Marcel Landowski (1915-1999) was a French composer of lyric works which emphasized a synthesis of music and text and reflected sensitivity to religious forces.

When, in 1937, the conductor Pierre Monteux performed two of his works--Les Sorcières and Les Sept Loups--the name Landowski was already well known in the world of art. Marcel's father, Paul Landowski, a famous sculptor, created the statue of Christ that overlooks the bay of Rio de Janeiro, as well as a similar one in front of the celebrated restaurant La Tour d'Argent in Paris. Marcel's grandfather, who left Poland, had married the daughter of the Belgium composer Henri Vieuxtemps.

Marcel Landowski was born February 18, 1915. At age 11 he began to study harmony and piano privately with Marguerite Long. At the Paris conservatory he studied composition and conducting with Philippe Gaubert and Pierre Monteux. The premiere of his oratorio Rythmes du Monde...