Augusta Holmès (1847–1903)

Augusta Holmès, née Augusta Mary Anne Holmes, was born in Paris to Irish parents. She grew up in Versailles, and took private piano lessons. Around 1876, she became a pupil of César Franck. She attended the salon of musician Guillot de Sainbrissalons, where she met other musicians such as Charles Gounod. In 1879, she became a French citizen and modified her surname with an accent.

She composed numerous symphonies, operas, cantatas, oratorios, symphonic poems, chamber music, and songs that made her famous. Her first scores were published under the pseudonym Hermann Zenta, before she began publishing under her own name. She was the companion of poet Catulle Mendès, with whom she had five children.