n, "Ave Maris Stella," a number in which the composer's
eminent ability in sacred music is clearly shown. Its tranquil harmony
dies away in the softest of pianissimos, and is followed by an agitated
prelude introducing the furious chorus of the mutinous crew "Come,
Comrades, come," which gathers intensity as it progresses, voices and
instruments uniting in broken but powerful phrases, sometimes in full
chorus and again in solo parts, until the climax is reached, when
Columbus intervenes in brief solos of great dignity, to which the chorus
responds, the scene closing with the renewal of allegiance,--a stirring
bass solo with choral accompaniment.

The fifth scene is a tenor recitative and love-song of a most graceful
character, and one which will become a favorite when it is well known:--

"In Andalusia the nightingale
Sings,--sings through the live-long night;
Sings to its mate in pure delight:
But, ah me! ah, my love!
Vanished and lost to my sight
In distant Andalusia."

The final scene is very elaborate in its construction, and brings the
work to a sonorous and stately close. It opens with a very dramatic
recitative by Columbus ("The Night is dark, but many a Sign seen through
this Day proclaims the Goal at Hand"), at the close of which there is a
short orchestral prelude, which serves to introduce a trio ("Here at your
Bidding") for Columbus and two officers (first tenor and first bass). At
the cry of a seaman, "Land ho!" the chorus responds with animation.
Columbus bids his crew join him "in prayer and grateful praise." The
answer comes in a splendidly-written "Hallelujah," which is fairly
majestic in its progression, reaching its close in full broad harmony,
with the accompanying strains of trumpets.

The Light of Asia.

Mr. Buck's latest cantata, "The Light of Asia," well-nigh reaches the
dimensions of an opera or oratorio. It was written in 1886 and first
published in England. Its name reveals its source, and the composer has
made compensation for the privilege of using Mr. Edwin Arnold's beautiful
poem, by a graceful dedication of the work to him. The libretto was
prepared by the composer himself, who has shown great skill in making his
selections in such manner as not to disturb the continuity of the story.
The purely philosophical portions are omitted, and only those are
retained which have a human interest. In this manner he has avoided the
obstacle whic