Jean Françaix was born in Le Mans on 23 May 1912. Coming from a musical family (his father being composer, pianist and director of the Conservatory in Le Mans, the mother singing teacher and founder of a famous choir), Jean Françaix took his first lessons with his parents before continuing his studies at the Paris Conservatory. There, his teachers were Isidore Philipp (in whose class he was awarded the first prize for piano in 1930) and Nadia Boulanger (composition).

The "Concertino for piano and orchestra", published at the age of 21, brought him first international credit at the Chamber Music Festival of Baden-Baden in 1936. Steadily extending the range of his compositions, Françaix wrote operas and ballets, orchestral music as well as solo concertos, film music and vocal works. Also, he devoted himself very intensely to chamber music. Until shortly before his death in Paris in 1997, Françaix participated actively in musical life
often with his daughter Claude as his partner at the piano.

Among the most recent of his numerous honours and distinctions are the conferment of the title "Officier de la Légion d'Honneur" on him in 1991, his appointment as "Commandeur dans l'Ordre du mérite culturel" by the Principality of Monaco and as "Commandeur dans l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres" in 1994 as well as the "Prix Arthur Honegger" which was awarded to the composer several times.