Composers

Jeanne Leleu, born in Saint-Mihiel in 1898, was a talented composer and pianist. She studied at the Paris Conservatoire in Alfred Cortot's class, winning a first prize in piano in 1913. As early as 1910, she distinguished herself by creating Ravel's Ma Mère l'Oye with Geneviève Durony. She later turned to composition, winning first prizes in counterpoint in 1919 and composition in 1922. Her Quatuor avec piano was written in 1922, the same year she won first prize for composition, encouraging her to attempt the Prix de Rome.

She was rewarded in 1923 with the cantata Béatrix. Her stay in Rome (1923-1927) marked a prolific period. Leleu composed numerous works there, including Six sonnets de Michel-Ange (1924), Esquisses italiennes (1926) and Deux Danses (1927). His mastery of the orchestra is applauded.

The "Croquis de théâtre" were well received in 1932, as was the symphonic Suite Transparences in 1933. During this period, she also composed the Concerto for piano and orchestra (circa 1935), which she performed herself in 1937.

Jeanne Leleu also excelled in ballet composition. Un jour d'été was presented at the Opéra-Comique in 1940, followed by a revival after the war. Femmes (1947), commissioned by Radiodiffusion Française, explores the female roles typical of operettas, and is conceived as a ballet. His three-act ballet Nautéos premiered in Monte-Carlo in 1947 and was revived at the Opéra and Covent-Garden in 1954.

In 1954, she was appointed professor of harmony at the Paris Conservatoire, a position she held until 1965. Jeanne Leleu marked the world of music with her virtuosity at the piano and her talent as a composer, leaving a lasting legacy in French music. Jeanne Leleu, unknown to the general public, died in Paris on March 11, 1979.