According to Wikipedia, Ambroise Thomas was a French composer, primarily of operas, who lived a long life in the 19^th century.  The son of musicians, his early music education and jump on his performance career doubtless paved the way for his lifetime of moderate success.  For the majority of his life, he enjoyed a robust local musical career in Paris, becoming a fixture at the Opera Comique, and teaching at the Conservatorie, where he eventually held the directorship.

His comic opera Mignon met with success in 1866 not only in Paris but in Europe as a whole.  It remains popular to this day, though full performances are rare.  The opera, and now the Gavotte that Suzuki includes in Book Two, are his most well-known works.

Timothy Judd links to this performance by opera legend Marilyn Horne:

Thanks for reading.

Ryan