Halévy (b. May 27, 1799, Paris, d. March 17, 1862, Nice) studied at the Paris Conservatoire from the age of 10 and won the Prix de Rome in 1819.

His first opera performed was L'Artisan (1827), but it was not until Le Dilettante d'Avignon (1829) and the ballet Manon Lescaut (1830) were staged that he achieved popular success.

In 1835 he wrote La Juive with a libretto by Eugène Scribe: this opera held its place in the French operatic repertoire for more than a century, though it now sounds outdated.

Halévy began teaching at the Conservatoire in 1827 and advanced to professor of composition, teaching Charles Gounod, Georges Bizet and Camille Saint-Saëns.