Chopin, and other Musical Essays. By Henry T. Finck. (T•
Fisher Unwin.)—It gives us pleasure to notice this new and in- teresting book by Mr. Henry T. Pluck. He is an ardent admirer of Chopin, and writes with the view of explaining, to a certain extent, his compositions, and of defending him for never having written any large work. It is more of a treatise on his work than an account of his life, which is at first, perhaps, slightly disap- pointing ; but the reader will be well repaid if he persevere. " How Composers Work " is an extremely interesting portion of the book, but the most interesting is that entitled " German Opera in New York," which is chiefly an account of the growth of the Garman opera and its dramatic vocalists. Mr. Fink's enthusiasm for Chopin carries him a little too far, however, otherwise how can he assert that Beethoven's sonatas are not adapted to the piano- forte? Beethoven's style is, of course, as unlike Chopin's as any- thing can possibly be ; but does that make his works less adaptable to the piano ? Certainly not. What real lover of classical music could not listen with delight to Beethoven's pianoforte sonatas, when well played ? We must also remonstrate with Mr. Pluck on the remark that the English " care neither for music nor the theatre." We can only conclude that Mr. Finck has never passed a season in London, Manchester, &c., or he would have seen for himself how the English flock to the Richter and Halle concerts, the St. James's popular concerts, &c., and how appreciatively they both listen and applaud. He would have seen, too, how much they enjoy the theatres, and how crowded these are.
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