THE Overture to Cosi fan tutte is the lightest of Mozart’s orchestral compositions, and in the style of the Italian sinfonias of his day, but as far superior as was to be expected from a genius which, even when relaxing, was comparatively great.

The Madrigal, ‘When all alone,’ is one of the most beautiful compositions of the kind known, and but for a single modulation which marks its age, might be mistaken for a modern production, so free and fresh is its melody. Of Conversi scarcely any record remains. Walther bestows only two lines on him: Gerber merely states that he was born at Correggio, and published a set of canzoni for five voices, at Venice, in 1575, and a set of madrigals for six, at the same place, in 1584. Of course, therefore, his present work was among the former, though it has always in England borne the title now given to it. To the best of our knowledge, the canzone for many voices only differs from the madrigal in being less laboured; fugal points and imitations do not so necessarily enter into its formation.

Of the Song, we can only say, that we think it worthy of a place in our work.

The two movements of Clementi are now, alas! little known. After playing both through, we recommend the performer to repeat and end with the first.

The Incarnatus is from the composer’s most esteemed mass. The resemblance of this to Purcell’s song, ‘What power art thou,’ in King Arthur, is so striking, that surely something more than accident must have occasioned it. But if Caldara borrowed from Purcell, Handel was indebted to the borrower; for his ‘Vouchsafe, O Lord,’ in the Dettingen Te Deum, seems formed on the model of the Italian composer.

Antonio Caldara, born at Venice about the year 1680, was vice-master of the Imperial Chapel at Vienna from 1714 to 1763. He was one of the most distinguished composers of his age, both for sacred and dramatic music; but his fame now rests on the former. As to his operas, Metastasio, an excellent judge of the matter, did not think highly of them, notwithstanding their reputation at the time, for, in a letter to Eximeno, he mentions the composer as ‘an eminent contrapuntist, but extremely deficient in expression and pleasing melody.’