A request for a new opera was received by Bizet from the directors of the Opéra Comique, Camille du Locle and Adolphe de Leuven in 1872, almost immediately after his Djamileh had failed in that theatre. In the summer of 1874, the opera was completed. The premiere took place on the 3rd of March 1875 and was received in a cool manner. According to Ludovic Halévy, one of the authors of the libretto, “after the curtain fell, only two or three of Bizet's faithful friends remained in the audience”. “Such veracity, but what a scandal!” critics said in one voice. Despite that, the opera was performed forty-eight times over that year.

The composer did not live long enough to witness the success which awaited his Carmen on the world’s operatic stages. After this death, Bizet’s friend, the composer Ernest Guiraud, replaced the conversational dialogues with recitatives and added a fourth act to music from other compositions by Bizet. It was that edition with which the opera won popularity. In October 1875, the premiere in Vienna was held with great success. Between 1876 and 1878, performances followed in Brussels, Budapest, London, New York and Stockholm, and everywhere Carmen was greeted with ovations. The Russian premiere took place in St Petersburg in 1878 and what is more, it was performed in Italian.