was eminently fitted by his personal skill as an instrumentalist and vocalist and his intimate knowledge of operatic details. His chief compositions during this period were the 'Bondman' (Drury Lane, December 1846) , 'The Devil's in it' (Surrey, 1847), and the 'Maid of Honour' (Covent Garden, 1847). The next few years were spent in various musical tours, both in England and abroad, the only work of importance which he composed being the 'Sicilian Bride,' produced at Drury Lane in 1852. In the same year he visited St. Petersburg, Vienna, and Italy, where he wrote an Italian opera, 'Pittore e Duca,' which was produced in 1856, and was played in an English version in London in 1882. In 1857 he returned to England, and was soon occupied in composing for the Pvne-Harrison company at Covent Garden the works which were its main support, the 'Rose of Castille' (October 1857), 'Satanella' (December 1858),'Bianca' (December 1860), the 'Puritan's Daughter' (November 1861), 'Blanche de Nevers' (November 1862), and the 'Armourer of Nantes' (February 1863). These, with a cantata, 'Maseppa,' and an operetta, the 'Sleeping Queen,' were the last works of Balfe's produced during his lifetime. In 1864 he left the house in Seymour Street, where he had lived for the last few years, and moved to Rowney Abbey, a small estate in Hertfordshire which he had bought. It was whilst living here, and on a visit to his daughter (the Duchess de Frias), that he wrote his last opera, the 'Knight of the Leopard,' the libretto of which was founded by the author, Arthur Matthison, on Sir Walter Scott's 'Talisman.' On this work Balfe bestowed more than ordinary care, and it was his hope that it would be performed on the English stage with Mlle. Tietjens and Messrs. Sims Reeves and Santley in the principal parts. With this aim before him ; he declined an offer which was pressed upon him by Napoleon III to have it produced in Paris; but his hope was never to be gratified, and the work was only destined to be produced in an Italian version and with a changed name four years after the composer's death. At the end of 1869 his 'Bohemian Girl' was produced in French at Paris, and once more foreign honours and decorations were conferred upon the Irish composer. In the spring of 1870 he returned from Paris to Rowney, but the severity of the winter and a domestic affliction he had sustained in the loss of his second daughter, Mrs. Behrend, had weakened his constitution to an alarming degree. In September he was taken ill with spasmodic asthma, a complaint from which he had long suffered, and though for a time he seemed to rally, he gradually sank, and died at Rowney Abbey on 20 Oct. 1870. He was buried at Kensal Green, and eight years later a tablet was erected to his memory in Westminster Abbey.
In estimating Balfe's position amongst the musicians of his century, it is necessary to bear constantly in mind the circumstances under which he won his renown as an operatic composer. From his Irish parentage he inherited a gift of melody which never deserted him throughout his prolific career; from England he can have gained but little, for in those days English music was practically non-existent: it was from France and Italy that he received his musical education, and it was on French and Italian boards that his first laurels were won. But the period which Balfe's life covers saw the palm of musical pre-eminence transferred from Italy and France to Germany. When the 'Siege of Rochelle' was written, Wagner was unknown. Forty years later, when 'Il Talismano' was produced, the only living Italian composer of eminence had proclaimed to a great extent his adherence to the principles preached by the German school. Thus it is that opinions differ so widely as to the merits of Balfe's music. To musicians who judge him from the point of view of the old ideal, his brilliancy, melody, and fertility of invention will entitle him to a place beside Berlini, Rossini, and Auber, while, on the other hand, by those who look for deeper thought and more intellectual aims in music, he will be regarded as a mere melodist, the ephemeral caterer to a generation who judged rather by manner of expression than by the value of what was expressed. The truth, as is usual in such cases, lies midway between these extremes. His invention, knowledge of effect, and above all his melody, will keep his works from being forgotten ; and if they are deficient in those higher qualities demanded by the taste of the present day, that is no reason why, within their limits, they should cease to please. Balfe's music may not be the highest, but of its kind it attains a very high degree of excellence. A thorough master of the means at his command, and intimately aware of the limits of his powers, he never attempted what he could not perform, and the result was that he produced such a number of works which are always satisfactory and often delightful.
[Kenny's Life of Balfe (1865); Barrett's Balfe and his Works (1882); Harmonicon for 1823; contemporary newspapers; Add. MSS. 29261, 29498; information from Madame Balfe.]
