Gounod, Charles Francois. French composer. Born in Paris in 1818. Educated at the conservatoire under Halevy and Zimmermann, whose daughter he married in 1852. In 1839 Gounod gained the prize for composition and, after visiting Rome and Vienna, became an organist in Paris where, in 1849, a high mass by him attracted attention. "Sappho," his first opera, was produced in 1851, and the composer was soon after appointed director of the Orpheon. After some minor works, "Faust" appeared in 1859, being brought out at the theatre Lyrique. "Mereille" followed in 1864, and Romeo et Juliette" in 1867. Of his later works, the chief are "Jeanne d'Arc," "The Redemption," and "Mors et Vita." Died 1893.

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