The son of a well known Paris journalist, Albéric Magnard studied law, before entering the Paris Conservatoire, where his teachers included Dubois and Massenet. He later took lessons with Vincent d'Indy. He taught counterpoint at the Schola Cantorum and was killed at the beginning of the war of 1914 when he attempted to resist German attack on his house.
Operas
The second of Magnards's operas, Gercoeur, a tragedy in music, was destroyed during the German attack on his house at Baron but later reconstructed by Ropartz. His other two operas are Yolande and Bérénice, based on the tragedy of Racine.
Orchestral Music
Magnard left four symphonies, in which he followed the principles of César Franck, with very full orchestration.
Chamber Music
Of Magnard's chamber music, his Piano Trio in F minor, Quintet for piano and wind, a string quartet, a violin sonata and a cello sonata deserve mention.
