English eighteenth-century music is comparatively neglected as an academic topic despite its increasing popularity with listeners, both on record and in the concert hall. Yet England in the eighteenth century was the scene of the liveliest and most various musical activity. The essays in this book, by leading English and American scholars, are devoted to the social and intellectual background, and to the composers who dominated the period, including Handel and Haydn.

This account of the Russian Civil War, originally published in 1971, combines a vivid narrative of the military events with a biographical discussion of the White Generals, figures of the former Imperial Russian Army offices who led the separate campaigns against the Red Soviets - men such as Kornilov, Alekseev, Kolchak, Denikin, Wrangel, Yudenich and the Finnish Yudeniol Marshal Mannerheim. Despite their shared designation, the White Generals had no common programme. Their tragedy was that Lenin's dogmatism, intransigence and ruthlessness, all essential qualities in a country which had never known anything other than autocracy, were alien to their characters.

This account of the Russian Civil War, originally published in 1971, combines a vivid narrative of the military events with a biographical discussion of the White Generals, figures of the former Imperial Russian Army offices who led the separate campaigns against the Red Soviets - men such as Kornilov, Alekseev, Kolchak, Denikin, Wrangel, Yudenich and the Finnish Yudeniol Marshal Mannerheim. Despite their shared designation, the White Generals had no common programme. Their tragedy was that Lenin's dogmatism, intransigence and ruthlessness, all essential qualities in a country which had never known anything other than autocracy, were alien to their characters.

Richard Luckett, librarian at Magdalene College, Cambridge, and an acknowledged authority on seventeenth- and eighteenth-century music, explores the background and composition of Messiah; the often stormy relations between Handel and his librettist, Charles Jennens; the colorful lives and personalities of the original soloists; and the circumstances of the first performance in Dublin, 1742, at which ladies were asked not to wear hoops or gentlemen their swords, so there would be more room. Luckett also gives the complex subsequent history of the work - its success in small towns and among humble people, its grand Victorian spectacle in Westminster Abbey, with thousands on stage and tens of thousands in the audience, and its "restoration" in the twentieth century. Paintings, engravings, caricatures, and facsimiles of Handel's autograph score illustrate a text written with erudition and wit. Handel's Messiah: A Celebration is a fascinating account of a great and beloved work of music.

Publisher's Note: Products purchased from Third Party sellers are not guaranteed by the publisher for quality, authenticity, or access to any online entitlements included with the product. "Exchange experts and Microsoft MVPs Richard Luckett, William Lefkovics, and Bharat Suneja have packed this book with practical guidance, useful information, and years of knowledge and experience. If you're responsible for one or more aspects of an Exchange 2007-based messaging system, keep this book close, as you'll be referring to it often!" --Scott Schnoll, Principal Technical Writer, Exchange Server Product Team, Microsoft Corporation