This fine site was created by the Library of Congress to complement an in-situ exhibit of collected items related to the world of opera. The exhibit was also meant to commemorate the bicentennials of composers Giuseppe Verdi and Richard Wagner, both born in 1813. With sections featuring Richard Wagner and German Opera, Giuseppe Verdi and Italian Opera, and Beyond Verdi and Wagner, the collection...

Jean-Baptiste Lully was the most noted French composer of the 17th century and the inventor of the French operatic tradition. Born in Florence, Lully moved to France at the age of 14 and, at the age of 21, was appointed to the position of "composer of instrumental music for the king" for the court of Louis XIV. The University of North Texas Music Library has digitized 23 17th- and 18th-century...