In 'The Great Musicians: Rossini and His School' by H. Sutherland Edwards, readers are taken on an insightful journey into the musical world of composer Gioachino Rossini and the School of composers he influenced. Edwards meticulously explores Rossini's life, compositions, and impact on the musical landscape of his time, providing a detailed analysis of his works and the historical context in which they were created. The book showcases Edwards' scholarly approach to dissecting Rossini's music, making it a valuable resource for music enthusiasts and scholars alike. Through detailed explanations and musical examples, Edwards brings Rossini's genius to life, shedding light on his unique style and contributions to the classical music genre. H. Sutherland Edwards, a respected music historian and critic, delves deeply into the lives and works of Rossini and his contemporaries, offering readers a comprehensive understanding of the composer's legacy. Edwards' expertise in music history and his passion for the subject shine through in this meticulously researched book, making it a must-read for anyone interested in classical music and its evolution over time. I highly recommend 'The Great Musicians: Rossini and His School' to music lovers, historians, and scholars looking to delve into the world of 19th-century classical music. Edwards' thorough examination of Rossini's contributions and influence on subsequent composers offers a valuable perspective on the development of musical styles and the lasting impact of one of the great masters of the era.

Gioachino Rossini was one of the most influential, as well as one of the most industrious and emotionally complex of the great nineteenth-century composers. Between 1810 and 1829, he wrote 39 operas, a body of work, comic and serious, which transformed Italian opera and radically altered the course of opera in France. His retirement from operatic composition in 1829, at the age of 37, was widely assumed to be the act of a talented but lazy man. In reality, political events and a series of debilitating illnesses were the determining factors. After drafting the Stabat Mater in 1832, Rossini wrote no music of consequence for the best part of twenty-five years, before the clouds lifted and he began composing again in Paris in the late 1850s. During this glorious Indian summer of his career, he wrote 150 songs and solo piano pieces his 'Sins of Old Age' and his final masterpiece, the Petite Messe solennelle. The image of Rossini as a gifted but feckless amateur-the witty, high-spirited bon vivant who dashed off The Barber of Seville in a mere thirteen days-persisted down the years, until the centenary of his death in 1968 inaugurated a process of re-evaluation by scholars, performers, and writers. The original 1985 edition of Richard Osborne's pioneering and widely acclaimed Rossini redefined the life and provided detailed analyses of the complete Rossini oeuvre. Twenty years on, all Rossini's operas have been staged and recorded, a Critical Edition of his works is well advanced, and a scholarly edition of his correspondence, including 250 previously unknown letters from Rossini to his parents, is in progress. Drawing on these past two decades of scholarship and performance, this new edition of Rossini provides the most detailed portrait we have yet had of one of the worlds best-loved and most enigmatic composers.

CONTENTS.--no. 1. Costume, dress and needlework. (Nov. 1894)--no. 2. Music (Jan. 1895)--no. 3. Decoration and design (Dec. 1896)