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PIETRO IL GRANDE. Jult.ien's long-talked...
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SIfAKSPKARK IN TIIK PROVINCES. SiTAKSPFU...
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Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
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Passages From A Boy's Epic Viii. The Dbe...
Accompanied ; old Nestor still renowned For fitting to wise words his wiser thoughts , Left his beloved sands ; and Theseus came From Athens , where the sword in myrtle shines ; And many more—great Kings , but all are dead . So will the old men say , and gently sigh , Then pause , and then with smiles begin again ; " But now the feast was served with copious store Of viands such as none but princes have , And goblets , massy with the crusted gold ,
Were drained of the deli ghtful juice of grapes ; And songs were lifted up with glad acclaim In praise of that fair bride , who modest , calm , Sat ' mid the merry feasters by her lord . At length Eurytion , whom the circling wine Made dizzy with swift joy , half furious rose , And said , " Peirithous , keep your blushing bride With a strong hand , or I shall bear her off . " But ere he came Peirithous struck him down , Himself in turn struck down , for Centaurs thronged
Around the fallen Centaur , raising him , And ' mid the _Lapithse Peirithous rose . Then clamours eddied through the echoing halls , And tables fell and golden flagons spilt The ruddy wine ; and maids with yellow locks Scarce veiling their white limbs , for quick surprise , W ere struck to earth ; and through the rushing strife The shrieks of women gathering round the Bride , Mixt with the drunken shouts of desperate men , While clashing of great shields and ringing , spears ,
And the cross lightning of conflicting swords , Thundered and shone ; and heavy goblets smote Uncovered temples , and on helmets rang ; And some fell back , but yet retreating fought , Foot prest to foot , and eye still fixing eye . But Theseus near his friend Peirithous stood , Protecting him , and when some Centaur vast Made rash approach , he slew him with his spear . So Theseus and Peirithous , side by side , True , tender , fought , till round them ample space
Was cleared , and Theseus through the giddy fight , Beheld the mad Eurytion dealing death . Then lifting up his spear , the Athenian chief Few steps retired , and running as men run For crowning action , hurled it ; and a cry As of some beast in pain told triumph near . Now all left fighting , and the Centaurs closed Around their prostrate lord , who howling lay
Disabled , hut on shield to shield conjoined They laid him , and so bore him from the feast ; But Theseus stood rejoicing with his friends , Who praised him as we praise him . Thus one day Old sires will tell their grandsons , handing down Heroic men , the royal blood of Time , And lighting our dull years that have no sun , With the great deeds of shining yesterdays .
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Pietro Il Grande. Jult.Ien's Long-Talked...
PIETRO IL GRANDE . Jult . ien _' _s long-talked-of opera was produced on Tuesday last , and at first seemed as if it were going to achieve a brilliant success . The first act waa bright , sparkling , effective , and full of promise . The second act was a noisy failure . Thc third languished . The whole occupied five hours of our patience , nnd left us dissatisfied—weary . When very great curtailments have been made—and they will be more easy us the repetitions of the Name idea are so frequent—the opera may have a run in virtue of the splendour of its scenery , costumes , and general spectacle , aided by the life and animation there ih in some of the pieces , and by tho splendour of Tamberlik ' _s singing . But , —and this is the point I wish to insist ontho success , whatever it may be , will be a spectacle success , not an operatic success .
Of Jullien ' s capability J have little doubt . . The man who could write the first act of this opera , the duet , quartet , and septet , in the second act , and the chorus of conspirator ** , has proved his claims . The main cause of his ambiguous success is the mistaken notion of what really constitutes operatic _tf & _Wi _/^ _'J _&^ _hW _^ cVi' ,, ' Meyerbeer-Halevy model before his ev < : _syi _^^ te jmbli _| _foj ** * » rendered doubly dangerous by the incon-Th & _jfltilKlfa _* ° show on a former occasion , departs from W $ _^^^ _% _4 _# f _*' . y everywhere subordinating Music to TheatE 3 _^| s |] C _^^^ ° _* degeneration is going on in opera that li _^ _rohjia | g < id- _Pflfl _^ juc _Jtyftjpu into Melodrama— the senses are appealed to _instdiidC _^ _FtllipAnoiUfy . _"Ctargeous scenery , striking "situations , picturesque t _^ qta , Hio jrliller of armour , tho clung of brass , the turbulence of _multituaws _. _^ tlvi * wJa £ < 3 R | ur of _proecBsions , real horses , real water , real
Pietro Il Grande. Jult.Ien's Long-Talked...
pigs , rant and screaming—all that may be called the material of stat ? effect grouped together—and the poor human soul , with its emotions scarcely thought of ! Not only is this material tendency ruinous , iaas ' much as it is a downward tendency , but it has these two sources of ruin costliness and weariness . To put such operas on the stage as La JuivJ or Pietro Ll Grande , must in the first instance cost thousands and thou sands of pounds , ( and each new venture of that kind increases the expense , because it must surpass in _gorgeousness its _predecessor , or it will not produce a sensation , ) and when all that money is spent , what is the
result compared with the " effect" of one beautiful melody ? Take all the splendour of La Juive , the Prophete , and Pietro , and on the other side place " Qual cor tradisti , _" or " All is lost now , " or the barcarole in Masaniello , ( you see I abstain from the great examples , ) and which is tiie most " effective ? " In J Martiri the " getting up" was costly ; but what was the real effect P O santa melodia ! In Pietro the displ ay is un bounded ; what are the real effects ? The madrigal and the Muscovite hymn . That is to say music , not spectacle ! Give your thousands to a composer for every phrase of passion , for every true melody , and the thousands will be repaid by a delighted public At spectacle they gape , and clap their hands ; they next day they forget it .
What I have said of Spectacle applies equally to the mode of Composition . In Meyerbeer , stage effect is the one dominant passion . Take his music from the stage , and it is seen to be mechanical , unmelodic , tricky ; often quaint , but rarely beautiful , never exquisite . But Hossini _] whom I hold to be infinitely greater in all ways , even dramatical—may be hummed , may be played on the piano , may he separated from all adventitious aid , may be sung by wretched voices or ground on perambulating organs , and the indestructible beauty of the music still enchants you . A defence has been set up for Meyerbeer , in the Athenaeum , to the effect that his recitative abounds in melodic ideas , which , if developed , would rank him with the great melodists . But I , for one , demur . I am
not disposed to credit a man for what he could do , if I see him never doing it . When Meyerbeer does develop his ideas , what is the result ? Whatare Un imperopiii soare , or Peviam , beviam ! or any other of his songs , ( I except Robert toi quej'aime , ) as melodies ? ' A defence might as reasonably be set up for Bulwer ' s claims to be considered a poet . One might point to the many poetical ideas in his prose , and say , "Ah ! if he only chose to develop them into poems . " But in that lies the mystery ! I do not in the least question Meyerbeer ' s immense talent . I only question its rank . His operas are meant to be effective , and are so . But although I see them with pleasure , I have not the slightest hesitation ia saying , that not only are they as far below Beethoven , Mozart , and
Eossini , in my estimation , as Dumas is below Shakspeare , or Bulwer is below Goethe ; but that I would even give all he ever composed for Norma . This is a long preface to what I have to say about Jullien ' s opera , but he has so obviously chosen Meyerbeer as his model that these general considerations seemed necessary . Of his own music I may say generally , that the prodigality of noise , instead of being effective , prevents effect , and wearies the ear ; that the uncertainty ot the style , reminding one now of this and now of that composer , and the incessant modulation which breaks the continuity of his phrases , also tend towards weariness ; and finally , that the pre-occupation of theatrical effect , which has led him to bestow most of his attention on the choruses , and to care less for tho
dramatic effect , exasperates rather than amuses the audience . Let me , on the other hand , note as bits of excellent writing the madrigal and the fugue in the first act , the quartet and septet in the second , the chorus of conspirators in the third , and numerous passages in the accompaniments throughout . The chorus of Vivandieres is _gay and tripping ; the Muscovite hymn , car-catching and immensely effective ; the ballet , -with chorus , flowing and animated ; passages in Pietro ' s cayatina of great beauty ( sung by Tamberlik as he alone could sing it ); the simple and massive chorus Evviva il Czar , the pathetic movement in the great duet of the second act ( Non par tire , non parlir ) , and the Mazurka ol tho last act—all _showing a faculty of composition little suspected by the
majority . And when these are brought closer together by the excision ot the surplusage , tho ear , not previously _stunneel by tho remorseless clang of the accompaniments , will gratefully appreciate them . P . S . The above was written after I _' ucsday ' s performance . I have just left the theatre after a second hearing , and , although I see no reason to qualify in any degree what I have said of the music , I have much to say of the general improvement in effect , owing to tho large excisions that have been made . Not only ia tho weariness that was felt on tho _miM
night completely got rid of—except such as results from the « _iSHault ,, _'tf turbulence of the orchestra—but the second act , which nearly killed t u « opera on Tuesday , went off quite brilliantl y on Thursday ; and in the lobby I heard nothing but loud testimonies of satisfaction . For my _ow , J part , I can say that I listened to the opera with increased admiration , an < without any fatigue ; though I still think il * an occasional passage here and there were removed the whole effect would be lightened .
Sifakspkark In Tiik Provinces. Sitakspfu...
SIfAKSPKARK IN TIIK PROVINCES . SiTAKSPFUUF . is the idol of tho English . I know a man _ who married * girl because she said a clever thing about Shakspeare . I know aim ; who hates his nephew because that youth thinks the Venus and A '" ' * inferior to the Princess . And I once travelled iiv the railway _*»¦ _„! , ! elderly and very nice lady who assured me her husband _worshipi" _- _^ Shakspeare . " He cares for no other book . Almost every < 'V ( ' 111 _"K _^ Jj „ 5 he comes home from business —( lie is a solicitor , sir , is my husbam )¦ puts on his dressing-gown and slippers , and says , 'Hero , Mary , _>' _> _iu i _^ _sonjo Shakspeare : and I read it him , sir , till ho falls asleep . ' . Land's End to John o' Groat ' s there is but one chorus in praise oi
swan . ' . , i Whv arc [ By thc way , pretty eyes posed mo not long since , Halting , ' _y . ;; allHe poets culled _swansP'' With cureless superiority , 1 answered , J _- , . ' ' . ' they mug when they die—they don't , but it is said so . " My . < l »«* "' r ( , [ however , was not so easil y satisfied . " _PooIh , " iih sin ; judicious y marked , " don ' t sing when they die , if swans do _^ o that can t ve
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Citation
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Leader (1850-1860), Aug. 21, 1852, page 22, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/cld_21081852/page/22/
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