Jacques Offenbach ( 20 June 1819 , in Cologne â `` 5 October 1880 , in Paris ) was a French composer and cellist of the Romantic era . He is seen as one of the originators of the operetta form . Jacques Offenbach ( born Jacob Offenbach ; 20 June 1819 -- 5 October 1880 ) was a German-born French composer and cellist of the Romantic era and one of the originators of the operetta form .