562 KEISER year(1709)hecomposed eightoperas, married the | daughter of a Hamburg patrician, and musician to the municipality ‘Oldenburg,’ and having completely reinstated his affairs, plunged into all his former extravagant indulgence. In 1716 he resumed his concerts ; was at the court of Stuttgart from 1719 to 1721 ; in 1722 visited Copenhagen and was appointed eapellmeister to the King of Denmark ; in 1728 was mado cantor and canon of the Hamburg eathedral, and again turned his attention to sacred music.” He composed operas up to the year 1738, and died Sept. 12, 1739. His wife and daughter are said to have been accomplished singers. Keiser exercised an important though not a permanent influence on German opera, The perfection to which at first he raised the opera at Hamburg speedily degenerated into mere outward show and trivial if not vulgar farce ; but the sensation he produced at first is de- scribed by his contemporaries as extraordinary. Mattheson, who was not likely to exaggerate the successes of a rival, in his life-like picture of the musical condition of Hamburg, calls Keiser the first dramatic composer in the world, and says that no other music than that of ‘dieser galante Componist’ was either sung or listened to. [Sco his Musizalische Patriot for list of operas given in Hamburg, and Mattheson’s other books for criticism on his music. Keiser contributed some remarks to Mattheson’s Neu-croffnetes Orchewter.| His melodies were smooth and graceful, and fell upon the car ‘like charmed accents after the dull pedantries of the cont puntists of the day.” That his melody was spontancous his facility itself proves, and he was the first who endeavoured to convey the sentiment of tho charactor in tho music. This was the secret of his success, and it was by this that he enabled German opera to hold its own against tho declamation of the French, and the melody and of the Italians. Tn sucreil music he shinos chiefly in oratorio, which he treated dramatically, but with an earnestness and dignity surprising in a man of his charactor. In judging Keiser in this department we must not forget that Bach's Passions, and Handel’s Oratorios were then not known, scarcely even composed ; yet notwithstanding his want of models, his works compare favourably with the insipid sacred music of the latter half of the 18th century, produced under far greater advantages than were open to him, His sacred compositions include ‘Der fur die Sunde der Welt gemarterte und sterbende Jesus,’ 1712 5 “Der vernrtheilte und gekrenzigte Jesus,” pub- Tished 1715 (poem by Brookes of Hamburg); @ Passion according to St. Mark, and other historical oratorios, motets, cantatas, and psalms. He published extracts from the two first-named works, viz, ‘ Auserlesene Soliloguia’ (1714), and ‘Selige Erlosungs-Gedanken'(1715); airs from various operas, cantatas for a single KELLEY | voico, and several vocal collections with various | titles, such as ‘Gemuthsergutzang’ (1698) 5 | ‘Divertimenti screnissimi’ (1713); ‘Musika- lische Landlust’ (1714); ‘ Kaiserliche Friedens- post’ (1715), ete. Important portions of his operas and sacred works have been published by | Lindner, in his Hrste stehende deutsche Oper, ii. | 8-155 Reissmann, in his Ag. Geschichte’ der " Musik, iii 94-73 and App. Nos. 7 and 8; and von Wintorield in his Beangelische Kirchen- gesing, vol. iti. Examples are also to be found in the Oxford History of Music, vol. iv., The Age of Bach and Hendel. Adam Hiller incnded an unaccompanied motot—‘ Kindlich gross’—in his Vierstimmige Motetten, ete. vol. ii. 5 and there is a fugue for four voices, ‘Gott ist offen- | baret,’ in the Auswahl rorsiglicher Musikwerke A full catalogue of his works is in the Viertel- Jahrssch rift, vol. vi. pp. 196-203, and a.condensed list in the Qnellen-Lexikon. cs | KELER BELA, whose real name was ALRERT vor Kétrn, was born at Bartfeld in Hungary, | Feb. 13, 1820. After attempting both the law and farming he settled himself to music, and in 1845 began regular study at Vienna under | Schlesinger and Sechter, playing the fiddle in | the band of the Theatre ‘an der Wien’ at the same timo. May 7, 1864, he took the command of Gung'l’s band in Berlin, and began his career as conductor, solo player, and composer. Atter a few months in Berlin he returned to Vienna, and succeeded to Lanner’s position at the head of that celebrated band in 1856. This again he left in 1856 for an infantry regiment. As bandmaster to the latter he was called to Wiesbaden in 1863, and in 1870 became capellineister of the’ Kur orchestra there, a post which he resigned from ill-health in 1872. He celebrated his silver anniversary on May 7, 1879. He died at Wiesbaden, Nov. 20, 1882, His works, which reach op. 130, consist of overtures, “dance music, and pieces for solo violin, all distinguished for showy, brilliant style and clever orchestration, Among the most. popular are his Hoffmungssterne waltz, Hurrah- Sturm galop, and Friedrich-Karl march. «. KELLER, Goprry, a musician settled in London near the end of the 17th century. In conjunction with Godfrey Finger he produced A set of Sonatas in five Parts for Fiutesand Haatthoys. | He was a teacher of music, and died before 1707. With this date John Cullen issued an engraved tolio, A Complete Method for Attaining to Play a Thorough-Bass upon either Organ, Harpsicord, or Theorbo Lute, by the late famous Godfrey Keller. ‘This, in its day, was a greatly esteemed work, and. in 1781 it was reprinted in full, with corrections as an appendix to Holder's Treatise on Har- mony. rE KELLEY, Ep composer and writer on musi orn at Sparta, Wisconsin, Ay was a pupil, first, of F. W. njects, was jL14, 1887. He wm, from 1870