Cortot (pronounce “Cor-toe”) was born in Nyon in the French-speaking part of Switzerland. His father was French and his mother was Swiss. Cortot studied at the Paris Conservatoire. His teachers were Emile Descombes and Louis Diémer. He won a first prize ("premier prix") in 1896. His first public concert was at the Concerts Colonne in 1897 when he played Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 3. He helped opera singers to learn their music, and became assistant conductor at the Bayreuth Festival. In 1902 he conducted Wagner’s "Götterdämmerung". It was the first time it had been performed in Paris. He formed a concert society to perform Wagner's "Parsifal", Beethoven's "Missa solemnis", Brahms' "German Requiem", and new works by French composers.