A Master of Romantic Melody Charles François Gounod was not a visual artist, but rather a preeminent French composer, conductor, and organist of the Romantic era. Born in Paris, France, into an artistic and musical family, his life was deeply intertwined with the melodic soul of nineteenth-century France. His early education at the Conservatoire de Paris led him to win the prestigious Prix de Rome, a triumph that set the stage for a ca…