Mendelssohn never sympathized much with Berlioz's eccentric muse.

The "Lobgesang," or "Hymn of Praise," a "symphonie-cantata," as he
called it, was his next great work, composed in 1840, together with
other music, at the request of the Leipsic Town-Council, for a
festival held in that town in commemoration of the invention of
printing, on June 25th. None who have heard this work can forget the
first impression produced when the grand instrumental movements with
which it commences are merged in the majestic chorus, "All men, all
things, praise ye the Lord," or the intensely dramatic effect of the
repeated tenor cry, "Watchman, will the night soon pass?" answered at
last by the clear soprano message of glad tidings, "The night is
departing, the day is at hand!" This "watchman" episode was added some
time afterward, and, as he told a friend, was suggested to the
composer during the weary hours of a long sleepless night, when the
words, "Will the night soon pass?" again and again seemed to be
repeated to him. But a greater work even than this was now in
progress; the "Elijah" had been begun.

In 1841 began a troublesome and harassing connection with Berlin, a
city where, except in his home life, Mendelssohn never seems to have
been very fortunate. At the urgent entreaty of the king, he went to
reside there as head of the new Musical Academy. But disagreements
arose, and he did not long take an active part in the management. The
king, however, was very anxious to retain his services, and a sort of
general office seems to have been created for him, the duties of which
were to supply music for any dramatic works which the king took it
into his head to have so embellished. And, though it is to this that
we owe the noble "Antigone," "Oedipus," "Athalie," "Midsummer Night's
Dream," and other music, this work to dictation was very worrying, and
one cannot think without impatience of the annoyances to which he was
subjected. The king could not understand why he shrank from writing
music to the choruses of AEschylus's "Eumenides." Other composers would
do it by the yard, why not he?

Passing rapidly over the intervening years filled with busy work, both
in composition and as one of the principals of a newly started
Conservatorium in Leipsic, we come to 1846, when his great work
"Elijah" was at last completed and performed. On August 26th, at the
Birmingham Festival, the performance went splendidly. Staudigl took
the part of th