The tumultuous scene is followed by Nimrod's lament ("The Tower whose lofty Height was like my State"), a bass aria of great power, and reaching a splendid climax. Abraham, in an exultant strain ("The Lord is strong in Might"), proclaims God's purpose to scatter the people. The most picturesque scene in the work now occurs,--the dispersal of the Shemites, Hamites, and Japthides, typified by orchestral marches and choruses of a barbaric cast. The stage directions at this point indicate that the three choruses "must be sung behind the scenes, while dissolving views present to the audience the emigration of the three great human races,"--an effect which is also made in the last act of Goldmark's "Queen of Sheba." The first chorus, that of the Shemites, which is sung in unison, is taken from some of the ancient music in the ritual of the Jewish Synagogue, that used on the eve of the Day of Atonement. The other two choruses are also Oriental in color and rhythm, and give a very striking effect to this part of the work. The chorus of Angels ("Thus by Almighty Power of God") proclaims the completion of the work, and two long solos by Abraham and Nimrod lead up to the final choruses of the Angels, People, and Demons, worked up in very powerful style, and in the finale uniting the themes which originally introduced the chorus of the People and the Angels, and the subject of the darkness in the overture. The tableau is thus described in the stage directions: "The stage is divided into three horizontal compartments. In the middle is the earth; in the upper is the throne of the Almighty, surrounded by all the heavenly powers; in the lower, hell, Satan seated on his throne, surrounded by all the infernal deities." Paradise Lost. The oratorio "Paradise Lost" was first produced in Vienna in 1859 by the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde, a choral organization conducted by Rubinstein during his stay in that city. Like "The Tower of Babel," it is entitled by the composer "a sacred opera," though it is in genuine oratorio form, and usually classed as such. The text is a very free transcription from Milton. The work is divided into three parts; but as the second is usually the only part given by oratorio societies, our sketch will be principally confined to that. The first part mainly concerns the defeat of Satan's forces by the legions of Heaven, and is remarkable for its vigorous instrumental treatment.