Eugene Onegin is the most popular of Tchaikovsky's operas. Entitled 'Lyrical Scenes after Pushkin' by the composer, the work takes as its basis the poem of the same name by the great Russian writer Alexander Pushkin.

Giuseppe Verdi and Richard Wagner, the two greatest operatic composers of their time, had everything and nothing in common. Their achievements were comparable, but their personalities, their approaches to music and drama, and their complex legacies made them incompatible. Verdi thought of art as a comfort to mankind.

Giuseppe Verdi and Richard Wagner, the two greatest operatic composers of their time, had everything and nothing in common. Their achievements were comparable, but their personalities, their approaches to music and drama, and their complex legacies made them incompatible. This book investigates their affinities and explains their mutual mistrust.

This edition contains over twenty illustrations, a thematic guide and the texts of the libretti in the original with literal translations. There is also a bibliography, discography and DVD guide, together with a list of websites that will allow the reader to explore the opera further.