aydn, who wrote twelve symphonies
for the London Philharmonic, to Beethoven, whose ninth symphony was
written for the same society; Mendelssohn, whose "Elijah," was written
for the Birmingham festival, and Wagner, who received handsome
compensation for conducting a series of concerts in London. A little
past the middle of the present century, however, more creative
activity began to show itself among English composers, until at the
present time there are excellent English composers in all the leading
departments of musical production. The more celebrated names follow.

One of the most graceful and talented of English composers was Sir
William Sterndale Bennett (1816-1875), who came of a musical stock,
and was duly trained as a choir boy in King's Chapel, and at the Royal
Academy of Music. In 1836 he went to Leipsic, in order to profit by
the Gewandhaus concerts there and the friendship of Mendelssohn. Here
he produced a number of orchestral compositions which were so highly
esteemed that in 1853 the directorship of the Gewandhaus concerts was
offered him. After a short sojourn at Leipsic he returned to London,
where he ever after lived, highly honored as composer, pianist,
teacher and man. In 1856 he became the conductor of the London
Philharmonic concerts, and in 1866 principal of the Royal Academy of
Music. He was knighted in 1871, having previously been honored by
degrees from Cambridge and Oxford. He was professor of music in
Cambridge University from 1856 until his death. As a composer Bennett
was influenced by Mendelssohn, but he had much delicacy of fancy and a
certain originality of his own. His compositions embrace four
concertos for piano and orchestra, several concert overtures for
orchestra, one symphony, much chamber music, a cantata, "The May
Queen" (1858), "The Woman of Samaria" (1867), and a number of
occasional odes, anthems and part songs.

The successor of Sterndale Bennett as principal of the Royal Academy
of Music was Sir George A. Macfarren (1813-1887), who although totally
blind for many years before his death, produced a greater number of
important compositions than any other English composer of the century.
He was educated in London, and in 1834 became one of the professors in
the Royal Academy of Music. His first opera was produced in 1838,
"Devil's Opera," "Don Quixote" (1836), "Jessy Lea" (1863) and
"Helvellyn" (1864). He wrote a number of cantatas for chorus and
orchestra, oratorios, "St.