=The Masque=.—The precursor of the English opera was the Masque. Like the French Ballet, this was a dramatic entertainment consisting of dialogues, dances, songs, and choruses. The subject was allegorical or mythical in nature and the mounting of the most elaborate description. The leading poets and dramatists of the day wrote many masques. The most famous was Milton’s “Masque of Comus,” the music by Lawes, which was performed at Ludlow Castle in 1634. The music in these masques was at first designed merely to give variety to what was in the main a pleasure to the eye, but Purcell relieved it of this subordinate character by investing it with a weight and authority which made it an integral factor in the dramatic expression. =Typical English Opera=.—He thus fixed the form of the _English opera_ as a _play with songs, choruses, ensembles_, etc., connected by _spoken dialogue_ instead of recitatives. The music, therefore, instead of carrying on the action, is confined to the more quiet situations of the drama, such as are naturally adapted to lyrical expression. The inflexibility of this form has doubtless had much to do with the lack of development in the English School of Opera compared with the remarkable growth of other schools which have abandoned the union of the spoken with the sung word in the serious opera. =The Ballad Opera=.—The only characteristic creation of the English school is the Ballad Opera. This had its origin in “The Beggar’s Opera,” produced in 1728. Slight in texture, it was simply a play with songs set to the most popular ballad tunes of the day. Its extraordinary success in the face of the financial failure of Italian opera left no doubt as to the real taste of the English people, and was decisive as to the direction taken by later composers, such as =Sir Henry Bishop= (1786-1855), =Michael Balfe= (1808-1870), =Arthur Sullivan= (1842-1901). REFERENCES. Davy.—History of English Music. QUESTIONS AND SUGGESTIONS. What circumstances attended the spread of the Italian Opera? Which European country was the next to take up Opera? Who was the founder of this new school? What efforts had been made prior to his appearance? Describe Lully’s opera form. Describe the French Overture. Describe the Prologue. Who was Lully’s successor? What prevented the spread of the principles of the early Italian Opera in England? Give names of men connected with the early history of Opera in England. Give an account of Purcell and his works. What was the Masque? Describe the typical English Opera. The Ballad Opera. The pupil will note that the development of French Opera took place in the reign of Louis XIV, and that it was after the restoration of Charles II in England that opera began there, Purcell’s work ending with the close of the 17th century. LESSON XXII. THE OPERA IN GERMANY. HANDEL AND GLUCK.