This is the third volume of Professor Smither's four-volume "History of the Oratorio", the first two of which, on the Baroque era, are still available from the University of Carolina Press. This volume covers the Classical era (1720-1820), and is divided into four parts: the Italian oratorio, the English oratorio after Handel, the German oratorio, and the oratorio in French and other languages. As well as discussions of terminology and genre definition, the social context of the oratorio in each country, and general characteristics of the libretti and music, the book includes detailed descriptions of selected oratorios by such composers as Hasse, Jommelli, Arne, Stanley, Telemann, Bach, Haydn, Beethoven, Gossec, Le Sueur, and Degtiarev. Two appendices contain title pages and a checklist of composers of Italian and Latin oratorios in the period.