As in Germany so in France has the array of sterling composers belonging to the nineteenth century assumed such extensive proportions that the historian's well-meant intentions to be concise are in danger of being frustrated. Only with regret can the temptation to search for further indications of orchestral innovations be set aside. On the other hand, one is obliged to concede that the recent progress of French instrumentation is entirely due to the series of eminent composers with which we have just been occupied, nor has the art of orchestration advanced as yet beyond that of Saint-Saëns and of Chabrier, unless we accept the efforts of Debussy as rich in promise as well as in interest. Omitting, therefore, the names of a host of other worthy aspirants, there remains only the seemingly indispensable mention of two secondary composers of recognized merit: Dubois and Paladhile;--of the eminent expounders on orchestration: Gevaërt and Lavoix;--of the literary writers and champions of the new school of thought: Vidal, Benoit and Joncières;--of the organist-composers: Guilmant and Widor;--of the representatives of the fair sex: Augusta Holmès and Cécile Chaminade, together with one of the most recent comets on the dramatic horizon: Gustave Charpentier. The works of Dubois (1837) bear the stamp of exceptional ability and versatility. In addition to a successful grand opera entitled "Aben Hamet," the list includes an oratorio "Paradise Lost," a ballet "La Farandole," a concert overture "Frithjof," a pianoforte concerto, and several orchestral suites. Paladhile (1844), a pupil of Halévy, has made himself popular with "Mandolinata," besides winning the respect of the professional world in the cosmopolitan field of grand and comic opera, symphonies, masses, and minor works. By a strange coincidence the three standard expositions of practical instrumentation and æsthetic orchestration are conceived in the French language,--the authors of these works being, of course, Berlioz, Gevaërt and Lavoix. Gevaërt (1828) merits the reputation not only of a musical savant but of a prolific composer as well. His "Nouveau Traité de L'Instrumentation" is not only a worthy sequel to Berlioz's, but has to a great extent actually displaced it. Of an entirely different stamp but equally indispensable to the student of orchestral evolution is the comprehensive "Histoire de L'Instrumentation" by Lavoix (1846). Further eulogistic comments upon these world-renowned treatises would seem superfluous.