GOETZ, Hermann (1840-1876), a musical composer, presents one of those instances, too frequent in the history of art, of success long sought for, and cut short by death when achieved at last. He was born at Königsburg in Prussia in 1840, and began his regular musical studies at the comparatively advanced age of seventeen. He entered the music-school of Professor Stern at Berlin, and studied composition chiefly under Ulrich and Hans von Bülow. In 1863 he was appointed organist at Winterthur in Switzerland, where he lived in obscurity for a number of years, occupying himself with composition during his leisure hours. One of his works was an opera, The Taming of the Shrew, the libretto skilfully adapted from Shakespeare’s play. After much delay it was produced at Mannheim (October 1874), and its success was as instantaneous as it has up to the present proved lasting. It rapidly made the round of the great German theatres, and spread its composer’s fame over all the land. But Goetz did not live to enjoy this happy result for long. In December 1876 he died at Zurich from overwork. A second opera, Francesca da Rimini, on which he was engaged at the time of his death, remained a fragment; but it has since been finished according to his directions by a friend,. and was performed for the first time at Mannheim a few months after the composer’s death. Besides his dramatic work, Goetz also wrote various compositions for chambermusic, of which a trio (Op. 1) and a quintet (Op. 16) have been given with great success at the London Monday Popular Concerts. Still more important is the Symphony in F, on which the composer’s great reputation in England is mainly founded. As a composer of comic opera Goetz lacks the sprightliness and artistic savoir faire so rarely found amongst ...