne m'aimes pas, je t′aime
If you don't love me, if you don't love me, I love you
Mais si je t'aime, si je t'aime, prends garde à toi!
But if I love you, if I love you, beware!
L′oiseau que tu croyais surprendre
The bird that you thought you could surprise
Battit d′aile et s'envola
Flapped its wings and flew away
L′amour est loin, tu peux l'attendre
Love is far away, you can wait for it
Tu ne l′attends pas, il est là
You don't expect it, it is there
Tout autour de toi, vite vite
All around you, quickly, quickly
Il vient, s'en va, puis il revient
It comes, goes away, then it returns
Tu crois le tenir, il t'evite
You think you have it, it avoids you
Tu crois l'eviter, il te tient
You think you avoid it, it holds you
Writer(s): Georges Bizet
Contributed by Julian N. Suggest a correction in the comments below.