Michael William Balfe (15 May 1808 – 20 October 1870) was an Irish composer, best remembered for his operas, especially ''

The Bohemian Girl ''The Bohemian Girl'' is an Irish Romantic opera composed by Michael William Balfe with a libretto by Alfred Bunn. The plot is loosely based on a Miguel de Cervantes' tale, ''La Gitanilla''. The best-known aria from the piece is "I Dreamt I D ...

''. After a short career as a violinist, Balfe pursued an operatic singing career, while he began to compose. In a career spanning more than 40 years, he composed at least 29 operas, almost 250 songs, several

cantata A cantata (; ; literally "sung", past participle feminine singular of the Italian verb ''cantare'', "to sing") is a vocal composition with an instrumental accompaniment, typically in several movements, often involving a choir. The meaning o ...

s and other works. He was also a noted conductor, directing Italian Opera at Her Majesty's Theatre for seven years, among other conducting posts.

Biography

Early life and career

Balfe was born in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...

, where his musical gifts became apparent at an early age. He received instruction from his father, a dancing master and violinist, and the composer William Rooke. His family moved to

Wexford Wexford () is the county town of County Wexford, Ireland. Wexford lies on the south side of Wexford Harbour, the estuary of the River Slaney near the southeastern corner of the island of Ireland. The town is linked to Dublin by the M11/N11 ...

when he was a child. Between 1814 and 1815, Balfe played the violin for his father's dancing-classes, and at the age of seven composed a

polacca A polacca (or ''polacre'') is a type of seventeenth- to nineteenth-century sailing vessel, similar to the xebec. The name is the feminine of "Polish" in the Italian language. The polacca was frequently seen in the Mediterranean. It had two or th ...

. In 1817, he appeared as a violinist in public, and in this year composed a

ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or '' ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...

, first called "Young Fanny" and afterwards, when sung in ''Paul Pry'' by Madame Vestris, "The Lovers' Mistake". In 1823, upon the death of his father, the teenaged Balfe moved to London and was engaged as a violinist in the orchestra of the

Theatre Royal, Drury Lane The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, commonly known as Drury Lane, is a West End theatre and Grade I listed building in Covent Garden, London, England. The building faces Catherine Street (earlier named Bridges or Brydges Street) and backs onto Dr ...

. He eventually became the leader of that orchestra. While there, he studied violin with Charles Edward Horn and composition with

Charles Frederick Horn Charles Frederick Horn (24 February 1762 – 3 August 1830) was an English musician and composer. Born in Germany, he emigrated to London with few possessions and no knowledge of the English language, yet rose to become a music teacher in the ...

, the organist, from 1824, at St. George's Chapel, Windsor. While still playing the violin, Balfe pursued a career as an opera singer. He debuted unsuccessfully at

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the Episcopal see, See of ...

in Carl Maria von Weber's ''

Der Freischütz ' ( J. 277, Op. 77 ''The Marksman'' or ''The Freeshooter'') is a German opera with spoken dialogue in three acts by Carl Maria von Weber with a libretto by Friedrich Kind, based on a story by Johann August Apel and Friedrich Laun from their 1810 ...

''. In 1825, his wealthy patron Count Mazzara took him to Rome for vocal and musical studies and introduced him to

Luigi Cherubini Luigi Cherubini ( ; ; 8 or 14 SeptemberWillis, in Sadie (Ed.), p. 833 1760 – 15 March 1842) was an Italian Classical and Romantic composer. His most significant compositions are operas and sacred music. Beethoven regarded Cherubini as the gre ...

. Balfe also pursued composing: in Italy, he wrote his first dramatic work, a ballet, ''La Perouse''. He became a protégé of

Rossini Gioachino Antonio Rossini (29 February 1792 – 13 November 1868) was an Italian composer who gained fame for his 39 operas, although he also wrote many songs, some chamber music and piano pieces, and some sacred music. He set new standards ...

's, and at the close of 1827, he appeared as Figaro in ''

The Barber of Seville ''The Barber of Seville, or The Useless Precaution'' ( it, Il barbiere di Siviglia, ossia L'inutile precauzione ) is an '' opera buffa'' in two acts composed by Gioachino Rossini with an Italian libretto by Cesare Sterbini. The libretto was ba ...

'' at the Italian opera in Paris. Balfe soon returned to Italy, where he was based for the next eight years, singing and composing several operas. He met Maria Malibran while singing at the

Paris Opera The Paris Opera (, ) is the primary opera and ballet company of France. It was founded in 1669 by Louis XIV as the , and shortly thereafter was placed under the leadership of Jean-Baptiste Lully and officially renamed the , but continued to be ...

during this period. In 1829 in

Bologna Bologna (, , ; egl, label= Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different na ...

, Balfe composed his first

for the

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880& ...

Giulia Grisi Giulia Grisi (22 May 1811 – 29 November 1869) was an Italian opera singer. She performed widely in Europe, the United States and South America and was among the leading sopranos of the 19th century.Chisholm 1911, p. ? Her second husband was Gi ...

, then 18 years old. She performed it with the

tenor A tenor is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The low extreme for tenors is wide ...

Francesco Pedrazzi with much success. Balfe produced his first complete opera, ''I rivali di se stessi'', at

Palermo Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital of both the autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan province. The city is noted for its ...

in the carnival season of 1829–1830. In Lugano, Switzerland, around 1831 he married Lina Roser (1806–1888), a Hungarian-born singer of Austrian parentage whom he had met at

Bergamo Bergamo (; lmo, Bèrghem ; from the proto- Germanic elements *''berg +*heim'', the "mountain home") is a city in the alpine Lombardy region of northern Italy, approximately northeast of Milan, and about from Switzerland, the alpine lakes Com ...

. The couple had two sons and two daughters. Their younger son, Edward, died in infancy. Their elder son, Michael William Jr., died in 1915. Their daughters were Louisa (1832–1869) and Victoire. Balfe wrote another opera ''Un avvertimento ai gelosi'' at

Pavia Pavia (, , , ; la, Ticinum; Medieval Latin: ) is a town and comune of south-western Lombardy in northern Italy, south of Milan on the lower Ticino river near its confluence with the Po. It has a population of c. 73,086. The city was the ...

, and ''Enrico Quarto'' at

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city ...

, where he had been engaged to sing in Rossini's ''

Otello ''Otello'' () is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Arrigo Boito, based on Shakespeare's play '' Othello''. It was Verdi's penultimate opera, first performed at the Teatro alla Scala, Milan, on 5 February 1887. ...

'' with Malibran at

La Scala La Scala (, , ; abbreviation in Italian of the official name ) is a famous opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the ' (New Royal-Ducal Theatre alla Scala). The premiere performan ...

in 1834. An unpopular attempt at "improving"

Giacomo Meyerbeer Giacomo Meyerbeer (born Jakob Liebmann Beer; 5 September 1791 – 2 May 1864) was a German opera composer, "the most frequently performed opera composer during the nineteenth century, linking Mozart and Wagner". With his 1831 opera '' Robert le ...

's opera, '' Il crociato in Egitto'', by interpolated music of his own, compelled Balfe to throw up his engagement at the theatre

La Fenice Teatro La Fenice (, "The Phoenix") is an opera house in Venice, Italy. It is one of "the most famous and renowned landmarks in the history of Italian theatre" and in the history of opera as a whole. Especially in the 19th century, La Fenice bec ...

in Venice.

Composing success

Balfe returned to London with his wife and young daughter in May 1835. His initial success took place some months later, with the premiere of ''The Siege of Rochelle'' on 29 October 1835 at Drury Lane. Encouraged by his success, he produced '' The Maid of Artois'' in 1836; which was followed by more operas in English. In July 1838, Balfe composed a new opera, ''Falstaff'', for The Italian Opera House, based on ''

The Merry Wives of Windsor ''The Merry Wives of Windsor'' or ''Sir John Falstaff and the Merry Wives of Windsor'' is a comedy by William Shakespeare first published in 1602, though believed to have been written in or before 1597. The Windsor of the play's title is a ref ...

'', with an Italian libretto by S. Manfredo Maggione. The production starred his friends

Luigi Lablache Luigi Lablache (6 December 1794 – 23 January 1858) was an Italian opera singer of French and Irish ancestry. He was most noted for his comic performances, possessing a powerful and agile bass voice, a wide range, and adroit acting skills: Lepo ...

(

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gui ...

) in the title role, Giulia Grisi (soprano), Giovanni Battista Rubini (tenor), and Antonio Tamburini (

baritone A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in the ...

). The same four singers had premiered Bellini's, '' I puritani'' at the Italian Opera in Paris in 1835.Walsh Basil
"Michael William Balfe"
at the British and Irish World website In 1841, Balfe founded the National Opera at the Lyceum Theatre, but the venture was a failure. The same year, he premiered his opera, ''Keolanthe''. He then moved to Paris, presenting ''Le Puits d'amour'' (1843) in early 1843, followed by his opera based on '' Les quatre fils Aymon'' (1844) for the

Opéra-Comique The Opéra-Comique is a Paris opera company which was founded around 1714 by some of the popular theatres of the Parisian fairs. In 1762 the company was merged with – and for a time took the name of – its chief rival, the Comédie-Italienne ...

(also popular in German-speaking countries for many years as ''Die vier Haimonskinder'') and '' L'étoile de Seville'' (1845) for the Opéra. Their librettos were written by Eugène Scribe and others. Meanwhile, in 1843, Balfe returned to London where he produced his most successful work, ''

'', on 27 November 1843 at the

. The piece ran for over 100 nights, and productions were soon mounted in New York, Dublin, Philadelphia, Vienna (in German), Sydney, and throughout Europe and elsewhere. In 1854, an Italian adaptation called ''La Zingara'' was mounted in

Trieste Trieste ( , ; sl, Trst ; german: Triest ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital city, and largest city, of the autonomous region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, one of two autonomous regions which are not subdivided into pr ...

with great success, and it too was performed internationally in both Italian and German. In 1862, a four-act French version, entitled ''La Bohemienne'' was produced in France and was again a success.

Later years

From 1846 to 1852, Balfe was appointed musical director and principal conductor for the Italian Opera at Her Majesty's Theatre, with Max Maretzek as his assistant. There he first produced several of

Verdi Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi (; 9 or 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer best known for his operas. He was born near Busseto to a provincial family of moderate means, receiving a musical education with the ...

's operas for London audiences. He conducted for

Jenny Lind Johanna Maria "Jenny" Lind (6 October 18202 November 1887) was a Swedish opera singer, often called the "Swedish Nightingale". One of the most highly regarded singers of the 19th century, she performed in soprano roles in opera in Sweden and ...

at her opera debut and on many occasions thereafter. Michael William Balfe grave Kensal Green 2014

In 1851, in anticipation of the Great International Exhibition in London, Balfe composed an innovative cantata, ''Inno Delle Nazioni'', sung by nine female singers, each representing a country. Balfe continued to compose new operas in English, including '' The Armourer of Nantes'' (1863), and wrote hundreds of songs, such as "When other hearts", "

I Dreamt I Dwelt in Marble Halls "I Dreamt I Dwelt in Marble Halls", or "The Gipsy Girl's Dream", is a popular aria from ''The Bohemian Girl'', an 1843 opera by Michael William Balfe, with lyrics by Alfred Bunn. It is sung in the opera by the character Arline, who is in love with ...

" (from ''The Bohemian Girl''), " Come into the Garden, Maud", "Killarney" and "Excelsior" (a setting of the poem by Longfellow). His last opera, nearly completed when he died, was ''The Knight of the Leopard'' and achieved considerable success in Italian as ''Il Talismano''. Balfe retired in 1864 to

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For gov ...

, where he rented a country estate. He died at his home in Rowney Abbey,

Ware, Hertfordshire Ware is a town in Hertfordshire, England close to the county town of Hertford. It is also a civil parishes in England, civil parish in East Hertfordshire district. Location The town lies on the north–south A10 road (Great Britain), A10 road ...

, in 1870, aged 62, and was buried at

Kensal Green Cemetery Kensal Green Cemetery is a cemetery in the Kensal Green area of Queens Park in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in London, England. Inspired by Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris, it was founded by the barrister George Frederick ...

in London, next to fellow Irish composer

William Vincent Wallace William Vincent Wallace (11 March 1812 – 12 October 1865) was an Irish composer and pianist. In his day, he was famous on three continents as a double virtuoso on violin and piano. Nowadays, he is mainly remembered as an opera composer of n ...

, who had died five years before. In 1882, a medallion portrait of him was unveiled in

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an historic, mainly Gothic church in the City of Westminster, London, England, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is one of the United ...

. A

London County Council London County Council (LCC) was the principal local government body for the County of London throughout its existence from 1889 to 1965, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today kn ...

plaque unveiled in 1912 commemorates Balfe at 12 Seymour Street,

Marylebone Marylebone (usually , also , ) is a district in the West End of London, in the City of Westminster. Oxford Street, Europe's busiest shopping street, forms its southern boundary. An ancient parish and latterly a metropolitan borough, it ...

. In all, Balfe composed at least 29 operas.Walsh (2008), pp. 184–216 He also wrote several cantatas (including ''Mazeppa'' in 1862) and a symphony (1829). Balfe's only large-scale piece that is still performed is ''The Bohemian Girl''.

Selected compositions

Operas, with first performances *''I rivali di se stessi'' (A. Alcozer), Palermo: Teatro Carolino, 29 June 1829 *''Un avvertimento ai gelosi'' (G. Foppa), Pavia: Teatro Condomini, 11 May 1831 *''Enrico IV al passo della Marna'' (unknown librettist), Milan: Teatro Carcano, 19 February 1833 *''The Siege of Rochelle'' (Edward Fitzball), London: Theatre Royal Drury Lane, 29 October 1835 ** Austrian version: ''Die Belagerung von Rochelle'' (

Joseph Kupelwieser Joseph Kupelwieser (14 January 1791 – 2 February 1866) was an Austrian playwright, librettist, dramaturge and theatre director. Working at Vienna theatres for decades, he wrote the libretto for Franz Schubert's opera '' Fierrabras''. Biograp ...

), Vienna: Theater an der Wien, 24 October 1846 *'' The Maid of Artois'' (Alfred Bunn), London: Theatre Royal Drury Lane, 27 May 1836 *''Catherine Grey'' (George Linley), London: Theatre Royal Drury Lane, 27 May 1837 *''Joan of Arc'' (Edward Fitzball), London: Theatre Royal Drury Lane, 30 November 1837 *''Diadeste, or The Veiled Lady'' (Edward Fitzball), London: Theatre Royal Drury Lane, 17 May 1838 *'' Falstaff'' (Manfredo Maggioni), London: Her Majesty's Theatre (Italian Opera), 19 July 1838 *''Keolanthe'' (Edward Fitzball), London Theatre Royal (English Opera House), 9 March 1841 ** Austrian version: ''Keolanthe, oder Das Traumbild'' (Karl Gollmick), Vienna: Theater am Kärntnertor, 3 December 1853 *''Le Puits d'amour'' (Eugène Scribe and A. de Leuven), Paris: Opéra Comique, 20 April 1843 ** English version: ''Geraldine, or The Lover's Well'', London: Princess Theatre, 14 August 1843 ** Austrian version: ''Der Liebesbrunnen'' (Joseph Kupelwieser), Vienna: Theater an der Wien, 4 November 1845 *''

'' (Alfred Bunn), London: Theatre Royal Drury Lane, 27 November 1843 ** Austrian version: ''Die Zigeunerin'' (Joseph Kupelwieser), Vienna: Theater an der Wien, 24 July 1846 ** French version: ''La Bohemienne'' (J.H. Vernoy de Saint Georges), Rouen: Théâtre des Arts, 23 April 1862; revised version: Paris: Théâtre Lyrique, 30 December 1869 *''Les Quatre fils Aymon'' (A. de Leuven and L.L. Brunswick), Paris: Opéra Comique, 15 July 1844 ** English version: ''The Castle of Aymon'' (G.A. Beckett), London: Princess Theatre, 20 November 1844 ** Austrian version: ''Die vier Haimonskinder'' (Joseph Kupelwieser), Vienna: Josefstadt-Theater, 14 December 1844 ** Italian version (for London): ''I quattro fratelli'' (S.F. Maggione), London: His Majesty's Theatre (Italian Opera), 11 August 1851 *''The Daughter of St. Mark'' (Alfred Bunn), London: Theatre Royal Drury Lane, 27 November 1844 *''The Enchantress'' (J.H. Vernoy de Saint Georges), London: Theatre Royal Drury Lane, 14 May 1845 *'' L'étoile de Seville'' (Hippolyte Lucas), Paris: Opéra, 17 December 1845 *''The Bondman'' (Alfred Bunn), London: Theatre Royal Drury Lane, 11 December 1846 ** German version: ''Der Mulatte'' (Johann Christoph Grünbaum), Berlin: Königliches Schauspielhaus, 25 January 1850 *''The Maid of Honour'' (Edward Fitzball), London: Theatre Royal Drury Lane, 20 December 1847 *''The Sicilian Bride'' (J.H. Vernoy de Saint Georges, transl. by A. Bunn), London: Theatre Royal Drury Lane, 6 March 1852 *''The Devil's in it'' (Alfred Bunn), London: Surrey Theatre, 26 July 1852 *''Pittore e Duca'' (F.M. Piave), Trieste: Teatro Grande, 21 November 1854 ** English version: ''Moro, the Painter of Antwerp'' (William Alexander Barrett), London: Her Majesty's Theatre, 28 January 1882 *''The Rose of Castille'' (A. Harris and Edmund Falconer), London: Lyceum Theatre, 29 October 1857 *'' Satanella, or The Power of Love'' (A. Harris and Edmund Falconer), London: Royal English Opera Covent Garden, 20 December 1858 *''Bianca, the Bravo's Bride'' (J. Palgrave Simpson), London: Royal English Opera Covent Garden, 6 December 1860 *''The Puritan's Daughter'' (J.V. Bridgeman), London: Royal English Opera Covent Garden, 30 November 1861 *'' The Armourer of Nantes'' (J.V. Bridgeman), London: Royal English Opera Covent Garden, 12 February 1863 *''Blanche de Nevers'' (J. Brougham), London: Royal English Opera Covent Garden, 21 November 1863 *''The Sleeping Queen'' (H.B. Farnie), London: Royal Gallery of Illustrations, 31 August 1864 *''Il talismano'' (Arthur Matthison, Italian transl. by Giuseppe Zaffira), London: Theatre Royal Drury Lane, 11 June 1874

Recordings

Recordings of Balfe's work include the following:Klein, Axel
"Michael William Balfe"
Axel Klein – Irish Music Research, accessed 4 March 2015 *LP recordings (Rare Recorded Editions) of ''The Siege of Rochelle'', ''The Daughter of St. Mark'', ''

The Rose of Castille ''The Rose of Castille'' (or ''Castile'') is an opera in three acts, with music by Michael William Balfe to an English-language libretto by Augustus Glossop Harris and Edmund Falconer, after the libretto by Adolphe d'Ennery and Clairville (ali ...

'' and ''Satanella''. *''The Bohemian Girl'' conducted by

Richard Bonynge Richard Alan Bonynge ( ) (born 29 September 1930) is an Australian conductor and pianist. He is the widower of Australian dramatic coloratura soprano Dame Joan Sutherland. Bonynge conducted virtually all of Sutherland's operatic performance ...

, originally released on the Argo label in 1991, reissued on

Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, a record label * Decca Gold, a classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, a musical theater record label * Decca Studios, a recording facility in We ...

473 077-2. *

Deborah Riedel Deborah Riedel (31 July 19588 January 2009) was an Australian operatic soprano. Hers is generally regarded as one of the greatest voices ever produced in Australia. She died of cancer at the height of her career, at the age of 50. Riedel was bor ...

and Richard Bonynge
''The Power of Love''
Melba Z-MR301082, a CD of Balfe arias. *''The Maid of Artois''

(2005), available on Cameo 2042-3. *Victorian Opera Northwest

CD, WRW 204-2.
Opera Rara
CDs: ORR 239 includes Balfe's cantata ''Sempre pensoso e torbido'', and ORR 277 includes his song ''The Blighted flower''. *Opera Ireland (2008) live concert of Balfe's ''Falstaff'', RTÉ Concert Orchestra and National Chamber Choir of Ireland, conducted by Marco Zambelli, broadcast by RTÉ Lyric FM and later released on CD as RTÉ LyricFM CD119, available from Naxos.''Falstaff'' recording
, RTÉ LyricFM CD119, CD notes by Basil Walsh (2008) *A Balfe overture and songs (together with several Sullivan pieces)

*Balfe's ''Cello Sonata''
Dutton CDLX 7225
*''Satanella'', conducted by

, issued in 2016 o
Naxos 8.660378-79

References

Sources

* Barrett, William Alexander
''Balfe. His Life & Work''
(London: William Reeves, 1882). * Biddlecombe, George: ''English Opera from 1834 to 1864 with Particular Reference to the Works of Michael Balfe'' (New York: Garland Publishing, 1994), . * Burton, Nigel (1998): “Balfe, Michael William” in

Stanley Sadie Stanley John Sadie (; 30 October 1930 – 21 March 2005) was an influential and prolific British musicologist, music critic, and editor. He was editor of the sixth edition of the '' Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' (1980), which was pub ...

, (Ed.), '' The New Grove Dictionary of Opera'', Vol. One, pp. 286–288. London: Macmillan Publishers, Inc. * Kenney, Charles Lamb: ''A Memoir of Michael William Balfe'' (London: Tinsley Bros., 1875). * Tyldesley, William. ''Michael William Balfe. His Life and His English Operas'' (Aldershot & Burlington, Vermont: Ashgate, 2003), . * Walsh, Basil: ''Michael W. Balfe. A Unique Victorian Composer'' (Dublin & Portland, Oregon: Irish Academic Press, 2008), .

External links

* *
Michael William Balfe cylinder recordings
from the UCSB Cylinder Audio Archive at the

University of California, Santa Barbara The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a public land-grant research university in Santa Barbara, California with 23,196 undergraduates and 2,983 graduate students enrolled in 2021–2022. It is part of the U ...

Library
"Michael William Balfe, 1808–1870"
– Profile of Balfe and links to information about '' The Maid of Artois''
Derek B. Scott sings Balfe's musical setting (1857) of Tennyson's "Come into the Garden, Maud"
* * * *
Michael William Balfe recordings
at the

Discography of American Historical Recordings The Discography of American Historical Recordings (DAHR) is a database of master recordings made by American record companies during the 78rpm era. The DAHR provides some of these original recordings, free of charge, via audio streaming, along with ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Balfe, Michael William 1808 births 1870 deaths 19th-century British male opera singers 19th-century classical composers 19th-century Irish male opera singers Burials at Kensal Green Cemetery Glee composers Irish baritones Irish classical composers Irish expatriates in the United Kingdom Irish male classical composers Irish opera composers Male opera composers Musicians from Dublin (city) Romantic composers