allow him to abandon his military studies and dedicate himself completely to his instrument. At Bordeaux he obtained the first prize and the medal of honor of the Conservatory, and was also granted a scholarship to continue his studies in Paris. He began studying at the Conservatoire de Paris in 1865 and became Auguste Franchomme's star pupil. He obtained the award of honor of the Conservatoire on 6 August 1868, surpassing his classmate Jules Delsart, also a cellist and the future successor of the master Franchomme. During the course of that year, he visited Halle to pay his respects at the grave of his mentor Servais. With the help of his father and of his master, he also worked diligently in the orchestras of various Parisian theaters, meeting the great composers and musicians of the era who visited Paris; he developed an intimate friendship with Pablo de Sarasate, Édouard Lalo, Camille Saint-Saëns and Jules Massenet. He died in 1921, aged 73. His daughter Maria Theresa married his student, the cellist Juan Ruiz Casaux, and his son Alexander married Casaux's sister Carmen. Bibliography “Víctor de Mirecki”, en La Ilustración Musical Hispano-americana, año VIII, n.º 170, 15 de febrero de 1895. AGUADO, Ester: La Sociedad de Cuartetos de Madrid (1863–1894). Estudio sobre el origen, organización, desarrollo del repertorio y su aceptación pública, Madrid, 2001. BELTRANDO-PATIER, Marie-Claire: Historia de la música. La música occidental desde la Edad Media hasta nuestros días, Espasa-Calpe, Madrid, 1996, p. 702 HILL, W. Henry; HILL, Arthur F. y HILL, Alfred E.: Antonio Stradivari, his life and work (1644–1737), Londres, 1902. PINO, Rafael del: “Víctor de Mirecki: de los salones de París al Palacio Real”, en La Opinión de Granada, 2 de abril de 2006, p. 36. SOBRINO, Ramón: “Víctor Mirecki Larramal (sic)” en CASARES, Emilio (dir. y coord.), Diccionario de la música española e hispanoamericana, vol. VII, p. 613. Sociedad General de Autores y Editores. Madrid, 1999-2002. PINO, Rafael del: “Víctor de Mirecki: de los salones de París al Palacio Real”, en La Opinión de Granada, 2 de abril de 2006, p. 36. VILLAR, Rogelio: La música y los músicos españoles contemporáneos, Madrid, s.n. PIERRE, Constant. Le conservatoire national de musique et de déclamation. Documents historiques et administratifs. Paris, Imprimerie nationale, 1900. People from Tarbes 1847 births 1921 deaths Spanish classical cellists French classical cellists French music educators Academic staff of the Madrid Royal Conservatory Conservatoire de Bordeaux