GREAT

NOTE.

The task of compressing into one small volume suitable sketches of themore famous Italian and French composers has been, in view of the extentof the field and the wealth of material, a somewhat embarrassing one,especially as the purpose was to make the sketches of interest tothe general music-loving public, and not merely to the critic andthe scholar. The plan pursued has been to devote the bulk of space tocomposers of the higher rank, and to pass over those less known withsuch brief mention as sufficed to outline their lives and fix theirplace in the history of music. In gathering the facts embodied inthese musical sketches, the author acknowledges his obligations to thefollowing works: Hullah's "History of Modern Music"; Fétis's "BiographieUniverselle des Musiciens"; Clementi's "Biographie des Musiciens";Hogarth's "History of the Opera"; Sutherland Edwards's "History of theOpera"; Schlüter's "History of Music"; Chorley's "Thirty Years' MusicalReminiscences"; Stendhalls "Vie de Rossini"; Bellasys's "Memorials ofCherubini"; Grove's "Musical Dictionary"; Crowest's "Musical Anecdotes";and the various articles in the standard cyclopædias.

"The Great Italian and French Composers" is a companion work to "TheGreat German Composers," which was published earlier in the series inwhich the present volume appears.

Contents

THE GREAT ITALIAN AND FRENCH COMPOSERS.

...