IBERT, JACQUES

born Aug. 15, 1890, Paris, France died Feb. 5, 1962, Paris in full Jacques-franois-antoine Ibert composer whose music is admired for its colourful, technically polished, and often witty neoclassical style. Ibert studied at the Paris Conservatory and in 1919 won the Prix de Rome for his cantata Le Pote et la fe (The Poet and the Fairy). In Rome he composed his most popular work, the symphonic suite Escales (1922; Ports of Call). From 1937 until 1960 Ibert was director of the French Academy in Rome. He wrote for almost every genre. Of his seven operas the most successful was Anglique (1926). The brilliantly witty Divertissement (1930) was a popular orchestral piece.