After travelling for some years he returned to Belgium, where he was appointed solo violin to the King of the Netherlands.  He had held the position but a short time when the revolution of 1830 broke out and deprived him of it.

He returned to Paris, and now began the most romantic portion of his life.  Madame Malibran, whose brilliant career was then at its height, was singing in opera, and De Beriot became acquainted with her.  The acquaintance ripened into the most intimate friendship, and in 1832 a concert company was formed, consisting of Malibran, De Beriot, and Luigi Lablache, the celebrated and gigantic basso.  They made a tour of Italy, meeting with the most extraordinary success.

De Beriot and the beautiful Madame Malibran were now inseparable.  Malibran had for some years been living apart from her husband, an American merchant, who, with the view of supporting himself by her talents, had married her when on the brink of financial collapse.  In 1835 she succeeded in securing a divorce from him, and then she married De Beriot.

A few months after their marriage Malibran was thrown from her horse and sustained internal injuries of such severity that she died after an illness of nine days, and De Beriot became frantic with grief.

More than a year elapsed before he could at all recover from the effects of his irreparable loss, and his first appearance in concert, after this tragic event, was when Pauline Garcia, the sister of Madame Malibran, made her first debut in a concert at Brussels given for the benefit of the poor.

In 1841 De Beriot married Mlle. Huber, daughter of a magistrate of Vienna.  He returned to Brussels, and became director of the violin classes at the Conservatoire, after which he ceased giving concerts.  He remained in this position until 1852, when failing eyesight caused him to retire, and he died at Louvain in 1870.

Before his acquaintance with Madame Malibran, De Beriot was a suitor for the hand of Mlle. Sontag, and her rejection of him threw him into a state of despondency, from which it required the brilliancy and wit of Malibran to rouse him.

De Beriot left a number of compositions which abound in pleasing melodies, have a certain easy, natural flow, and bring out the characteristic effects of the instrument in the most brilliant manner.  There are seven concertos, eleven “airs variees,” several books of studies, four trios and a number of duets for piano and violin.  His “Violin School” has been published in many languages and used a great deal by students.

Delphin Jean Alard was at one time a favourite violinist in France.  In 1842 he succeeded Baillot as professor of violin at the Conservatoire in Paris.  He was first soloist in the royal band, to which post he was appointed in 1858, and he was presented with the Cross of the Legion of Honour.

Alard was born at Bayonne in March, 1815, and was well taught from his earliest youth.  He appeared in concerts at the age of ten, and at twelve entered the Paris Conservatoire, where he became a pupil of Habeneck, while Fetis taught him composition.  He was the winner of numerous prizes, and he also wrote a great deal of music for the violin.  His greatest pupil was Sarasate.