animation. The treatment of this kind of recitative is always free. It passes from sharply accented declamation into more or less elaborate melodious song. In the same way the orchestra sometimes serves simply as supporting accompaniment, sometimes suggests in an interlude or carries out more fully the expression of feeling excited by the words. A truly inexhaustible wealth of striking and, from many points of view, interesting features and beautiful motifs displays itself in these recitatives. Very fine, for instance, is the anticipation in Electra's recitative (p. 171, score) of the principal subject of the following song. How suggestive it is when Idomeneo, Ilia having just left him, expresses the conviction that she loves Idamante, in the characteristic motif of her song, by which doubtless she has betrayed her love, weaving it in the most striking manner into the interlude of his soliloquy! (p. 146, score). The variety and wealth of harmonic transitions in these recitatives is astonishing. Mozart's originality is displayed by the way in which he gathers to a point the scattered and fugitive emotions of the various parts, so as to form a consistent whole. There is not a note which stands alone, every separate touch becomes for him a motif, capable of further development, and each in its own measure contributes to express the situation; the subjects are not strung upon a thread, they are moulded into a homogeneous entity. The effect of the melodrama lingers in the dramatic character of the instrumental interludes, which is sharply emphasised by the great variety of orchestral tone-colouring. An example of such character-painting is afforded by the prelude to the High Priest's recitative (23), which is in close connection with the scene which is being enacted on the stage. It begins maestoso, with a rapid flourish of trumpets, drums, and horns--the King enters with his followers; then a largo (of two bars length), stringed instruments and bassoons; the priests enter; finally an agitated passage for the violins; the people throng tumultuously upon the stage. Then also we have not only the stringed quartet, with occasional use of one or other wind instrument, in the recitatives, but, wherever it seems advisable the whole orchestra {ORCHESTRA.} (159) is employed; the wind instruments serving to accent and light up the most varied combinations.