Mehul began his musical career as an apprentice to the town organist and later as a student at the music school opened by that organist's successor. After moving to Paris, Mehul began a period of serious composition, including a book of keyboard sonatas. A composition competition for the Paris Opera was the occasion for Mehul to write his first comic opera, the area in which he was to make his mark. This competition also brought him together with librettist Francois-Benoit Hoffman. Their first effort, Euphrosine, was a big success and was performed steadily for over 40 years. Not all of his operas were successful, even though the overtures generally were. This led to a new path in symphonic composition. A position at the Paris Conservatoire was ended by the Bourbon restoration, and tuberculosis finally took his life in 1817. In addition to his comic opera and symphonic successes, Mehul's contributions to the musical world include new orchestration effects such as stopped horn notes and the use of subdivided strings. The techniques that he developed became common orchestral practice. ~ Lynn Vought, Rovi