of 1827 and fell in love with the Irish actress Harriet Smithson, but she thought he was a mad man. She became an important part of his life and music. That same year his father restored his allowance because he admired his son’s determination and worried about him. In 1828 he took English lesson so he could read Shakespeare. He wrote a few articles on music but soon lost interest because of the restrictions of journalism, and he found it to be boring. Finally in 1830, Berlioz won the Prix de Rome. During 1829-1830 he wrote his Symphonie Fantastique, which he finished during the revolution of 1830. He got his symphony performed on December 5, 1830. It was subtitled “Episode in the Life of an Artist” and was performed in the Paris Conservatoire under the direction of Francois Antoine Habenack. To the score, he attached his program notes, with descriptions of every part of the song, which helped to get a better idea of how the song should sound. It was, indeed, a wonder performance. After the concert, Franz Liszt, who he met the day before, was very excited about Berlioz’s music and took him out to dinner. They soon became good friends. He soon met Camille Mokke, who was out to prove her current admirer wrong by winning Berlioz over. She did, but he should have regretted it. The next year, he was to go to Rome for his obligation of winning the Prix de Rome. He stopped in Italy for a month to visit home. Now, of course, both of his parents were proud of his successful son. He soon left Rome to find Camille, who he had not heard from in a month as she was strutting around Paris. On his way, he got a letter in Florence from Camille’s mom that informed him that Camille would be marrying someone else. Camille had fallen in love with a rich, older piano player, and Berlioz was still a young musician. He left for Paris with plans of a murder/suicide, but during the long trip, he cooled off a little and returned back...
