Their rich music excites, enthralls, consoles and uplifts millions of people. Their personal lives were filled with adventure, risk, danger and obsession for life, for love and for their art. They were inspired by books, poems and plays about humanity.

From this inspiration, they created beautiful music and wonderful operas that capture and convey every human emotion. All who listen and admire are greatly enriched. They are forever engaging and soothing us while providing a rich background to the tapestry of all our lives.

Accompanied by caricatures of them by illustrator David Mahin, Noel Culleton tells us about the fascinating lives of his top 33 literary classical composers.