seventies and eighties.  His scores would not sound very elaborate nowadays, nor do his melodies appear unusually tortuous or exacting, but he insisted upon violent contrasts from his singers as well as from his orchestra, and the great length of his operas, a point in which he anticipated Meyerbeer and Wagner, probably reduced to exhaustion the artists who were trained on Gluck and Mozart.  ‘La Vestale’ was followed in 1809 by ‘Fernand Cortez,’ and in 1819 by ‘Olympie,’ both of which were extremely successful, the latter in a revised form which was produced at Berlin in 1821.  Spontini’s operas are now no longer performed, but the influence which his music exercised upon men so different as Wagner and Meyerbeer makes his name important in the history of opera.

Although Paris was the nursery of all that was best in opera at this period, to Germany belongs the credit of producing the one work dating from the beginning of the nineteenth century which deserves to rank with the masterpieces of the previous generation—­Beethoven’s ‘Fidelio.’  Beethoven’s (1770-1827) one contribution to the lyric stage was written in 1804 and 1805, and was produced at Vienna in the latter year, during the French occupation.  The libretto is a translation from the French, and the story had already formed the basis of more than one opera; indeed, it was a performance of Paer’s ‘Eleonora’ which originally led Beethoven to think of writing his work.  Simple as it is, the plot has true nobility of design, and the purity of its motive contrasts favourably with the tendency of the vast majority of lyric dramas.  Florestan, a Spanish nobleman, has fallen into the power of his bitterest enemy, Pizarro, the governor of a state prison near Madrid.  There the unfortunate Florestan is confined in a loathsome dungeon without light or air, dependent upon the mercy of Pizarro for the merest crust of bread.  Leonore, the unhappy prisoner’s wife, has discovered his place of confinement, and, in the hope of rescuing him, disguises herself in male attire and hires herself as servant to Rocco, the head gaoler, under the name of Fidelio.  In this condition she has to endure the advances of Marcelline, the daughter of Rocco, who neglects her lover Jaquino for the sake of the attractive new-comer.  Before Leonore has had time to mature her plans, news comes to the prison of the approaching visit of the Minister Fernando on a tour of inspection.  Pizarro’s only chance of escaping the detection of his crime is to put an end to Florestan’s existence, and he orders Rocco to dig a grave in the prisoner’s cell.  Leonore obtains leave to help the gaoler in his task, and together they descend to the dungeon, where the unfortunate Florestan is lying in a half inanimate condition.  When their task is finished Pizarro himself comes down, and is on the point of stabbing Florestan, when Leonore throws herself between him and his victim, a pistol in her hand, and threatens the assassin with instant death if he advance a step.  At that moment a flourish of trumpets announces the arrival of Fernando.  Pizarro is forced to hurry off to receive his guest, and the husband and wife rush into each other’s arms.  The closing scene shows the discomfiture and disgrace of Pizarro, and the restoration of Florestan to his lost honours and dignity.