This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1891 edition. Excerpt: ... 177 CHAPTER I. Gounod at the zenith of his fame--He takes no rest--Honours, fortune, favours, the rewards of his genius and labour-- Kesidence in London--Gallia--Jeanne d'Arc--Les Deux Retries--Prose in music---Georges Dandin---Gounod's opinion of English musical taste--Polyeucte--Cinq-Mars. At this period of his career, Gounod--then a man of nearly fifty--had reached the zenith of his fame. Henceforth he could rise no higher. He was in the position of Rossini after Wilhelm Tell. The Italian Maestro has been praised for resting on his laurels, and possibly he did well. Gounod has acted otherwise, and no one thinks of blaming him, for since then, covering a space of twenty years, if his work has been unequal, he has not written a single page for which his admirers have had to blush, and if he has not scaled another step of the ladder leading to Parnassus, he has maintained himself without effort or hesitation on the heights to which Bomeo et Juliette had borne him. After his triumph of 1867 there was a pause, a time of relative rest which he had well earned. "Without even counting the choruses of Ulysses, he had in twenty years achieved thirtyfour acts, besides symphonies, Masses, and a N 179 pularity, but it And even then, 11 Israelite, and, h, Gallic, and 1, adored more has none among triots are here itrast him with jieared, or with liant in Italy. and respect roise Thomas, ie lists with 1 the triumph his felicity is orit, no man of happiness ith which he ween Borneo fed it in the imatic com DEGREEStive during 9 ibearleaves DEGREES. DEGREES _ ) a worker she Franco- 3 which we who, how- latitude of large number of vocal compositions, melodies and songs, duets, religious hymns, &c. Public favour, the gifts of fortune, official honours and academ