Hector Berlioz was not only a composer, but a renowned writer and critic, and his Memoirs and Evenings with the Orchestra are particularly well-known and loved. This book provides new translations of his criticism in English, taking him from his student days as a participant in musical polemics over Rossini to his first years of mature success.

Katherine Kolb is Professor Emerita of French and German at Southeastern Louisiana University. She also founded and directed the Kolb-Proust Archive at the University of Illinois-Urbana, where she collaborated on the first anthology of Marcel Proust's correspondence (Marcel Proust, Lettres, Plon 2004).
Samuel N. Rosenberg is Professor Emeritus of French and Italian at Indiana University, where he taught language and linguistics -- including translation -- and literature of the Middle Ages. His translations, like his philological scholarship, have appeared in a wide variety of publications both American and French.

• Contents


• 1. MUSICAL POLEMIC: On "Dilettanti"


• 2. MUSICAL POLEMIC: On Armide and Gluck


• 3. THE ARTS. Observations on Classical Music and Romantic Music, Le Correspondant, October 22, 1830


• 4. Beethoven and the Egyptian Pyramids; Weber's Freischütz; Beethoven's "Pastoral" Symphony


• 5. Liszt, Chopin, and Ferdinand Hiller; launching of the Fantastic Symphony


• 6. MUSIC REVIEW: Mozart's Don Giovanni at the Théâtre-Italien; Beethoven quartets


• 7. MUSIC REVIEW: Beethoven by the Müller Quartet; Chopin; Mozart's Don Giovanni vs. Don Juan;


• Handel festival in London


• 8. MUSIC REVIEW: Women performers; violinist Hauman's communicative emotion; Beethoven's Fifth Symphony and Shakespeare's Othello; Cherubini aria sung by Ponchard; rarity of great singers


• 9. Gluck (Part I). Gazette musicale de Paris, June 1, 1834. Biographical sketch; "critique admirative" of monologue from Il Telemaco


• 10. MUSIC REVIEW: Turkish music; Beethoven's "Eroica" booed in Bordeaux; musical conditions in the provinces; oasis of progress in Lyon


• 11. MUSIC REVIEW: Jealousy vs. solidarity among artists; trials of young composers; ironies on Conservatoire training; Henri Reber quartets; Liszt performs in his piano trio


• 12. Music Review: Choron, voice teacher and propagator of sacred music of the past; funeral service at the Invalides: Mozart Requiem, Jommelli, and Palestrina


• 13. Funeral service for Choron; Decline of religious music in France; destruction of old-regime choir schools; church ban on women singers


• 14. Rossini's William Tell (Part I)


• 15. BOIELDIEU: Funeral music for Boieldieu; survey of requiems; Cherubini


• 16. NOTICE TO READERS IDLE ENOUGH TO READ MY ARTICLES: Satirical announcement of Berlioz's upcoming concert, conducted by Girard; amusing summary of Harold in Italy


• 17. IPHIGENIA IN TAURIS (Part I): Early enthusiasm for Gluck; life-changing first experience of Gluck's masterpiece at the Opéra (1821).


• 18. Music review: à Elle, Letters for Piano by Chrétien Urhan


• 19. THEATRE-ITALIEN: Gabussi's Ernani


• 20. MUSIC REVIEW. OPéRA. William Tell. OPéRA-COMIQUE: Zémire et Azor (reprise).


• 21. CONCERT SOCIETY OF THE CONSERVATOIRE: First Concert [8th season]


• 22. LE MOINE, text by émilien Pacini, music by G. Meyerbeer


• 23. THIRD CONCERT AT THE CONSERVATOIRE: Symphonies by Haydn and Beethoven


• 24. Music REVIEW: Royal Academy of Music: Premiere of la Juive, opera in five acts by MM.


• 25. Music Review. Concert by the Pupils of Choron at the Hôtel de Ville


• 26. CONCERT SOCIETY OF THE CONSERVATOIRE: Fourth Concert, Beethoven's "Pastoral" Symphony


• 27. SIXTH CONSERVATOIRE CONCERT: Analysis of Beethoven's Fifth Symphony


• 28. CONCERT BY M. LISZT


• 29. REQUIEM at the Invalides


• 30. ON THE SCORE OF ZAMPA


• 31. MUSIC REVIEW: Bellini's I Puritani at the Théâtre-Italien, Cherubini's Treatise on Counterpoint-or a volume of poetry by Chaudesaigues


• 32. MOZART'S DON JUAN


• 33. Religious Music: M. Lesueur: Rachel, Noémie, Ruth et Booz, oratorios; M. Urhan: Auditions


• 34. OPÉRA-Comique. Concerts. Virtuosos and composers


• 35. First concert [of the season] at the Conservatoire: scene from Mozart's Idomeneo eclipses Beethoven's Seventh Symphony


• 36. LES HUGUENOTS: Acts 4 and 5


• 37. Concerts at the Conservatoire: The Magic Flute and The Mysteries of Isis


• 38. LISZT


• 39. ANTOINE REICHA


• 40. MUSICAL ENTERTAINMENTS: Le Siège de Corinthe at the Opéra; M. Ole Bull; M. Labarre and his harp school; Music of public festivals


• 41. PROGRESS OF MUSICAL EDUCATION IN FRANCE: M. Joseph Mainzer and M. Aubéry du Boulley


• 42. Polytechnical Society: Awards ceremony


• 43. OPéra: William Tell. Debut of Duprez


• 44. Royal Academy of Music: Premiere of La Chatte métamorphosée en femme, ballet