Pierre Dervaux

Pierre Dervaux was a French operatic conductor, composer, and pedagogue. At the Conservatoire de Paris, he studied counterpoint and harmony with Marcel Samuel-Rousseau and Jean and Noël Gallon, as well as piano with Isidor Philipp, Armand Ferté, and Yves Nat. He also served as principal conductor of the Opéra-Comique (1947–53), and the Opéra de Paris (1956–72). In this capacity he directed the French première of Poulenc’s Dialogues des Carmélites. He was also Vice-President of the Concerts Pasdeloup (1949–55), President and Chief conductor of the Concerts Colonne (1958–92), Musical Director of the Orchestre des Pays de Loire (1971–79) as well as holding similar posts at the Quebec Symphony Orchestra (1968–75), where he collaborated with concertmaster Hidetaro Suzuki, and the Nice Philharmonic (1979–82).