reality, is a vehement protest against the indifference for the Art of
Music which, up to that time, had always been displayed by the
University. In 1903 he published a remarkable _Life of Beethoven_,
followed by a _Life of Hugo Wolf_ in 1905. The present volume, together
with its companion, _Musiciens d'Autrefois_, appeared in 1908. Both
form remarkable essays and reveal a consummate and most intimate
knowledge of the life and works of our great contemporaries. A just
estimate of a composer's work is not to be arrived at without a study of
his works and of the conditions under which these were produced. To
take, for instance, the case of but one of the composers treated in this
volume, Hector Berlioz. No composer has been so misunderstood, so
vilified as he, simply because those who have written about him, either
wilfully or through ignorance, have grossly misrepresented him.

The essay on Berlioz, in the present volume, reveals a true insight into
the personality of this unfortunate and great artist, and removes any
false misconceptions which unsympathetic and superficial handling may
have engendered. Indeed, the same introspective faculty is displayed in
all the other essays which form this volume, which, it is believed, will
prove of the greatest value not only to the professional student, but
also to the _intelligent listener_, for whom the present series of
volumes has been primarily planned. We hear much, nowadays, of the value
of "Musical Appreciation." It is high time that something was done to
educate our audiences and to dispel the hitherto prevalent fallacy that
Music need not be regarded seriously. We do not want more creative
artists, more executants; the world is full of them--good, bad and
indifferent--but we _do_ want more _intelligent listeners_.

I do not think it is an exaggeration to assert that the majority of
listeners at a high-class concert or recital are absolutely bored. How