Hector Berlioz as critic and author

The composer Hector Berlioz was a prolific writer who supported himself early in his career by writing musical criticism using a bold, vigorous style, at times imperious and sarcastic.^[1] Criticism was an activity "at which he excelled but which he abhorred".^[2] Despite his complaints, Berlioz continued writing music criticism for most of his life, long after he had any financial need to do so.^[3]