Educated at the International College at Spring Grove, Isleworth, Delius began his career in Florida growing oranges. There he also taught music and after two years, returned to Europe to study at the Leipzig Conservatoire. While there he developed a close friendship with Edvard Grieg. He moved to Paris and married Jelka Rosen, an artist, in 1903. By this time he had already composed a number of orchestral pieces and operas, including Irmelin (1892), The Magic Fountain (1895) and Koanga (1897). He developed a debilitating illness in the 1920's and was going blind. He hired an assistant who helped him to complete a number of works by dictation. Delius was a prolific composer and his work became very popular following the First World War. These include A Village Romeo and Juliet (1901), Appalachia (1902), Sea Drift (1904), In A Summer Garden (1908), North Country Sketches (1914), Hassan (1923) and A Song of Summer (1930).
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