Sebastián Yradier was born in Sauciego, Álava, Spain on January 20,
1809. Little is known of his career beyond the fact that his music
instruction took place with private teachers; that in 1851 he was
appointed singing master to the Empress Eugénie in Paris; and that for a
period he lived in Cuba. He died in Vitoria, Spain, on December 6, 1865.
He was a successful composer of Spanish songs. The most famous is “_La
Paloma_,” which is in the habanera rhythm, its melody in the sensual,
sinuous style of a flamenco song. “_El Arreglito_,” also a habanera, was
borrowed by Bizet for his opera _Carmen_ where it re-emerges as the
world-famous “Habanera”; Bizet made only minor changes in the melody
while retaining Yradier’s tonality and accompaniment. A third popular
Yradier song, in a style similar to “_La Paloma_,” is “_Ay Chiquita!_”