Great Musical Composers: German, French and Italian |
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admiration afterwards artistic Auber audience Bach beautiful became Beethoven Bellini Berlioz brilliant career charming Cherubini Chopin chorus church Cimarosa Colley Cibber colour comic opera composer composer's composition concert Conservatory creative critics death delight Der Freischütz Donizetti dramatic effects enthusiasm Europe expression Faust favourite Fidelio France French gave genius German Gluck Gounod grace grand greatest Grétry Halévy Handel Haydn honour inspired instruments Italian Italian opera Italy Joseph Skipsey latter Les Huguenots libretto Lodoïska London Lulli lyric mass master masterpieces Mdme Méhul melody Mendelssohn Meyerbeer Mozart musician Naples never noble oratorio orchestra Otello Paisiello Palestrina Paris passion performance piano Piccini play poet poetry Prince produced Rameau recognised rich rival Rossini says Schubert Schumann score sing singer song Spontini stage style success symphony taste theatre tion Verdi Vienna voice Wagner Weber write written wrote young
Popular passages
Page 199 - Some heavenly music, (which even now I do,) To work mine end upon their senses, that This airy charm is for, I'll break my staff, Bury it certain fathoms in the earth, And, deeper than did ever plummet sound, I'll drown my book.
Page 229 - The chorus in which that opera abounds gives the parterre frequent opportunities of joining in concert with the stage. This inclination of the audience to sing along with the actors, so prevails with them, that I have sometimes known the performer on the stage do no more in a celebrated song, than the clerk of a parish church, who serves only to raise the psalm, and is afterwards drowned in the music of the congregation.
Page 132 - My soul is an enchanted boat, Which, like a sleeping swan? doth float Upon the silver waves of thy sweet singing; And thine doth like an angel sit Beside a helm conducting it, Whilst all the winds with melody are ringing.
Page xvi - In its ideal, consummate moments, the end is not distinct from the means, the form from the matter, the subject from the expression; they inhere in and completely saturate each other; and to it, therefore, to the condition of its perfect moments, all the arts may be supposed constantly to tend and aspire.
Page 35 - I did think I did see all Heaven before me, and the great God himself!
Page 29 - Handel has set up an oratorio against the operas, and succeeds. He has hired all the goddesses from farces and the singers of Roast Beef* from between the acts at both theatres, with a man with one note in his voice, and a girl without ever an one ; and so they sing, and make brave hallelujahs ; and the good company encore the recitative, if it happens to have any cadence like what they call a tune.
Page 70 - O first created Beam, and thou great Word, " Let there be light, and light was over all...
Page 26 - Down they sat ; and after some time the old parson, turning to his companion, said, ' It is not worth listening to— it's very poor stuff.' ' You are right, Mr. Fountayne/ said Handel, ( it is very poor stuff; I thought so myself when I had finished it.
Page 156 - ... variety of scenes painted and contrived with no less art of perspective, and machines for flying in the air, and other wonderful motions ; taken together, it is one of the most magnificent and expensive diversions the wit of man can invent.
Page 156 - This night, having with my Lord Bruce taken our places before we went to the Opera, where comedies and other plays are represented in recitative music, by the most excellent musicians, vocal and instrumental, with variety of scenes painted and contrived with no less art of perspective, and machines for flying in the air, and other wonderful...