優れた作品をたくさん作ったのにも拘わらず忘れられる作曲家と、1曲で大作曲家と同列に扱われる作曲家がいる。この違いは何か？それは、ヒット作があるかないか。前者の例としてグヴィーやピツェッティ、後者の例としてマスカーニやレオンカヴァッロを挙げれば、納得がゆくであろう。
There are composers who, despite producing numerous excellent works, are forgotten, while there are others who are regarded as great composers with just one hit. This difference surely lies in having a hit work. Examples of the former include Gouvy and Pizzetti, while Mascagni and Leoncavallo serve as examples of the latter, which seems convincing.