Born in Meulan, Yvelines, Maurice Thiriet attended the Paris Conservatory from 1925 to 1931, studying counterpoint and fugue with Charles Koechlin, and orchestration and arrangement under Alexis Roland-Manuel.
A fellow composer Maurice Jaubert, whose life was cut short during World War II, is often cited as a major influence on Thiriet's outlook.
Besides his cinematic output, Thiriet also composed several concert works, including a concerto for the flute, twelve ballets, and three operas.
His compositional style, which Jaubert and Roland-Manuel influenced, is characterized by taught construction and modest, nearly impressionistic harmonization, often bearing a neo-classical grace similar to that of the music of Francis Poulenc and Jean Françaix.
^ Mark Brill "Maurice Thiriet" in The Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians