A decorated veteran of the Franco-Prussian war, Gabriel Fauré spent most of his working life as the choirmaster at the Madeleine church - composing many works for that institution despite the abbot's dislike of anything even remotely novel. (Upon hearing Fauré's Requiem, the abbot is said to have chided the composer: "The Madeleine's repertoire is already quite extensive enough, don't you think?") Also a devoted teacher, Fauré gave composition lessons to such future luminaries as Maurice Ravel and Nadia Boulanger.
