This comparison of 10 Bildungsromane (novels of formation) in German and French from the mid 19th century to the present is motivated by a dual interest. It sets out both to investigate the relations between literature and music and to elucidate the concept of Bildung . The study examines works such as George Sand's "Consuelo", Romain Rolland's "Jean-Christophe", Thomas Mann's "Doktor Faustus" and Thomas Bernhard's "Der Untergeher" with a view to delineating and providing a synthesis of the evolution and specific features of the 'musical Bildungsroman' , notably pointing up the analogies between musical and literary structures discernible in them.