Photo: Pierre Petit / Public domain (source: Wikimedia Commons)
My Take
Berlioz is one of those composers who felt genuinely too big for his era, and honestly, I think that's what made him so endlessly fascinating. The Symphonie fantastique alone — written when he was just 26, basically a fever dream about obsessive love set to an orchestra he was reinventing in real time — is one of the most audacious debut statements in all of Western music. He couldn't play piano well, he had almost no formal harmony training, yet he wrote for orchestras like nobody before him had dared, conjuring textures and colors that conductors are still unpacking today. His Requiem calls for four brass bands positioned at the four corners of the hall — the man was theatrical to his bones. France never quite knew what to do with him during his lifetime, and that restlessness comes through in everything he wrote. A genuine original.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Hector Berlioz
- Name (Japanese)
- エクトル・ベルリオーズ
- Reading
- えくとる・べるりおーず
- Born
- December 11, 1803 – March 8, 1869
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Sagittarius / Boar
- Origin
- La Côte-Saint-André, France
- Occupation
- conductor / writer / autobiographer / music critic / librettist
2. Background
Awards & achievements
- Prix de Rome
- 1864 Officer of the Legion of Honour
- 1839 Knight of the Legion of Honour
4. Personality
Motto
Private
5. Works & records
| Category | Title | Role | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Notable work | Requiem | — | |
| Notable work | Roméo et Juliette | — | |
| Notable work | Symphonie fantastique | — | |
| Notable work | La damnation de Faust | — | |
| Notable work | Les Troyens | — | |
| Notable work | Le carnaval romain | — |
6. Links
Frequently asked questions
When was Hector Berlioz born?
December 11, 1803 – March 8, 1869.
Where is Hector Berlioz from?
Hector Berlioz is from La Côte-Saint-André, France.
What does Hector Berlioz do?
Hector Berlioz works as conductor, writer, autobiographer, music critic, librettist.
What is Hector Berlioz known for?
Notable works include Requiem, Roméo et Juliette, Symphonie fantastique.
Conductor — see all → · Writer — see all → · More people from France →
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-02
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public or unconfirmed items are omitted. English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.