Opera Composers by Name

by bderoes-12985 | created - 09 Oct 2020 | updated - 11 Dec 2021 | Public

1. Mark Adamo

Writer | Little Women

Mark Adamo was born in 1962 in the USA. He is a writer and composer, known for Little Women (2000), Great Performances (1971) and A Midsummer Night's Stream (2021).

2. John Adams

Soundtrack | Shutter Island

John Adams was born on February 15, 1947 in Worcester, Massachusetts, USA. He is a composer, known for Shutter Island (2010), Run Lola Run (1998) and We Are Who We Are (2020).

3. Thomas Adès

Music_department | Colette

Thomas Adès is known for Colette (2018), Mozart in the Jungle (2014) and The Edge of Democracy (2019).

Franco Alfano was born on March 8, 1876 in Naples, Campania, Italy. He was a composer, known for Two Lovers (2008), Cyrano de Bergerac (2008) and My Heart Is Calling (1935). He died on October 27, 1954 in Sanremo, Liguria, Italy.

5. Louis Andriessen

Composer | The Family

Louis Andriessen was born on June 6, 1939 in Utrecht, Utrecht, Netherlands. He was a composer, known for The Family (1973), Requiem (1986) and La Commedia (2014). He was married to Monika Germino and Jeanette Yanikian. He died on July 1, 2021 in Weesp, Noord-Holland, Netherlands.

6. Dominick Argento

Writer | Great Performances

Dominick Argento was born on October 27, 1927 in York, Pennsylvania, USA. Dominick was a writer and composer, known for Great Performances (1971), Der Bär (1964) and Postcard from Morocco (2019). Dominick was married to Carolyn Bailey. Dominick died on February 20, 2019 in Minneapolis, ...

7. Béla Bartók

Soundtrack | The Shining

Born in Hungary in 1881, Bartok began his musical studies on the piano at age five. His mother was his first teacher; after his father died in 1888, the Bartok family moved to Nagyszolos, where Bela continued his piano studies and took up composition. At age eleven, he made his first public ...

8. Jack Beeson

Composer | NET Opera Theater

Jack Beeson was born on July 15, 1921 in Muncie, Indiana, USA. He was a composer and writer, known for NET Opera Theater (1967) and Live from Lincoln Center (1976). He was married to Nora. He died on June 6, 2010 in Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA.

9. Ludwig van Beethoven

Soundtrack | Elysium

Beethoven was the child of a Flamian musician family and became a member of the electoral orchestra of Bonn in 1783. In 1787 he studied at Mozart's in Vienna and in 1792 he moved all to Vienna becoming a student of Joseph Haydn. The Vienna High Society loved him as a piano player as well as as ...

10. Vincenzo Bellini

Soundtrack | Avengers: Age of Ultron

Vincenzo Salvatore Bellini was born on November 2, 1801 in Catania, Sicily, Italy. He was the first of seven children in a musical family. His grandfather gave him first piano lessons at the age of 3, and at the age of 5 young Bellini could play good piano to an audience. His first composition ...

11. Alban Berg

Soundtrack | Natural Born Killers

Alban Maria Johannes Berg was born on February 9, 1885, in Vienna, Austria. He was the third of four children in the upper-class family of Conrad Berg and his wife Johanna, nee Braun. He was trained for a career in accounting, but his father died in 1900, causing him a depression and the onset of ...

12. Hector Berlioz

Soundtrack | Star Trek: First Contact

Hector Berlioz was born on December 11, 1803, into the family of Dr. Louis Berlioz and Marie-Antoinette-Josephine. Hector was the first of six children, three of whom died. He took music lessons at home from a visiting teacher and played flute and guitar. By age 16 he wrote a song for voice and ...

13. Leonard Bernstein

Soundtrack | New York Philharmonic Young People's Concerts

Renowned composer ("West Side Story", "Candide", "On The Town"), conductor, arranger, pianist, educator, author, TV/radio host, educated at the Boston Latin School and Harvard University (BA) with Walter Piston. Edward Burlingame Hill and A. Tillman Merritt. He studied piano with Helen Coates, ...

14. Georges Bizet

Soundtrack | Match Point

Georges Bizet was a child prodigy. Entering the Paris Conservatory at the age of nine, he counted among his teachers Antoine Marmontel, François Benoist and Jacques Halévy. At nineteen Bizet won a Prix de Rome. That same year he wrote his first opera, 'Le Docteur Miracle', a one-act comedy. After ...

15. Karl-Birger Blomdahl

Director | Altisonans

Karl-Birger Blomdahl was born on October 19, 1916 in Växjö, Kronobergs län, Sweden. He was a composer and director, known for Altisonans (1966), Sawdust and Tinsel (1953) and Three Dances (1946). He died on June 14, 1968 in Kungsängen, Stockholms län, Sweden.

16. Philippe Boesmans

Composer | Magnum Begynasium Bruxellense

Philippe Boesmans was born on May 17, 1936 in Tongeren, Flanders, Belgium. He was a composer and actor, known for Magnum Begynasium Bruxellense (1978), Ne pas stagner (1973) and Rendez-vous avec un ange (2010). He died on April 10, 2022 in Brussels, Belgium.

17. Arrigo Boito

Soundtrack | Match Point

Arrigo Boito was born on February 24, 1842 in Padua, Lombardy-Venetia, Austrian Empire [now Veneto, Italy]. He was a writer, known for Match Point (2005), Batman Begins (2005) and Faust and the Devil (1949). He died on June 10, 1918 in Milan, Lombardy, Italy.

18. William Bolcom

Soundtrack | Great Performances

William Bolcom was born on May 26, 1938 in Seattle, Washington, USA. He is a composer, known for Great Performances (1971), Hester Street (1975) and Illuminata (1998).

19. Aleksandr Borodin

Soundtrack | Money Talks

Aleksandr Borodin was born on November 12, 1833 in St. Petersburg, Russia. He was in fact the illegitimate son of the Georgian Prince, Lukas Gedevanishvili, who registered his son under the name of his serf and payed for Borodin's private education in music, languages and sciences.

Young Borodin ...

20. Benjamin Britten

Soundtrack | Moonrise Kingdom

Benjamin Britten was born on November 22, 1913 in Lowestoft, Suffolk, England, UK. He was a composer and writer, known for Moonrise Kingdom (2012), The Lobster (2015) and The Machine (2013). He died on December 4, 1976 in Aldeburgh, Suffolk, England, UK.

21. Daniel Börtz

Composer | Karl XII

Daniel Börtz was born on August 8, 1943 in Osby, Skåne län, Sweden. He is a composer, known for Karl XII (1974), Backanterna (1993) and På tu man hand (1980).

22. Alfredo Catalani

Soundtrack | Crimson Tide

Alfredo Catalani was born on June 19, 1854 in Lucca, Grand Duchy of Tuscany [now Tuscany, Italy]. He is known for Crimson Tide (1995), A Single Man (2009) and Philadelphia (1993). He died on August 7, 1893 in Milan, Lombardy, Italy.

23. Daniel Catán

Writer | Great Performances

Daniel Catán was born on April 3, 1949 in Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico. He was a composer and writer, known for Great Performances (1971), El vuelo del águila (1994) and I'm Losing You (1998). He was married to Andrea Puente. He died on April 9, 2011 in Austin, Texas, USA.

24. Francesco Cavalli

Music_department | Il Giasone

Francesco Cavalli is known for Il Giasone (2012), Rimini. Un itinerario tra storia, monumenti e opere d'arte (2005) and La Didone, opera in un prologo e tre atti (2007).

25. Ruperto Chapí

Soundtrack | Teatro Apolo

Ruperto Chapí was born on March 27, 1851 in Villena, Alicante, Spain. He was a composer, known for Teatro Apolo (1950), De Madrid al cielo (1952) and La danza del corazón (1953). He was married to Vicenta Selva Alvarez. He died on March 25, 1909 in Madrid, Spain.

26. Luigi Cherubini

Soundtrack | Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me

Luigi Cherubini was born on September 8, 1760 in Florence, Grand Duchy of Tuscany [now Tuscany, Italy]. He is known for Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (1992), Novye priklyucheniya yanki pri dvore korolya Artura (1989) and Le souper (1992). He was married to Anne Cécile Tourette. He died on March 15,...

27. Francesco Cilea

Soundtrack | Philadelphia

Francesco Cilea was born on July 23, 1866 in Palmi, Calabria, Italy. He is known for Philadelphia (1993), Adriana Lecouvreur (2011) and Man of Straw (1958). He was married to Rosa Lavarello. He died on November 20, 1950 in Varazze, Liguria, Italy.

28. John Corigliano

Composer | Le violon rouge

John Corigliano was born on February 16, 1938 in New York City, New York, USA. He is a composer, known for The Red Violin (1998), Altered States (1980) and Revolution (1985).

29. Douglas J. Cuomo

Composer | Sex and the City

Douglas J. Cuomo was born on February 13, 1958 in Tucson, Arizona, USA. He is a composer, known for Sex and the City (1998), Sex and the City 2 (2010) and Sex and the City (2008).

30. Claude Debussy

Soundtrack | Rise of the Planet of the Apes

Claude Debussy was born in St. Germain-en-Laye, near Paris, France. His father was a salesman and kept a china shop. His mother was a seamstress. Some traumatizing events in his childhood caused him a depression and he never spoke about his early years. Later he could not compose without having his...

31. Léo Delibes

Soundtrack | True Romance

Léo Delibes was born on February 21, 1836 in Saint-Germain-du-Val, La Flèche, Sarthe, France. He was a composer and writer, known for True Romance (1993), Carlito's Way (1993) and Pig (2021). He was married to Léontine Estelle Denain. He died on January 16, 1891 in Paris, France.

32. Norman Dello Joio

Composer | A Golden Prison: The Louvre

Norman Dello Joio was born on January 24, 1913 in New York City, New York, USA. He was a composer and writer, known for A Golden Prison: The Louvre (1964), Vanity Fair (1961) and Kamikaze (1960). He was married to Barbara Bolton and Grayce Baumgold. He died on July 24, 2008 in East Hampton, New ...

33. Gaetano Donizetti

Soundtrack | Le Cinquième Élément

Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti was born November 29, 1797 in Bergamo, Italy. He was born in a windowless cellar into a poor family of a government clerk. At the age of 9 he became a protégé of Johann Simon Mayr, Maestro di Cappella of the Lombard city. Johann Mayr hosted and educated young ...

34. Dun Tan

Composer | Wo hu cang long

Dun Tan was born on August 18, 1957 in Si Mao, Hunan Province, China. He is a composer and producer, known for Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000), Hero (2002) and Fallen (1998).

35. Antonín Dvorák

Soundtrack | Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu

Antonin Dvorak was a son of butcher, but he did not follow his father's trade. While assisting his father part-time, he studied music, and graduated from the Prague Organ School in 1859. He also was an accomplished violinist and violist, and joined the Bohemian Theatre Orchestra, which was under ...

36. Péter Eötvös

Composer | Álmodozások kora

Péter Eötvös was born on January 2, 1944 in Székelyudvarhely, Hungary [now Odorheiu Secuiesc, Romania]. He was a composer and writer, known for Age of Illusions (1965), Egy örült éjszaka (1970) and Tüske a köröm alatt (1988). He was married to Piroska Molnár, Mária ...

37. Joep Franssens

Composer | Symmetry

Joep Franssens is known for Symmetry (2015), ________ (2018) and Other Worlds (2020).

38. George Gershwin

Soundtrack | Manhattan

He was born Jacob Gershowitz, 26 September 1898, in Brooklyn, New York, of Russian-Jewish immigrants. As a boy he could play popular and classical works on his brother Ira's piano by ear. In 1913 he quit school to study music and began composing for Tin Pan Alley; by 1919 he had his first hit "...

39. Vittorio Giannini

Composer | NBC Television Opera Theatre

Vittorio Giannini was born on October 19, 1903 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. Vittorio was a composer and writer, known for NBC Television Opera Theatre (1949), Steel: Man's Servant (1938) and High Over the Borders (1942). Vittorio died on November 28, 1966 in New York City, New York, USA.

40. Umberto Giordano

Soundtrack | Ghost in the Shell

Umberto Giordano was born on August 28, 1867 in Foggia, Puglia, Italy. He was a composer, known for Ghost in the Shell (2017), To Rome with Love (2012) and Philadelphia (1993). He was married to Olga Spatz-Wurms. He died on November 12, 1948 in Milan, Lombardy, Italy.

41. Philip Glass

Soundtrack | The Truman Show

Born in Baltimore, Maryland, Glass worked in his father's radio store and discovered music listening to the offbeat Western classical records customers didn't seem to want. He studied the violin and flute, and obtained early admission to the University of Chicago. After graduating in mathematics ...

42. Mikhail Glinka

Soundtrack | The Unforgivable

Mikhail Glinka, the author of the first Russian Opera who suffered from abuse in his early childhood and barely survived the Napoleon's invasion of 1812, had lived most of his adult life outside of Russia and fused Spanish, Italian, French, and other influences in his own music.

He was born Mikhail ...

43. Christoph Willibald Gluck

Soundtrack | Slumdog Millionaire

Young Gluck was a singer in a church choir and thus decided to study music in Prague although his parents wanted him to work in the forest. Having to earn his own money he worked as a part-time musician and finished his studies in Milan where he wrote his first Italian style opera. Impressing the ...

44. Charles Gounod

Soundtrack | Chronicle

Charles Gounod was born on June 17, 1818 in Paris, France. He was a composer, known for Chronicle (2012), The American (2010) and 28 Days Later (2002). He was married to Anna Zimmermann. He died on October 18, 1893 in Saint-Cloud, Seine-et-Oise [now Hauts-de-Seine], France.

45. André-Ernest-Modeste Grétry

Soundtrack | Valmont

André-Ernest-Modeste Grétry was born on February 8, 1741 in Liège, Belgium. André-Ernest-Modeste was a composer, known for Valmont (1989), Love & Friendship (2016) and The Novel of Werther (1938). André-Ernest-Modeste died on September 24, 1813 in Montmorency, France.

46. George Frideric Handel

Soundtrack | Children of Men

Born February 23 1685 in Halle, Germany, he was christened "Georg Friederich Händel" but always signed his name "Georg Friedrich Händel". His father intended for him to go into law, but Händel studied music clandestinely and was eventually allowed to study under an organist. He achieved some ...

47. Joseph Haydn

Soundtrack | Minority Report

Haydn had a hard childhood: at six years old he had to work as a boy singer in a choir and after his voice broke he had to earn his money by playing dance music and serving as a butler. Becoming famous for his compositions Haydn was employed as "Kapellmeister" by Fuerst Esterhazy in Eisenstadt in ...

48. Jake Heggie

Music_department | Moby-Dick

Jake Heggie is known for Moby-Dick (2013), Great Scott (2021) and It's A Wonderful Life (2017).

49. Hans Werner Henze

Soundtrack | The Exorcist

Hans Werner Henze was born on July 1, 1926 in Gütersloh, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. He was a composer and writer, known for The Exorcist (1973), Love Unto Death (1984) and Der junge Lord (1969). He died on October 27, 2012 in Dresden, Germany.

50. Richard Heuberger

Soundtrack | The Emperor Waltz

Richard Heuberger was born on June 18, 1850 in Graz, Austria. He was a composer, known for The Emperor Waltz (1948), Opernball (1939) and Opera Ball (1931). He was married to Louise Herr, Johanna Herr and Auguste Auge. He died on October 28, 1914 in Vienna, Austria.

51. Paul Hindemith

Soundtrack | Dr. M

Paul Hindemith was born on November 16, 1895 in Hanau, Hesse, Germany. He was a composer and writer, known for Dr. M (1990), Notes of Love (1998) and Im Kampf mit dem Berge - 1. Teil: In Sturm und Eis - Eine Alpensymphonie in Bildern (1921). He was married to Gertrud Rottenberg. He died on December...

52. Engelbert Humperdinck

Soundtrack | Hannibal Rising

Engelbert Humperdinck was born on September 1, 1854 in Siegburg, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. He was a composer and writer, known for Hannibal Rising (2007), Lore (2012) and Hänsel und Gretel (2015). He was married to Hedwig Taxer. He died on September 27, 1921 in Neustrelitz, ...

53. Leos Janácek

Music_department | The Unbearable Lightness of Being

Leos Janácek was born on July 3, 1854 in Hukvaldy/Hochwald, Moravia, Austrian Empire [now Czech Republic]. He was a writer, known for The Unbearable Lightness of Being (1988), Cunning Little Vixen and NET Opera Theater (1967). He was married to Zdenka Schulzova. He died on August 12, 1928 in ...

54. Scott Joplin

Soundtrack | The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Scott Joplin was a black American composer and pianist known as the "King of Ragtime" at the turn of the 20th century. Studying piano with teachers near his childhood home, Joplin traveled through the Midwest from the mid-1880s, performing at the Columbian Exposition in Chicago in 1893. Settling in...

55. Leonard Kastle

Director | The Honeymoon Killers

Leonard Kastle was born on February 11, 1929 in New York City, New York, USA. He was a director and writer, known for The Honeymoon Killers (1970), NBC Television Opera Theatre (1949) and The Making of Wedding at Cana. He died on May 18, 2011 in Westerlo, New York, USA.

56. Jerome Kern

Soundtrack | Till the Clouds Roll By

Jerome David Kern was born in 1885. He began his stage career grafting American songs (for which he wrote the music) into imported European operettas. His breakthrough came with the song "They Didn't Believe Me", written (with lyrics by Edward Laska) for a show called "The Girl from Utah". It ...

57. Erich Wolfgang Korngold

Composer | The Adventures of Robin Hood

Erich Wolfgang Korngold was the son of a well-known music critic. A child prodigy, he accompanied his father in playing four-handed piano arrangements by the age of five. By the age of eleven he drew his first plaudits from enthusiastic Viennese audiences (including the emperor Franz Josef) with ...

58. Stefano Landi

Soundtrack | Ava

Stefano Landi was born on February 26, 1587 in Rome, Papal State [now Lazio, Italy]. Stefano is known for Ava (2017), Aires 06 (2006) and Il Sant' Alessio (2007). Stefano died on October 28, 1639 in Rome, Papal State [now Lazio, Italy].

59. Franz Lehár

Soundtrack | The Rocketeer

Franz Lehár was born on April 30, 1870 in Komárom, Austria-Hungary [now Hungary]. He was a composer and actor, known for The Rocketeer (1991), U-571 (2000) and Schindler's List (1993). He was married to Sophie Paschkis. He died on October 24, 1948 in Bad Ischl, Upper Austria, Austria.

60. Ruggero Leoncavallo

Soundtrack | Moonraker

Ruggero Leoncavallo was born on April 23, 1857 in Naples, Kingdom of the Two Sicilies [now Naples, Campania, Italy]. He was a writer and composer, known for Moonraker (1979), The Untouchables (1987) and To Rome with Love (2012). He was married to Berthe Rambaud. He died on August 9, 1919 in ...

61. Albert Lortzing

Composer | Zar und Zimmermann

Albert Lortzing was born on October 23, 1801 in Berlin, Prussia, Holy Roman Empire [now Germany]. He was a composer and writer, known for Zar und Zimmermann (1956), Zar und Zimmermann (1970) and Zar und Zimmermann: Singschule (1908). He was married to Rosina Regina Ahles. He died on January 21, ...

62. Jean-Baptiste Lully

Soundtrack | The Brothers Grimm

Jean-Baptiste Lully was born on November 28, 1632 in Florence, Grand Duchy of Tuscany [now Tuscany, Italy]. He was a composer, known for The Brothers Grimm (2005), Quills (2000) and The BFG (2016). He died on March 22, 1687 in Paris, France.

63. Lorin Maazel

Soundtrack | Kingsman: The Golden Circle

Lorin Maazel was born on March 6, 1930 in Neuilly-sur-Seine, Seine [now Hauts-de-Seine], France. He was a composer and actor, known for Kingsman: The Golden Circle (2017), Detroit Rock City (1999) and August Rush (2007). He was married to Dietlinde Turban, Israela Margalit and Miriam Sandbank. He ...

64. Lech Majewski

Writer | Mlyn i krzyz

Lech Majewski was born on August 30, 1953 in Katowice, Slaskie, Poland. He is a writer and director, known for The Mill and the Cross (2011), Valley of the Gods (2019) and Wojaczek (1999).

65. Bohuslav Martinu

Soundtrack | Giorgino

Bohuslav Martinu was born on December 8, 1890 in Politschka, Bohemia, Austria-Hungary [now Policka, Czech Republic]. He was a composer and writer, known for Giorgino (1994), Our History (1984) and Invasion of the Blood Farmers (1972). He was married to Charlotte Léonie Victorine Quennehen. He died ...

66. Pietro Mascagni

Soundtrack | Raging Bull

Pietro Mascagni was born on December 7, 1863 in Livorno, Tuscany, Italy. He was a composer and writer, known for Raging Bull (1980), Funny Games (2007) and Death to Smoochy (2002). He was married to Lina Carbognani. He died on August 2, 1945 in Rome, Lazio, Italy.

67. Jules Massenet

Soundtrack | Marathon Man

Jules Massenet was born on May 12, 1842 in Saint-Etienne, Loire, Rhône-Alpes, France. He is known for Marathon Man (1976), Tau (2018) and Transamerica (2005). He was married to Louise-Constance de Gressy. He died on August 13, 1912 in Paris, France.

68. Gian Carlo Menotti

Writer | The Medium

Gian Carlo Menotti was born on July 7, 1911 in Cadegliano-Viconago, Lombardy, Italy. He was a writer and composer, known for The Medium (1951), Hallmark Hall of Fame (1951) and Great Performances (1971). He was married to Samuel Barber. He died on February 1, 2007 in Monte Carlo, Monaco.

69. Olivier Messiaen

Soundtrack | The Revenant

Olivier Messiaen was born on December 10, 1908 in Avignon, Vaucluse, France. He was a composer and writer, known for The Revenant (2015), The Favourite (2018) and The Dinner (2017). He was married to Yvonne Loriod and Claire Delbos. He died on April 27, 1992 in Paris, France.

70. Giacomo Meyerbeer

Soundtrack | Maytime

Giacomo Meyerbeer was born on September 5, 1791 in Tasdorf, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. He is known for Maytime (1937), Song of Surrender (1949) and Vento di primavera (1958). He died on May 2, 1864 in Paris, France.

71. Jonathan Mills

Composer | The Eternity Man

Jonathan Mills is known for The Eternity Man (2008).

72. Italo Montemezzi

Music_department | NBC Television Opera Theatre

Italo Montemezzi was born on May 31, 1875 in Vigasio, Verona, Italy. Italo is known for NBC Television Opera Theatre (1949). Italo died on May 15, 1952 in Vigasio, Verona, Italy.

73. Claudio Monteverdi

Soundtrack | A Star Is Born

Claudio Monteverdi was born on May 15, 1567 in Cremona, Duchy of Milan [now Lombardy, Italy]. He was a composer and writer, known for A Star Is Born (2018), Liberal Arts (2012) and Mouchette (1967). He died on November 29, 1643 in Venice, Republic of Venice [now Veneto, Italy].

74. Douglas Moore

Music_department | Live from Lincoln Center

Douglas Moore was born on August 10, 1893 in Cutchogue, Long Island, New York, USA. He was a composer, known for Live from Lincoln Center (1976), Youth Gets a Break (1941) and Arias and Arabesques (1962). He died on July 25, 1969 in Greenport, long Island, New York, USA.

75. Federico Moreno Torroba

Soundtrack | Labor Day

Federico Moreno Torroba was born on March 3, 1891 in Madrid, Spain. He was a composer and writer, known for Labor Day (2013), Maravilla (1957) and La canción de Aixa (1939). He died on September 12, 1982 in Madrid, Spain.

76. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Soundtrack | Amadeus

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart grew up in Salzburg under the regulation of his strict father Leopold who also was a famous composer of his time. His abilities in music were obvious even when Mozart was still young so that in 1762 at the age of six, his father took him with his elder sister on a concert ...

77. Nico Muhly

Composer | The Reader

Nico Muhly was born on August 26, 1981 in Randolph, Vermont, USA. He is a composer, known for The Reader (2008), The Manchurian Candidate (2004) and Notes on a Scandal (2006).

78. Modest Mussorgsky

Soundtrack | Dracula 2000

In 1856 Moussorgsky joined the Russian army where he met the piano player and composer 'Balakirev' who taught him composition. As he could not finish his studies in music, Moussorgsky did not know all stylistic means of composition perfectly and thus had to follow his instinct in his works becoming...

79. Michael Nyman

Composer | The Piano

Michael Nyman studied piano, harpsichord and music history with Alan Bush at the Royal Academy of Music, and musicology with Thurston Dart at King's College, London. Between 1968 and 1978 he worked as a music critic and in 1977 he founded the Campiello Band, later renamed the Michael Nyman Band. ...

80. Jacques Offenbach

Soundtrack | Moulin Rouge!

Jacques Offenbach, the son of a synagogue cantor, was born in Cologne, Germany, June 20, 1819. So strong were his musical talents that the Paris Conservatory waived the rule forbidding foreigners and enrolled him. At the completion of his studies he began playing the cello in the orchestra of the ...

81. Giovanni Paisiello

Soundtrack | Casanova

Giovanni Paisiello was born on May 9, 1740 in Taranto, Kingdom of Naples [now Puglia, Italy]. He is known for Casanova (2005), Barry Lyndon (1975) and Boned (2015). He died on June 5, 1816 in Naples, Kingdom of the Two Sicilies [now Campania, Italy].

82. Zakaria Paliashvili

Writer | Abesalom da Eteri

Zakaria Paliashvili was born on August 16, 1871 in Kutaisi, Russian Empire [now Republic of Georgia]. He was a writer and composer, known for Abesalom da Eteri (1967) and Eteris simgera (1956). He was married to Julia Mikhailovna Utkina. He died on October 6, 1933 in Tiflis, Georgian SSR, TSFSR, ...

83. Thomas Pasatieri

Music_department | The Adjustment Bureau

Aside from his work with film scores, Thomas Pasatieri is well known in the classical world as a composer and conductor. He was quite prolific from a young age, studying with Nadia Boulanger. He attended the Juilliard School, where he was the first to graduate with a doctorate. He has since taught ...

84. Manuel Penella

Soundtrack | [Rec]²

Manuel Penella was born on July 31, 1880 in Valencia, Spain. He was a writer and composer, known for [Rec]² (2009), The Adventurous Captain (1939) and Tiger Love (1924). He died on January 24, 1939 in Mexico.

85. Giovanni Battista Pergolesi

Soundtrack | Chocolat

Giovanni Battista Pergolesi was born on January 4, 1710 in Jesi, Papal State [now Marche, Italy]. He is known for Chocolat (2000), Sucker Punch (2011) and Mirror (1975). He died on March 16, 1736 in Pozzuoli, Kingdom of Naples [now Campania, Italy].

86. Amilcare Ponchielli

Soundtrack | No Reservations

Amilcare Ponchielli was born on August 31, 1834 in Paderno Fasolaro, Lombardy-Venetia, Austrian Empire [now Paderno Ponchielli, Lombardy, Italy]. He is known for No Reservations (2007), Fantasia (1940) and Kill the Irishman (2011). He was married to Teresina Brambilla. He died on January 16, 1886 ...

87. Rachel Portman

Composer | Never Let Me Go

Rachel Portman, Composer

British composer Rachel Portman became the first female composer to win an Academy Award, which she received for the score of Emma. She was also the first female composer to win a Primetime Emmy Award, which she received for the film, Bessie. She has received two further ...

88. Francis Poulenc

Soundtrack | Call Me by Your Name

Francis Poulenc was born on January 7, 1899 in Paris, France. He was a composer and writer, known for Call Me by Your Name (2017), The Great Beauty (2013) and The Metropolitan Opera HD Live (2006). He died on January 30, 1963 in Paris, France.

89. André Previn

Music_department | My Fair Lady

German-American pianist, composer, arranger and conductor André George Previn (born Andreas Ludwig Priwin, in Berlin) was for eight decades a hugely influential and prolific figure in jazz, as well as classical and film music. Being Jewish, Previn's family was forced to leave Hitler's Germany in ...

90. Sergei Prokofiev

Soundtrack | Children of Men

Prokofiev was a multi-talented man and an innovative composer. He learned piano from his mother and chess from his father. He always had a chess set on his piano, and was able to play against the chess champions of his time. He studied music with Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, graduated with highest ...

91. Giacomo Puccini

Soundtrack | The Island

Italian composer, one of the greatest exponents of operatic realism, who virtually brought the history of Italian opera to an end. His mature operas include "La Bohème" (1896), "Tosca" (1900), "Madama Butterfly" (1904), and "Turandot" left incomplete.

92. Henry Purcell

Soundtrack | Seeking Justice

Purcell grew up in a musical family. As a boy he attended the Chapel Royal church choir. His talent earned him training as an organist. In 1677, the 18-year-old became "composer for the violins" at the English court. Two years later he took up the position of organist at Westminster Abbey. Purcell ...

93. Jean-Philippe Rameau

Soundtrack | Casanova

Jean-Philippe Rameau was born on September 25, 1683 in Dijon, France. He was a composer, known for Casanova (2005), Babylon A.D. (2008) and The Handmaiden (2016). He died on September 12, 1764 in Paris, France.

94. Maurice Ravel

Soundtrack | Rashômon

Maurice Ravel was born on March 7, 1875 in Ciboure, Pyrénées-Atlantiques, France. He was a composer, known for Rashomon (1950), Basic (2003) and Stalker (1979). He died on December 28, 1937 in Paris, France.

95. Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov

Soundtrack | Smurfs

Rimsky-Korsakov was a navy officer but soon discovered his love for music. Since 1861 he belonged to the group of Balakirew but later he returned to the traditional way of composing. He combined uniquely the Russian folk songs with the music of the Orthodox Church. Rimsky-Korsakov wrote the first ...

96. Gioachino Rossini

Soundtrack | Logan

As a son of a horn player and a singer Rossini was taught instruments early in his life. When he was older he went to the conservatory of Bologna for lessons. His first opera was such a big success that a lot of people wanted him to write more pieces. But nevertheless in 1816 his masterpiece "The ...

97. Kaija Saariaho

Composer | Suuri illusioni

Kaija Saariaho was one of the group of Finnish modernists who received their early training under Paavo Heininen at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki (Magnus Lindeberg was another), where she was one of the founder members of the group Korvat auki ("Ears Open"), which met to discuss new music and ...

98. Camille Saint-Saëns

Soundtrack | If I Stay

Composer chiefly remembered for his symphonic poems -the first of that genre to be written by a Frenchman- and for his opera 'Samson et Dalila'. Notable for his pioneering efforts on behalf of French music, he was also a gifted pianist and organist, and a writer of criticism, poetry, essays, and ...

99. Antonio Salieri

Soundtrack | Iron Man

Antonio Salieri was born in 1750 into a prosperous Italian family of merchants. He studied harpsichord and violin from an early age, and after the death of his parents, continued his music studies in Venice. His talent was noticed by Viennise composer Florian Grassman, who invited him to Vienna, ...

100. Aulis Sallinen

Soundtrack | Tropic of Ice - Jään kääntöpiiri

Aulis Sallinen was born on April 9, 1935 in Salmi, Finland [now Salmi, Russia]. He is a composer and writer, known for Tropic of Ice - Jään kääntöpiiri (1987), Promenons-nous dans les bois (2000) and Sources of Finnish Music (1978).

Opera Composers by Name

1. Mark Adamo

2. John Adams

3. Thomas Adès

4. Franco Alfano

5. Louis Andriessen

6. Dominick Argento

7. Béla Bartók

8. Jack Beeson

9. Ludwig van Beethoven

10. Vincenzo Bellini

11. Alban Berg

12. Hector Berlioz

13. Leonard Bernstein

14. Georges Bizet

15. Karl-Birger Blomdahl

16. Philippe Boesmans

17. Arrigo Boito

18. William Bolcom

19. Aleksandr Borodin

20. Benjamin Britten

21. Daniel Börtz

22. Alfredo Catalani

23. Daniel Catán

24. Francesco Cavalli

25. Ruperto Chapí

26. Luigi Cherubini

27. Francesco Cilea

28. John Corigliano

29. Douglas J. Cuomo

30. Claude Debussy

31. Léo Delibes

32. Norman Dello Joio

33. Gaetano Donizetti

34. Dun Tan

35. Antonín Dvorák

36. Péter Eötvös

37. Joep Franssens

38. George Gershwin

39. Vittorio Giannini

40. Umberto Giordano

41. Philip Glass

42. Mikhail Glinka

43. Christoph Willibald Gluck

44. Charles Gounod

45. André-Ernest-Modeste Grétry

46. George Frideric Handel

47. Joseph Haydn

48. Jake Heggie

49. Hans Werner Henze

50. Richard Heuberger

51. Paul Hindemith

52. Engelbert Humperdinck

53. Leos Janácek

54. Scott Joplin

55. Leonard Kastle

56. Jerome Kern

57. Erich Wolfgang Korngold

58. Stefano Landi

59. Franz Lehár

60. Ruggero Leoncavallo

61. Albert Lortzing

62. Jean-Baptiste Lully

63. Lorin Maazel

64. Lech Majewski

65. Bohuslav Martinu

66. Pietro Mascagni

67. Jules Massenet

68. Gian Carlo Menotti

69. Olivier Messiaen

70. Giacomo Meyerbeer

71. Jonathan Mills

72. Italo Montemezzi

73. Claudio Monteverdi

74. Douglas Moore

75. Federico Moreno Torroba

76. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

77. Nico Muhly

78. Modest Mussorgsky

79. Michael Nyman