BENEDICT

Sir Julius ( 2 son of M. Benedict of Stuttgart, banker ). b. Stuttgart 27 Nov. or 24 Dec. 1804; pupil of Hummel at Weimar and of Weber at Dresden; conductor at the Kärnthnerthor theatre Vienna 1823–25 and at the San Carlo and Fondo theatres Naples 1825–35; went to London 1835; conducted a series of Italian comic operas at Lyceum theatre 1836; conductor of English opera at Drury Lane 1838, where he produced The gipsy’s warning 19 April 1838; The brides of Venice 22 April 1844, and The Crusaders 1846; travelled with Jenny Lind in the United States and Havannah and directed all her 122 concerts 1850–52; formed a choral society called The vocal a ociation; conductor of Italian opera at Drury Lane and Her Majesty’s theatres 1859–60; conducted the Norwich Musical Festivals 1845–78 where he produced Undine 1860, Richard Cœur de Lion 1863 and St. Cecilia 1866; conducted the Monday Popular Concerts; his best known opera The Lily of Killarney was produced at Covent Garden 8 Feb. 1862; conductor of Liverpool Philharmonic society 9 April 1867 to Feb. 1879; wrote for Birmingham musical festivals St. Peter 1870 and Graziella 1873; knighted at Windsor Castle 24 March 1871. d. 2 Manchester sq. London 5 June 1885. I.L.N. lviii , 377 (1871), portrait, lxvi , 494 (1875), portrait ; Scribner’s Monthly xiii , 480–84 (1877); Graphic xxix , 184 (1884), portrait .