M. W. Balfe

Irish composer and singer born in Dublin, May 8, 1808. Became rpincipal violinist in The Druy Lane orchestra, Londo, 1823; in 1825 wet on the stage as an opera singer; married a prima donna, Lina Rezer, and became a composer of operas, of which his "Bohemian Girl" was the most successful. He sang in New Yor, 1834; in 1857 published A New Singing Method; died , Hertfordshire, England, Oct. 21, 1870 in his sixty-third year. He had made two visits to the United States, and was intending to come again in 1871.

A Dictionary of Musical Information by John W. Moore, Boston: Oliver, Ditson & Company, 1876