 In Bizet 's family circle , his father Adolphe died in 1886 . Bizet 's son Jacques committed suicide in 1922 after an unhappy love affair . Jean Reiter , Bizet 's elder son , had a successful career as press director of Le Temps , became an Officer of the Legion of Honour , and died in 1939 at the age of 77 . In 1886 Geneviève married Émile Straus , a rich lawyer ; she became a famous Parisian society hostess and a close friend of , among others , Marcel Proust . She showed little interest in her first husband 's musical legacy , made no effort to catalogue Bizet 's manuscripts and gave many away as souvenirs . She died in 1926 ; in her will she established a fund for a Georges Bizet prize , to be awarded annually to a composer under 40 who had " produced a remarkable work within the previous five years " . Winners of the prize include Tony Aubin , Jean @-@ Michel <unk> , Henri <unk> and Jean <unk> . 
