Editing Thomas Arne (section)

==Later life==

During the 1760s Arne transferred his services to [[Royal Opera House|Covent Garden Theatre]],<ref name="EB1911"/> and frequently collaborated with the Irish writer [[Isaac Bickerstaffe]]. ''Thomas and Sally'' was the first English comic opera to be sung throughout (it contained no spoken dialogue).<ref name="autogenerated1" /> ''[[Artaxerxes (opera)|Artaxerxes]]'' was one of the most successful and influential English operas of the 18th century and is the only known attempt to write an Italianate, [[Metastasio|Metastasian]] ''[[opera seria]]'', in the English language, using [[recitative]] instead of spoken [[dialogue]].<ref name="EB1911"/><ref>[http://www.classicalopera.co.uk/Artaxerxes.html Artaxerxes] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070607175801/http://www.classicalopera.co.uk/Artaxerxes.html |date=7 June 2007 }}</ref> Mozart almost certainly saw it in 1764 when he visited London<ref>{{Cite web |title=Arne: Artaxerxes |url=https://mozartists.com/product/arne-artaxerxes/ |access-date=2024-06-19 |website=The Mozartists |language=en-GB}}</ref> and said that it influenced his operas. It was frequently performed in London into the 1830s and, other than [[Michael William Balfe]]'s ''[[The Bohemian Girl]]'', it was the most popular full-length English opera before the 20th century.<ref>The Oxford Companion to English Literature, 6th Edition. Edited by Margaret Drabble, Oxford University Press, 2000 Pp 41</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.roh.org.uk/whatson/production.aspx?pid%3D10223 |title=Artaxerxes – Royal Opera House |access-date=1 October 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091007030923/http://www.roh.org.uk/whatson/production.aspx?pid=10223 |archive-date=7 October 2009 }}</ref> In a 1791 visit to London, [[Joseph Haydn]] was impressed by a performance of ″Artaxerxes″ he attended and admitted that he had no idea such an opera existed in the English language.<ref>[https://www.theguardian.com/music/2009/oct/22/artaxerxes-thomas-arne-linbury-studios Artaxerxes: the opera that time forgot | Music | The Guardian<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>

In 1769 Arne composed the song ''[[Soft Flowing Avon]]'', with lyrics by Garrick, for the [[Shakespeare Jubilee]] held by Garrick in [[Stratford-upon-Avon]] to commemorate the life of [[William Shakespeare]]. In 1773, in a performance of [[Judith (oratorio)|Judith]] Arne introduced women's voices into the choruses for the first time.<ref name="EB1911"/>
[[File:Thomas Arne St Pauls Covent Garden.jpg|thumb|right|Arne's memorial plaque in [[St Paul's, Covent Garden|St Paul's]] in [[Covent Garden]]]]

In 1777, shortly before his death, Arne and his wife were reconciled. They had one son, [[Michael Arne]], who was also a composer. Arne is buried at [[St Paul's, Covent Garden]], London. A [[blue plaque]], unveiled in 1988, commemorates Arne at 31 King Street in Covent Garden.<ref name='EngHet'>{{cite web|url=http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/discover/blue-plaques/search/arne-thomas-1710-1778|title=ARNE, THOMAS (1710–1778)|publisher=English Heritage|access-date=18 August 2012}}</ref><ref>[https://www.flickr.com/photos/lwr/4890659076/ "THOMAS ARNE, London, England" at flickr.com]</ref>

Arne is considered one of 18th-century Britain's greatest theatrical composers.