Charles-François Gounod (1818 – 1893) was a French composer, best known for his operas Faust and Roméo et Juliette.  Gounod was born in Paris, the son of a pianist mother and a draftsman father. His mother was his first piano teacher. Under her tutelage Gounod first showed his musical talents. He entered the Paris Conservatoire where he studied under Fromental Halévy.  He won the Prix de Rome in 1839 for his cantata Ferdinand.  He subsequently went to Italy where he studied the music of Palestrina. He concentrated on religious music of the sixteenth century.

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