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I ^ iTsupposed be wasting his time in dissipation Tt the capital , lavishing honour on his favourites and Sntpmotaously setting aside the old soldiers who KJ ? SS the country . The Moorish Chief obtains - mice and proclaims a festival in order to commum-Jate with-the Couht , who , however , declines leaving wallSt and sends his son Favila and his daughter Worinda to represent him . During the preparations for the jousts a knight arrives who wears the armour and assumes the name of a famous Moorish chief , one of the Avencerrages . This is no other than the Kine himself in the disguise of Ben Amet , whom he had killed in single combat . His main object in this Setta in of Flonnda
rash adventure is to enter pursuit , with whom he had fallen madly in love on saving her from a torrent . Florinda recognizing the deliverer to whom she had given up her heart , in one whom she * believes a Moorish knight , resolves on entering a convent—thither the King pursues her and declares at once his passion and his Christian Faith . The maiden , at this , confesses her love ; but when the King without disclosing the secret of his rank talks of insuperable obstacles to marriage , the proud Castilian maiden repulses him with such scorn and indignation , that at last , completely maddened by passion , he carries her forcibly off from the very altar . Florinda , escaping , tells the etorv of her terrible outrage to her father and brother ;
and Roderic being now announced as visiting Setta in his proper person , the injured three bear their wrongs to the foot of the throne , where they recognize , in their hitherto unknown betrayer and enemy , the King himself . Favila demands a combat , in which he is vanquished and wounded by the monarch , in whom , with all his faults , there is much chivalry and valour . The Count Julian now barters for revenge with Munuzza the honour which had withstood all other temptation and betrays his trust . He has scarcely done so , when Roderic seeks him , alone and unguarded , and offers to repair his outrage by making Fiorinda his Queen . It is too late—for the Moors are already at the gates . The King rushes forth to head a last desperate struggle , which Florinda describes to the wounded Favila in a scene of the
same nature as that immortal one between Ivanhoe and Rebecca . Favila , however , when he hears that the King is struck down , joins the desperate combat in spite of his wounds . The Moors prevail , and the scene closes on their triumph—the death of Favilathe despair of Count Julian—and the flight of Florinda with Roderic , who has escaped with life . " This story offers , as you perceive , many capital points for the decorator to seize hold of ; as a spectacle it is full of effects , and the mise en scene is both lavish and varied . Turbans and scimitars
flash before our eyes , the Almees are prodigal of their charms , Christianity contrasts itself with Mahometanism , the Moors are alarmingly like Arabs , and the heroine lets down her back hair to exhibit her madness—what would you more ? Music , I think you said ? Suppose instead of telling you what I think of the rnusic , I count the number of encores , and estimate the triumph , the ovation of the composer ! Beethoven never felt his heart throb to such applause when Fidelio was Riven ; but then , Beethoven did not understand our furores , our triumphs of three nights' duration !
There is no disguising the fact under bravos . Thalberg never was a composer ; nor does Florinda give any hope of his one day reaching the necessary height . He shows a laudable ambition not to f ; 11 into the patchwork gathered from other operas ; but in avoiding plagiarism he has not reached originality . To be original something inore is needed . Melodic invention is a thing iu which he is singularly deficient . He not only shows an
absence of melody , but he does not even treat the b hjtcte chosen in a melodic style ; he breaks up his phrases into one or two bars , and when not frittering' the subject away , lie spoils it by triviality of tie tment . The overture and the sestett ( encored ) were more ambitious than successful , and the whole of the first act was noisy , heavy , and tiresome , beyond patience . The only burst of applause was Cruvclli ' s singing of that
phrase—Morro sacrata vcri / tntt Uet / li aiHjeli a I Sit / ttor , which every lover of Mendelssohn will recognize nearly note for note . The finale is catching , but trivial . In the second act the situation is very fine , nnd the music improves , though never rising to the height demanded . Cruvelli sang finely , nnd the bewilderment of terror and surprise when the king suddenl y appears to her within the convent walla—Ah HiH / li occhi of / nor tin ata ! showed what an admirable actress she is . The duet which followed wiih pretty , and gained an e"fore , although the words
/'/ ' ytoin celeste , la (/ iota d ' umor Were more dirgelike than joyous in the utterance . *> ut to talk of correspondence between Hcnae and
sound would be hypercritical—it never is attempted . Indeed it has only the length and the noise of a grand opera , and in those qualities it surpasses Halevy . But the deficiency of melody , not being compensated by any grandeur of instrumentation , will prevent Florinda from being popular . A word of praise to Mr . Lumley , for the really liberal style in which he conducts this theatre , must not be forgotten . It is not his fault if the operas are not chefs d'oeuvre ; he gives them every chance and spares no money on their production . People were curious to hear Thalberg ' s opera ; Mr . Lumley has gratified the curiosity .
NOTES MUSICAL AND DRAMATIC . If you have read the foregoing paragraphs with even moderate attention , you will not wonder at my descending from the altitudes of Epic ambition to the more agreeable and facile regions of criticism . It is not so grand an occupation , perhaps , as editing a Greek Play ( with an eye to a bishopric—that being the strange methodos , or path of transit , in Anglican Theology ) , or as building up a philosophical system bristling with hard words ; but it has its good side . If not a very severe task to the intellect—if it gain no noisy reputation , not much ' |
praise , and but a modicum of pudding—it is , at any rate , an agreeable relaxation . We must unbend sometimes , or else we stiffen . Pl&ry says that his grave friends were somewhat scandalized at his frivolity in writing verses—he , a grave man , a respectable man ! But he is not to be frowned into gravity , he openly avows his crime , and adds thereto that he is fond of the theatre , reads the satirists , is fond of a joke , a laugh , a prank , and , to sum up all in one little word , he is human , " Aliquando prceterea rideo , jocor , ludo j utque omnia innoxice remissionis genera breviter amplectar , homo sum . " Of course he would be fond of the opera were he ' |
amongst us now . Certain I am that he would be a constant visitor at Ella ' s Musical Union , for there he would have the perfection of a concert : exquisite music , little of it , chosen with skill and performed b y first-rate executants . Much as I dread concerts in general , I delight in such musical Epicureanism as may be found there . On Tuesday we had Vieuxtemps , the great violinist , " one really great , who plays music , not difficulties , and is far more " wonderful " when bowing the grand phrases of Beethoven than fifty Sivoris " astonishing" audiences which
mistake difficulties for art . In Haydn ' s quartet in G ( No . 81)—one of his most delightful works—Vieuxtemps gave us a " taste of his quality , " which was fully brought out in Beethoven ' s Quintet in C ( Op . 29 ) , and roused the audience to transports . His own composition , " Souvenir du Bosphore , " was remarkable for its exhibition of his masterly execution , but in itseJf was insignificant enough . To hear Beethoven played in a style so noble and Beethovenish , was ample compensation for the headache resulting
from the intense heat ; nor should I forget to add a word of grateful praise to Halle ' , for his incomparable playing of Beethoven ' s charming Sonata in K flat ( Op . 33 ) , which he gave as , perhaps , no living player could give it . Messrs . Hill , Deloffre , Piatti , and Webb , were the other players , and helped to give the pieces their perfection . The room was crowded , the delight genuine ; and I could not help contrasting this concert with the fashionable concerts of the day , as an example of what I wrote last week on Art and Amusement
Here was music of the highest class , performed by those who had studied it , and thoroughly enjoyed by all present . " Ethiopian Serenaders , " or a bravura sung by Sontag , would certainly have produced louder bravos—and because appealing to lower faculties , would necessarily have appealed to a larger audience—but , what does that prove ? and what effect would Beethoven produce if Vieuxtemps were assisted by the ' * gentlemen of the band" of some minor theatre ? Just the sort of eileet Racine produces with Rachel and her troupe ;! You say it is all Rachel ; you would say that Beethoven was all Vieuxtemps !
Fortunately for the lovers of music there is a public Nuuicicnt to encourage and tmutaiu the artists who select high art as their profession . It is not so with the l ) rania . There is no public for the Drama as an Art ; there is only a public ; for the Drama as an amusement ; somewhat an if in music there were no public but that of Promenade Concerts J You who love the Drama may deplore it ; but the fact in beyond question . Read the pamphlet by ii . K . TomluiM , Uemarks on the / 'resent State of the Hiiylish Drama , and , among many other curious and suggestive points , you will
find that fully proved . He is one of the men whose opinions on dramatic matters are worth listening to . I have two farces that I ought to give you an account of—Grimshaw , Bagshaw , and Bradshaw at the Haymarket , and The Fire Eater at the Olympic ; but not having been able to get to see either ( I believe I have already made the remark that I am not ubiquitous ) , I must defer it until next week : I will read Aristotle as a preparation .
Meanwhile let me say on authority , and as a bit of news , that Buckstone is irresistibly ludicrous in the " screaming farce" at the Haymarket ; and Compton is perfectly suited in the drollery at the Olympic . Also by way of news let it be added , that Farren took his benefit on Wednesday , on which occasion Helen Faucit appeared , " for that n'ght only , " in the Lady of Lyons . Why for that night only ? Why is this , the best of our tragic actresses , out of an engagement ? Vivian .
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SIGNOR ANELLI ON THE CULTIVATION OF THE VOICE . At the Hanover-squsre Rooms , on Friday , Signor Anelli , late singing-master to the Princess . Augusta , delivered the lirst of a series of four lectures on the Art of forming and cultivating the Voice . The method adopted by the academies of Italy has , by common consent , been acknowledged incomparably the best . Based upon natural principles , it has a progressive operation on the organs of sound , by which no hazard of destruction is incurred ; and while there is a gradual development of the faculties , the natural gifts are augmented and improved . With merely a very partial knowledge of the principles of vocalization , we have swarms of singing masters and mistresses not only utterly unqualified for the task they undertake , but really doing a positive harm and injustice to their pupils and the cause of vocal music . Faults are hereby acquired , which it is next to impossible to eradicate , and young ladies are taught rather locmulate the screaming of a peacock than to give utterance to elegant tones breathing the intelligence of the mind . The celebrated Tosi observes— " There are now-a-days as many masters as there are professors of music in the land . All teach 1 I do not mean the first rudiments only ; that would be an affront to them . 1 am now speaking of those who take upon themselves the part of legislators in the most finished part of singing : should we then wonder that good taste is nearly lost ? This mischievous pretension prevails , not only among those who can barely be said to sing , but the meanest instrumental performers , who , though they never sing , nor know how to sing , pretend not only to teach others the mere rudiments of the science , but to perfect them in its most abstruse principles , and they find some who are weak enough to he imposed upon . But what is yet worse , we find that instrumental performers of some ability imagine that the beautiful graces and nourishes which they execute with their nimble fingers , will have the same effect wheH transferred to the voice . A lamentable mistake . The graces which would be good and proper on a violin , are very unlit for a hautboy ; and so it is with every other instrument . They have all something peculiar attached to them ; and it is a very great error , though too much the practice , for the voice —which should serve as a standard to be imitated by instruments —to be made to copy all their tricks to its own detriment . " All who are acquainted with the human voice , with the principles of singing , and with the method of practice , know that there is but . one road to success , and that the first aim must , be directed to the cultivation of the organ of sound , on the expansion , adaptation , and form , of which , success entirel y depends . The benefit derived from I his preliminary operation , which gives such decided advantages to the Italian method , can be obtained only by first preparing the voice , ko as to enable it to produce and emit a pure , clear , unstrained sound , free from any modification given to it in its passage by the agency of the throat , the nose , or the mouth . Starting from the point , that the Italian method in superior l . o any other , Signor Anelli announces a modified plan , by which lie underfill . en that students shall sing with correctnewtf , expression , and refined taste in less than half I he . time usually employed . His method , which has the approval of the first masters of Italy , including the celebrated Crescentini , consists of a series of exercises written in an elegant style , and apparent ly well adapted for producing u clear , sonorous , and flexible
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J uly 5 , 1851 . ] & % t % e&titt . 6 & )
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Leader (1850-1860), July 5, 1851, page 639, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct1890/page/19/
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