Paul Lacombe (composer)

Having shown excellent compositional control in a study for quartet, Bizet wrote to Lacombe in 1867 encouraging him to write a symphonic work.

[3] Though Lacombe's music was well appreciated among fellow composers and musicians, it never gained a widespread popularity as he was not willing to leave his hometown of Carcassonne for Paris.

Throughout he retained a sense of classical form and melody, but explored contemporary (i.e. Impressionistic) harmonies in his later works.

[5] His compositional style presents, aside from its clean and solid craftsmanship, an amiable and appealing character, but with no particular originality.

[6] In 1901, Lacombe was appointed under the sponsorship of Camille Saint-Saëns to the Académie des Beaux-Arts, who awarded him the Prix Chartier for his chamber music in 1887.

In 1929, the city erected a monument in his memory on the street that bears his name, and honored him in June 1984 through a major exhibition and concert.