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Transcriber’s Notes

This e-text is based on ‘The Harmonicon, Part the First,’ from 1833. Inconsistent spelling and hyphenation have been retained, but punctuation and typographical errors have been corrected. Uncommon and outdated spelling has not been altered.

In the table of contents, the ‘Foreign Musical Reports’ for the towns of Marienburg and Nurenberg have no correlation to any passages in the text. In some tables, the numbering of items seems to be incorrect. Since the source of error cannot be determined, the numbering scheme has been retained.

‘Months’ have been printed at the bottom of the pages in the original. These references have been changed into side notes at the top of the corresponding page for each new month.

Special characters have been used to highlight the following font styles:

italic: underscores small caps: ~tilde characters~

The caret symbol (^) indicates superscript characters; multiple superscripts have been grouped by curly braces: ^{...}

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THE HARMONICON.

1833.

PART THE FIRST, CONTAINING ESSAYS, CRITICISMS, BIOGRAPHY, FOREIGN REPORTS, AND MISCELLANEOUS CORRESPONDENCE.

LONDON: PRINTED FOR LONGMAN, REES, ORME, BROWN, GREEN, AND LONGMAN, PATERNOSTER-ROW.

LONDON: PRINTED BY WILLIAM CLOWES. Duke Street, Lambeth.

PART THE FIRST.

ESSAYS, CRITICISMS, AND MISCELLANIES.

I. BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS.

Page

Ayrton, Edmund, Mus. D. 142 Batten, Adrian 117 Blake, William, D.D. 118 Danby, John 186 Dupuis, Thomas S., Mus. D. 142 Garcia, Manuel del P. V. 21 Hayes, William. Mus. D. 141 Herold, Louis J. F. 69 King, Charles, M.B. 118 Kircher, Anastasius 161 Mersenne, Marin 161 Metastasio, (Pietro Trapassi) 93 Paxton, Stephen 186 Righini, Vincenzo 1 Rubini, Gian B. 23 Smith, John Stafford 186 Spofforth, Reginald 186 Stevens, Richard James Samuel 186 Tamburini, Antonio 125 Travers, John 141 Tudway, Thomas 117 Webbe, Samuel 185 Weldon, John 117 Zelter, Carl Friedrich 45

II. MISCELLANEOUS ESSAYS, CORRESPONDENCE, NOTICES, &c.

Amateur’s Musical Party, at the Freemason’s Tavern 97 Ancient Concerts, the Leader of the 172 Anders, M., historical notices relative to the Violin, by 169

Barnett, (Mr.) and the Philharmonic Society 120 Base Voice, on the 100 Beethoven, a theoretical work, by 6 Beethoven’s Opinion of Contemporary Composers 46 Beethoven on Canon 47 Beethoven, Characteristic Traits and Anecdotes of 25 Belgium, on the actual state of music in 191 Bellini’s last Opera 193 Birmingham Musical Festival 63 Burney, (Dr.) Memoirs of, by Mad. D’Arblay 52, 75, 99, 121 Cambridge Commencement 167 Canon, on, by Beethoven 47 Castel-Blaze, (M.) notice of Tamburini, by 125 Cathedral Service and Lord Henley 56 Characteristic Anecdotes and Traits of Beethoven 25 Choirs, Ecclesiastical, of Great Britain and Ireland--Armagh--Canterbury 50 Commemoration of Sir Thomas Gresham 180 Concerts, Memoirs of the Metropolitan 4 Concerts at Oxford, and on the State of Music at both Universities 73 Composers, contemporary, Beethoven’s opinion of 46 Compositions of Handel, on some 29 Critique, a German 146

D’Arblay, (Mad.) Memoirs of Dr. Burney, by 52, 75, 99, 121

Ecclesiastical Choirs of Great Britain and Ireland--Armagh--Canterbury 50

Fallacies of some Writers on Music 2 Fashionable Music, rules for composing 187 Fétis, (M.) an Official Note to 109 Fortunatus, the new German Opera of 7

German Opera, Fortunatus, a new 7 Glasgow Amateur Society 188 Glee Club, the Manchester Gentlemen’s 30 Glees, on Prizes for 126 Gresham Prize Medal for 1832 29 Gresham, Sir Thomas, Commemoration of 180

Handel, on some compositions of 29 Harmonics of the Violin 143 Hints to Leaders and Conductors 95

Leader of the Ancient Concerts 172 Leaders and Conductors, hints to 95 Lindley’s (Mr. G.) Answer to Mr. Gödbé 4 Liverpool Amateur Society 168 Lord Henley and the Cathedral Service 56 Lyre, on the re-introduction of 124

‘Mad Tom of Bedlam,’ the Song of 58, 74 Maelzel’s new Metronome 96 Manchester Gentlemen’s Glee Club 30 Melody, a treatise on 118 Melody and Harmony, Mr. D. Walker on 145 Memoirs of Dr. Burney, by Mad. D’Arblay 52, 75, 99, 121 Metropolitan Concerts, Memoirs of the 4 Millard, (Mrs.) letter from 72 Millard’s, (Mrs.) Letter, reply of Mr. Purday to 98 Moscheles, (M.) at Leipzig 9 Music, fallacies of some Writers on 2 Music, actual state of, in Belgium 191 Music, state of, in the Provinces 71 Music, state of, at both Universities 73 Music, on Thoughts or Ideas in 186 Music, utility of to Sailors 171 Musical Festival, Worcester 170 Musical Metronomes 192 Musical Party, Amateur’s, at the Freemason’s Tavern 97

Norwich Festival 191 Note, an official, to M. Fétis 109

Obituary--Herold--Nozzari--Deville 30 ‘Old English Gentleman,’ song of the 172, 190 Opera Department, state of our Theatres chiefly as relates to the 27 Otto. M., on the Violin 162 Oxford, Concerts at 73, 165 ---- Commemoration Concerts 165

Philharmonic Society and Mr. Barnett 120 Prize Medal for 1832, the Gresham 29 Prizes for Glees, on 126 Provinces, state of Music in the 71 Purday’s (Mr.) Reply to Mrs. Millard’s Letter 98 ---- reply to Mr. H. Phillips 190

Rules for composing Fashionable Music 187

Sailors, utility of Music to 171 State of our Theatres, on the, chiefly as relates to the Opera Department 27 Swan, song of the 26

Thoughts or Ideas in Music 188 Treatise on Melody, a 118

Voice, on the base 100 Violin, Harmonics of 143 ---- M. Otto, on the 163 ---- M. Anders’, historical notice of the 169

Walker, (Mr. Donald) on the re-introduction of the lyre 124 ---- on Melody and Harmony 145 Worcester Musical Festival 170 Work, a theoretical, by Beethoven 6

III. REVIEW of NEW MUSIC, with Extracts and Illustrations--New Operas--Sacred Works--Arrangements for various Instruments--Vocal--Elementary Books, &c. 10, 31, 59, 85, 101, 127, 148, 173, 194

IV. EXTRACTS from the DIARY of a DILETTANTE, (in which the prevailing Topics connected with Music are noticed) 16, 36, 64, 89, 109, 135, 178, 199

V. LONDON CONCERTS.

Ancient, the 79, 106, 131, 152 Benefit, of the Season 155 Madrigal Society 8, 88, 177 Metropolitan, Memoirs of the 4 Philharmonic, the 81, 107, 134, 154 Royal Academy of Music 108 Società Armonica 108 Vocal Society 35, 55, 83

VI. THE DRAMA.

Covent Garden Theatre 20, 43, 60, 67, 115, 160, 183 Drury Lane Theatre 19, 43, 66, 91, 115, 139, 160 English Opera House 43, 115, 184 German Opera 91 King’s Theatre 43, 66, 91, 139, 159, 183, 205

VII. FOREIGN MUSICAL REPORT.

Attenburg 138 Bergamo 42, 65 Berlin 18, 40, 90, 111, 137, 158, 181, 203 Bernburg 138 Bologna 41, 182 Breslau 19, 204 Bremen 158, 204 Brunswick 138 Brussels 182 Carlsruhe 65, 204 Cassel 138 Constantinople 41, 159 Copenhagen 158 Dessau 158 Douay 42 Dresden 40, 112, 158, 181 Dusseldorf 112, 158 Frankfort 112, 138, 158, 182 Greifswald 113 Hamburg 112 Jena 158 Königsberg 19, 182 Leghorn 19 Leipzig 18, 112, 137, 182 Madrid 159 Manheim 112 Merseburg 112 Milan 40, 65, 182 Munich 40, 90, 111, 137, 181 Naples 41, 182 New York 113 Novara 41 Paris 19, 42, 65, 90, 183 Pesth 40, 112 Prague 90, 138, 181, 203 Rome 41, 65 Schwaz 113 Strasburg 137, 182 Stuttgart 40 St. Petersburg 159, 182 Toulouse 183 Trieste 113 Turin 41 Utrecht 159 Venice 65, 90 Vienna 18, 39, 90, 111, 136, 158, 180, 202 Warsaw 19 Würtzburg 112 Weimar 112, 138, 182

VIII. OBSERVATIONS on the MUSIC given in each Number 20, 43, 68, 92, 116, 140, 160, 184, 206

[Sidenote: ~January, 1833.~]

THE HARMONICON.

1833.

MEMOIR OF VINCENZO RIGHINI[1].

It has not unfrequently happened that the works of very superior composers have remained a long time unknown, except in the country where they were produced. We hardly need say that Mozart’s operas never reached London or Paris till twenty and more years after his death. His chef-d’œuvre, Don Giovanni, was performed for the first time in England in 1817, no less than thirty years after it was first produced! Handel is now only beginning to be known on the continent! We do not mean to place the subject of this brief memoir on anything like a footing with either of those great masters, but he wrote many operas that deserve notice, some of which will, we are persuaded, ere long be thought worthy of being heard at the King’s Theatre, if being far superior in all respects to five out of every six lately brought out there, entitles them to be made known to a British audience.

* * * * *

~Vincenzo Righini~ was born at Bologna about the year 1758, where also he laid the foundation of his musical acquirements, under the direction of the very celebrated, and at that time still vigorous, Padre Martini. After having completed his vocal studies, he left Bologna about the year 1776 for Prague, where he contracted an engagement as a singer for the Italian Opera-buffa, under the management of M. Bustelli, which enabled him not only to cultivate his talents for vocal composition, but also to bring on the stage several operas and scenas, which were performed with success. And this is one of the many instances on record of Italian Maestri di Capella, previously mere virtuosi, becoming profound and distinguished musicians and composers, through their connexion with German musical chapels and orchestras.

After he had passed three years in Prague in so profitable and creditable a manner, he repaired to Vienna, where he had the good fortune to be chosen, by the Emperor Joseph II., singing-master to the beautiful Princess Elizabeth, of Würtemberg, and was appointed, at the same time, kapellmeister and composer to the Italian opera.

About the year 1788 he went to Mentz, whither he had been invited by the archbishop and elector, whose service he entered as kapellmeister. Here again he wrote much for the theatre, and a grand mass for the church. During his stay in that city the fame of his delicate and pleasing music procured for him the honourable commission from the elector of Treves, one of the most distinguished musical connoisseurs among the German princes of his time, to set to music the drama Alcide al Bivio, which was subsequently performed at Coblentz with the success it merited, under his own direction, in the presence of the court.

Lastly, he was called to Berlin by Frederich Wilhelm II., to write the opera seria, Enea nel Lazio, for the great opera-house there, which being favourably received by the king, he was appointed, in April, 1793, Master of the Royal Chapel, in the room of Alessandri, with a salary of 4000 thalers. Here, enjoying the favour of the sovereign, and the esteem of the public, and proud of his excellent orchestra, he married, in the year 1794, the young and handsome Madlle. Kneisel, with whom he had become acquainted as the favourite singer of the Frankfort Theatre, at Mentz. As, at the decease of the king (which took place in 1798) Righini was in the most honourable manner confirmed in his dignities by the new monarch, and remained, after his return from Hamburg--whither he, during that year, accompanied Mad. Righini for a short time--permanently fixed at Berlin until the year 1804, when, with the sanction of his court, he visited Italy in company with the youthful Madlle. Fischer, his pupil. He died at Bologna on the 19th of August, 1812, where he had arrived in the spring, in the hope of being relieved from a disease that had before afflicted him, and of which he had been once cured by an operation performed by an eminent professor in that place. The second attempt, however, of the same surgeon, proved fatal.

In his manner of composing Righini was entirely devoid of pretension, and remarkably pleasing; and with regard to his vocal abilities, every ear was charmed when he sang, with his soft and subdued voice, scenas from his own scores, accompanied by himself on the piano-forte.

His compositions are, 1. La Vedora Scaltra; Op. Buffa, (his first opera,) at Prague. 2. La Bottega del Caffé; Op. Buffa, ditto. 3. Don Giovanni, o sia il Convitato di Pietra; Op. Buffa, ditto. 4. Several scenes, duets, &c. for introduction in serious operas performed there. 5. La Sorpresa amorosa, Cantata à tre voci, with full orchestra, written at Vienna for three of his pupils. 6. Il natale d’Apollo, a grand Cantata, with full orchestra, ditto. 7. Grand Serenade, with full orchestra, ditto. 8. L’Incontro inaspettato; Op. Buffa, 1785. 9. Le Demogorgone, o sia il Filosofo confuso; Op. Buffa, ditto. 10. Several scenas and rondeaus, introduced in various operas produced at the Vienna theatre. 11. The scena Berenice, Che fai? from Metastasio’s opera, Antigono. 12. The scena Se cerca, se dice, from Metastasio’s Olimpiade. 13. Armida; Op. Seria; first performed at Aschaffenburg. 14. Alcide al Bivio; Op. Seria; produced at Coblentz, 1789. 15. A grand solemn mass, performed at the election of the Emperor Joseph II. 16. Enea nel Lazio; Op. Seria; composed for the theatre at Berlin. In this Righini himself sang, and made his first appearance on the stage of the great Opera-house in January, 1793. 17. Il Trionfo d’Arianne; Op. Seria, 1793. 18. Atalanta e Meleagro, Festa teatrale che introduce ad un ballo allegorico, performed at the Opera-house at Berlin, on 15th February, 1797, on the occasion of the marriage of the princess. 19. Armida; Op. Seria; the text remodelled by Filistri; the music almost entirely re-composed, 1799; published at Leipzig in 1805. 20. Tigrane; Op. Seria; Berlin, for the Carnival, 1799, 1800; score published 1810. 21. Gierusalemme Liberata; Op. Seria. 1802. 22. Various detached compositions for the church. 23. Der Zauberwald (La Selva incantata), an opera published at Leipzig.

* * * * *

Besides the above works, Righini’s minor productions, vocal and instrumental, but chiefly the former, are very numerous. He was a ready man, of most industrious habits, and his taste and judgment, the result of great experience, could be relied on. Hence he was resorted to when occasion demanded the prompt exertion of a composer’s talent. But it follows as almost a necessary consequence, that most of what was thus suddenly called for and brought forth, was calculated for an immediate purpose--not written with any hope that it would add much to his reputation. His fame he well knew would rest on his operas[2].

FALLACIES OF SOME WRITERS ON MUSIC.

To the ~Editor~ of the ~Harmonicon~.

~Sir~,

As you have considered my first paper admissible, I beg leave to continue my remarks on what I conceive to be the fallacies of some writers on music, and proceed with those of Dr. Browne, whose fifth charge against Handel is contained in the following words:--

‘Choirs (or choruses) sometimes (though seldom) calculated more for the display of the composer’s art, in the construction of figures and canons, than for a natural expression of the subject.’ The writer, then, is evidently no admirer of the fugue style; and such choruses as the “Amen” (Messiah), “He led them through the deep” (Israel in Egypt), and many others, were, to his ears, nothing more than musical exercises!

On the subject of fugue, which obliges the various voices to sing different words at the same time, thereby producing confusion in the sense, argument for and against has been nearly exhausted by some of the first literary and musical writers of the present and past age. In the Harmonicon, a few months back, some excellent remarks, I think, appeared on both sides. Vocal composers, from the time of Palestrina, have all augmented their fame by their fugues, the variety which such style of writing imparts to the subject often rendering a simple, nay, even a meagre one, interesting. But it must be allowed that it is highly necessary that he who would enjoy such composition should be somewhat of an educated musician, or he will never enter into the true meaning and spirit of it.

This, perhaps it may be said, only proves a prejudice, engendered by education and habit. But if so, every subject on which men have dissented is liable to the same objection. Different advances in civilized life and education are attended by more or less of such prejudices; and in search of truth a man must be endowed with almost superhuman powers who can divest himself wholly of the influence of early impressions. As a striking proof of this, it is enough to state that, up to the present hour, our two universities cannot agree concerning the pronunciation of the Latin A; it is, therefore, clear that one of these great emporiums of learning must be labouring under a prejudice.

But, to return to the subject immediately before us:--if the objection which obtains so much among literary men (who are not musicians by education) against fugue writing, viz. “the confusion of words” produced by it, is valid, then to the same objection many other high classes of composition become equally obnoxious. Madrigals teem with this alleged error, and superadded to it are the most barbarous faults in accent. All, or nearly all, glees have similar failings to atone for. If we look at the works of the great continental writers, in their masses and motetts, the same confusion of words is conspicuous; and what is more to my purpose here, even the duetts of Steffani, Handel, Clari, and Travers,--and, in our time, of Jackson, Bishop, Neukomm, &c. &c. are equally guilty in this respect. If the authority of names is of any weight, we have on our side the opinion of the greatest poet England ever produced, Milton, who, in his Paradise Lost, book 11, speaks not in a very contemptuous manner of the fugue.

The sound Of instruments that made melodious chime Was heard, of harp and organ; and who moved Their stops and chords was seen; his volant touch Instinct through all proportions, low and high, Fled and pursued transverse the resonant fugue.

But the truth is--and here I must confess the fact--that composers must be allowed to mix the words, under certain limitations, in chamber and oratorio music; it is a licence absolutely necessary to musical effect, and equally allowable in the dramatic composer when he has five or six characters on the stage, all influenced by different feelings, to make them utter not only various words, but each, at the same moment, his own sentiment of rage, joy, despair, triumph, love, and revenge. I am no advocate for the mixture of words when it can be avoided, which might often be done, did composers bestow proper attention on the subject.

I now pass on to the sixth charge against Handel. ‘The choir, in many instances (and the single song in some) not sudden enough in its intervention, being generally prepared by a correspondent symphony of instrumental music, which creates expectation and presentiment, destroys surprise, and thus lessens the impression and effect.’

Dr. B. allows that Handel’s defects proceeded ‘not so much from himself, as from the period in which he lived.’ This sixth charge is a remarkable proof of it; for, by observing the compositions of Handel’s contemporaries, we constantly find the symphony; let the sentiment be ever so sudden or violent, still the everlasting symphony is present, to ‘destroy surprise and lessen effect.’

Haydn’s genius, at a more advanced stage in the practice of music, enabled him to break through the trammels of these chaperoning symphonies, and, had he been only a vocal writer, would, no doubt, have done more. Beethoven, too, whose mighty powers of mind were not so fully appreciated in his own time as now, sets another example--in his trio ‘Tremati,’ for instance--of the non-intervention of symphonies. And in the dramatic music of many other modern writers, a custom so injurious to both stage and musical effect, is generally laid aside. Even instrumental writers are beginning to feel the tediousness of introductory symphonies. In the beautiful concerto of Mendelssohn, which he played last season at the Philharmonic, how did he delight his audience by the bold spirit with which he rushed at once into the principal solo subject, instead of following the old daudling practice of tiring expectation by four or five pages of tedious, and often irrelevant, symphony![3] I therefore agree with Dr. Brown on this point, so far as his principle goes. At page 189 is a striking fallacy and extraordinary contradiction of himself by this critical writer. Speaking of Sternhold’s version of the Psalms, he says, ‘There are few stanzas which do not present expressions to excite the ridicule of some part of every congregation. This version might well be abolished, as it exposeth one of the noblest parts of divine service to contempt; especially as there is another version already privileged, which, though not excellent, is, however, not intolerable. The parochial music seems to need no reform.’ The opinion, that what is only not intolerable needs no reform, will find but few abettors in the present times. I have thought, ever since my attention was turned to the subject, that nothing in the whole range of musical performance requires so much reform and improvement as our parochial Psalmody. There are in London, certainly, instances of its being in a very respectable state, but in the majority of churches and chapels, no one with a tolerable ear and the slightest devotional feeling can say, that the squalling of dozens of children, untaught (at least not properly taught), all straining their voices to the utmost, produces anything but unmodified disgust.

While I am on this subject, I must notice a proceeding which some parishes have adopted--namely, that of greatly reducing the salaries of their organists,--in some cases within my own knowledge--from 70_l._ to 40_l._ per annum! Now this is Church reform with a vengeance! but the vengeance falls on the already ill-rewarded organist. And here is a striking proof of the injudicious manner in which we Englishmen set about retrenchment. This is to degrade those who hold important situations in the church to about the rank of beadles or vergers, and, in the end, will only more effectually injure the establishment: for so soon as a man of talent feels himself in danger of losing his just remuneration, it is not likely that he will perform his duties with much zeal.

In Lord Henley’s much-read pamphlet on Church Reform (p. 35, 4th edition) is a passage recommending the entire abolition of what his lordship is pleased to call ‘such relics of popery as chanting anthems, solos, duets, voluntaries, &c.’ in our cathedral service, and advising the introduction of a simple mode of Psalmody. Is it not amazing that a man who is so learned in ecclesiastical law should forget that the Deans and Chapters of all the cathedrals throughout the United Kingdom hold their appointments on the express condition of performing divine service in the manner now practiced? Does he mean by a side-wind, by a little law-cunning, to get rid of all deans and chapters?

I could accumulate the fallacious opinions of many writers till I had half filled your Journal, Sir; but for the present will only add one more, and an extraordinary one it is. In a copy of Sir John Hawkins’ History of Music, in the British Museum, containing MS. notes in his own hand-writing (vol. v. p. 16), is the following remark:--‘Singing follows so naturally the smallest degree of proficiency on any instrument, that the learning of both is unnecessary!’

I am, Sir, &c. &c. ~Honorius~.

MR. G. LINLEY’S ANSWER TO MR. GÖDBÉ.

To the ~Editor~ of the ~Harmonicon~.

Bolton Cottage, Chelsea.

~Sir~,

Mr. ~Gödbé~, with all the adroitness of a posture-master, pirouettes from point to point, and assumes names and positions, as though he were accountable neither for words nor actions. I will, as briefly as possible, reply to those parts of his letter which seem worth my notice.

He asserts.

1st. That ‘Under the Walnut-tree’ was originally written for Mr. M’Keller, of Glasgow.

2nd. That the subject (his Title states Melody) of my Song is only a slight modification of his Quartett.

3rd. That Mr. Pelzer positively declared that there could be no doubt of my composition having been taken from his.

4th. That I proposed stating on my Song, that his Quartett had been composed first.

5th. That Mr. Duff mentioned to me the name of a Song written by him, but never published, called ‘Ladye Jane,’ before I wrote one bearing the same title; and inclines to the opinion, that he also read to me another Song, entitled ‘The First Green Leaf.’

I answer.

It was not.

He does not, by his own notation, show one entire Bar of my composition to be like his. My Song has a totally different Emphasis; and this is a fact not to be overlooked, Emphasis being, I conceive, in Music, what punctuation is in parts of speech.

Mr. Pelzer denies that ever he made such a statement.

When accidentally appealed to, he admitted there was a slight resemblance, but expressed his conviction that this was the effect of accident, not design. Mr. J. Addison and Mr. G. Herbert Rodwell were similarly appealed to by Mr. Gödbé’s publisher. The former gentleman allowed that parts of the 1st and 4th Bar had some affinity, while the latter frankly confessed that he saw no resemblance at all between the two compositions. The passages that do assimilate are common phrases used by everybody; and I am aware of no patent which secures the right of such passages exclusively to Mr. Gödbé.

I could not acknowledge a composition that I had never seen--a thing unborn, that, for aught I knew, had no existence beyond the author’s brain.

Mr. Duff never made mention to me of having written any such Song as ‘Ladye Jane’ until after the publication of mine; and declares that he never read to me ‘The First Green Leaf;’ moreover, that Mr. Gödbé has used Mr. Duff’s name without his consent or authority, and that, too, after having been assured by Mr. Duff that no such reading ever took place.

So much for Mr. Samuel Gödbé’s veracity.

Touching the ‘Isle of Beauty,’ and his friends Messrs. Prowse and Purday, Mr. Gödbé does not condescend to name the ‘identical Song,’ or the ‘Country Music Seller,’ whose coffers were thus likely to overflow from so scrupulous a regard to the laws of copyright. I leave him, therefore, to the full enjoyment of his two City friends, whose testimony and opinion might have some weight, did the question hinge on a tureen of turtle, or pitcher of punch. I beseech him to cultivate the acquaintance of all such good fellows; he might do worse than press their vocal powers in behalf of his Quartett, where, with a ‘merry Christmas, and a happy new year,’ they might stand a chance of obtaining some praise, and a few pence. He never will, nor shall I, get fat by controversy; and taking your hint to be brief, I dismiss Mr. Gödbé and his ‘tangible elements of disputation,’ with a full conviction that he is ever more likely to succeed in finding fault with the works of others than in improving his own.

As was said of the critic may be said of him,--He has sifted a dunghill to find two cinders that tally, and bestowed a great deal of pains upon a dirty business.

I am, Sir, Your obedient servant, ~George Linley~.

MEMOIRS OF THE METROPOLITAN CONCERTS.

[Continued from last Volume.]

Although the failure of public support occasioned the abandonment first of the professional concerts, and eventually rendered it matter of prudence even in Salomon to withdraw from the field, yet the impulse which these establishments had given to musical taste, both in the profession and amongst amateurs, continued to be felt long after the immediate cause was no more. The tone of concerts, both public and private, was materially improved, and some of the best pieces of modern instrumental music were performed in orchestras where nothing beyond the overtures and concerts of Handel or Corelli had been heard before. The music, which was found on the desk, and formed the amusement of amateurs, was much superior to any thing which a few years previous had been thought within their reach; they were no longer contented with the faded productions of a past age, but excited to keep pace with the discoveries and improvements of the times in which they lived. The City Amateur Concert, called the Harmonic (mentioned in the last of these articles), arose out of and continued to keep alive this feeling, but it required a more energetic effort and more comprehensive arrangements to give it full effect.

This effort was at length made by the musical profession in London. In the early part of the year 1813, Messrs. Corri, J. B. Cramer, and Dance, met at the house of the last-named gentleman, and may be said to have laid at that meeting the foundation-stone of the ~Philharmonic Society~. To a subsequent meeting they invited twelve other professional gentlemen, and it was then determined forthwith to institute a concert for the performance, if not exclusively, chiefly, of instrumental music, in support of which the parties assembled, not only agreed to give the gratuitous aid of their united talents, but entered into a subscription to meet incidental expenses. They assumed the appellation of ~The Philharmonic Society~, and associated to themselves fifteen more of their professional brethren, thus augmenting their number to thirty, who were to be denominated ~MEMBERS~ of the society, and in whom alone the management of its funds, and the direction of its proceedings and concerns, were to be vested. The thirty original members of the society were--

Messrs. ~Attwood.~ ~Ayrton.~ ~C. Ashley.~ ~Ashe.~ ~Bartleman.~ ~Berger.~ ~Bishop.~ ~Blake.~ ~Clementi.~ ~Cooke, Robert.~ ~Corri.~ ~J. B. Cramer.~ ~F. Cramer.~ ~Dance.~ ~Graeff.~ ~Griffin.~ ~Hill.~ ~Horsley.~ ~W. Knyvett.~ ~Moralt.~ ~Neate.~ ~Novello.~ ~Potter.~ ~Salomon.~ ~Sherrington.~ ~Shield.~ ~Sir Geo. Smart.~ ~Viotti.~ ~S. Webbe.~ ~Yaniewicz.~

Members of the musical profession were invited to join the society under the title of ~Associates~, but without having a vote, or any other participation, in the affairs or constitution of the establishment, or any privilege or advantage, except that their subscription was fixed at a lower sum than that of the public in general, and that, when any vacancies might occur in the list of ~Members~, they were to be filled up from the ~Associates~ by ballot. Of this class sixty-one inscribed their names in the first season. The subscription-list was filled up from the public at large; but in order to be admitted as a subscriber, it was necessary to be nominated by some member of the society, and as vacancies in the subscription-list took place, they were filled up in the same way; the number of vacancies being divided among the members, and each having an equal number of nominations to divide amongst such of his friends as were desirous of attending the performances of the society. Notwithstanding this restriction, so anxious were the amateurs to avail themselves of this opportunity of enjoying instrumental music of the first class, that the whole number the room could accommodate was nearly filled up before the first concert, and previous to the second performance many applications for subscriptions had been of necessity rejected.

The object and principle of the Philharmonic Society is thus set forth in its second fundamental law. The chief object ‘of the society is the performance, in the best style possible, of the most approved instrumental music, consisting of full pieces; concertantes for not less than three principal instruments; sestettos, quintettos, quartetts, and trios. No concerto solo or duet shall ever be performed at any of the society’s concerts; and if the directors shall think it expedient at any time to introduce vocal music with full orchestral accompaniments, it must be under the above limitations.’ Thus it appears that the performance of vocal music only entered conditionally into the original plan of the founders of the Philharmonic; nevertheless, they found it eventually advantageous, if not necessary, to admit some singing; but for several seasons it was strictly confined to the limits laid down by the above quoted law, and the performance of the singers was for the first two or three seasons gratuitous.

The direction of the concert for the first season was confided to Messrs. ~Ayrton~, ~Bishop~, ~Clementi~, ~Corri~, ~J. B. Cramer~, ~F. Cramer~, and ~Dance~, and its performances commenced on Monday the 13th March, 1813; a day that will be held memorable in the history of the art. So much talent of the very highest order had never before been assembled in the same orchestra; virtuosi who could appear elsewhere only as leaders, here took in their turns the subordinate stations of ripieni violins or tenors; and such masters of their art as ~F. Cramer~, ~Salomon~, ~Shield~, ~Spagnoletti~, ~Vaccari~, ~Viotti~, ~Yaniewicz~, &c., were to be seen vying with each other which should contribute most to the general effect of the performances. The result was such as might have been expected from the combination of such elements: yet when the orchestra was heard, its power, unity and force seemed to surprise even its projectors themselves; and if in the course of twenty years the Philharmonic Society has not appeared to improve, it is perhaps because its very first efforts were in themselves as near perfection as possible.

Every thing connected with this society is so interesting, and so united with the history of the art in England, that we feel certain it will be gratifying to our readers to peruse the bills of its performances. Those who were present at them will thank us for reviving the recollection of past pleasures, and those who were not must be interested in seeing from what sources the directors drew, and what description of music they naturalized, if they did not first introduce, in this country.

FIRST CONCERT, Monday, March 8th, 1813.

~Part I.~

Overture, Anacreon ~Cherubini.~

Quartetto, Two Violins, Viola, and Violoncello, ~Mozart.~ Messrs. F. Cramer, Moralt, Sherrington, and Lindley

Quartetto and Chorus, ‘Nell’ orror,’ Mrs. Moralt, ~Sacchini.~ Messrs. Hawes, P. A. Corri, and Kellner

Serenade, Wind Instruments, Messrs. Mahon, Oliver, ~Mozart.~ Holmes, Tully, and the Petrides

Symphony ~Beethoven.~

~Part II.~

Symphony ~Haydn.~

Chorus, Mrs. Moralt, Miss Hughes, Messrs. P. A. ~Mozart.~ Corri, C. Smith, &c. ‘Placido è il mar’

Quintetto, Two Violins, Viola, and Two Violoncellos, ~Boccherini.~ Messrs. Salomon, Cudmore, Sherrington, Lindley, and C. Ashley

Chaconne, Jomelli; and March ~Haydn.~

Leader, Mr. SALOMON.--Piano-forte, Mr. CLEMENTI.

SECOND CONCERT, Monday, March 15th, 1813.

~Part I.~

Overture, Zauberflöte ~Mozart.~

Trio, Miss Hughes, Mrs. Moralt, and Mr. Kellner ~Salieri.~

Quartetto, Two Violins, Tenor, and Violoncello, ~Haydn.~ Messrs. Salomon, Mori, H. Gattie, and Lindley

Notturno, Wind Instruments, Messrs. Mahon, Oliver, ~Mozart.~ Griesbach, M. Sharp, Petrides, Holmes, and Tully

Symphony ~Haydn.~

~Part II.~

Symphony ~Beethoven~.

Sestetto, Miss Hughes, Mrs. Moralt, Miss Bolton, ~Mozart~. Messrs. P. A. Corri, C. Smith, and Naldi, ‘Sola, sola’

Concertante, Violin, Tenor, Oboe, and Violoncello ~Bach~. Obligati, Messrs. F. Cramer, Sherrington, Griesbach, and Lindley

Finale, Zaira ~Winter~.

Leader, Mr. F. CRAMER.--Piano-forte, Mr. CRAMER.

THIRD CONCERT, Monday, April 19th, 1813.

~Part I.~

Overture, Les Deux Journées ~Cherubini.~

Septuor, Violin, Tenor, Violoncello, Double Bass, ~Beethoven.~ Horn, Clarinet, and Bassoon, Messrs. Spagnoletti, Vaccari, Lindley, Hill, Petrides, Cramer, Holmes

Quartett, Miss Hughes, Messrs. Hawes, Hobbes, and ~Haydn.~ Kellner, ‘Benedictus’

Symphony ~Pleyel.~

~Part II.~

Symphony, Jupiter ~Mozart.~

Quartett, Mrs. Moralt, Messrs. P. A. Corri, Hobbes, ~Sarti.~ and C. Smith, ‘Dorina mia carina’

Quintett, Two Violins, Two Tenors, and Bass, Messrs. ~Romberg.~ Vaccari, Watts, Spagnoletti, Mountain, and Lindley

Finale, Tamerlane ~Winter.~

Leader, Mr. SPAGNOLETTI.--Piano-forte, Mr. CLEMENTI.

FOURTH CONCERT, Monday, May 3d, 1813.

~Part I.~

Overture, Numa Pompilius ~Paer.~

Quintett, Two Violins, Two Tenors, and Violoncello, ~Beethoven.~ Messrs. Bridgtower, F. Cramer, Moralt, H. Gattie, and Lindley

Terzetto, Mrs. Moralt, Messrs. Braham and Naldi, ‘Che ~Cherubini.~ ascoltai’

Quintett, Piano-forte, Violin, Tenor, Violoncello, ~Dussek.~ and Double Bass, Messrs. Neate, Salomon, Watts, Lindley, and Hill

Symphony ~Mozart.~

~Part II.~

Symphony ~Clementi.~

Terzetto, Mrs. Moralt, Miss Rovedino, and Mr. ~Bach.~ Ledesma, ‘Tu mi dividi’

Concertante, Violin, Violoncello, Oboe, and Bassoon ~Haydn.~ Obligati, Messrs. Salomon, Lindley, Griesbach, and Holmes

Finale, Anacreon ~Cherubini.~

Leader, Mr. SALOMON.--Piano-forte, Mr. CRAMER.

FIFTH CONCERT, Monday, May 17th, 1813.

~Part I.~

Overture, Demophoon ~Cherubini.~

Quartett, Mrs. Moralt, Messrs. C. Evans, Ledesma, ~Mozart.~ and C. Smith, ‘Benedictus’

Quartetto, Two Violins, Tenor, and Violoncello, ~Viotti. Messrs. Viotti, Vaccari, Spagnoletti, and Crouch~

Overture, Double Orchestra ~Bach.~

~Part II.~

Symphony ~Haydn.~

Quartett, Mrs. Moralt, Messrs. Ledesma, C. Smith, ~Cherubini.~ and Naldi, ‘Cara da voi’

Quartetto, Two Violins, Tenor, and Violoncello, ~Beethoven.~ Messrs. Spagnoletti, Mori, Vaccari, and Neate

Finale, Iphigenie in Aulide ~Gluck.~

Leader, Mr. VIOTTI.--Piano-forte, Mr. CLEMENTI.

SIXTH CONCERT, Monday, May 31st, 1813.

~Part I.~

Overture, Lodoiska ~Cherubini.~

Quartetto, Two Violins, Tenor, and Violoncello, ~Mozart.~ Messrs. F. Cramer, Bridgtower, Moralt, and Lindley

Terzetto, Mrs. Ash, Messrs. Rosquellas, and C. Smith, ~Caruso~. ‘Parte vanne’

Full Piece, Piano-forte, Flute, Oboes, Clarinets, } ~Cramer~ Horns, and Bassoons Obligati, Messrs. Cramer, } and Ashe, F. Griesbach, M. Sharp, Mahon, Oliver, } ~Mozart.~ Petrides, Holmes, and Tully }

Symphony ~A. Romberg.~

~Part II.~

Symphony ~Woelfl.~

Quartetto, Mrs. Vaughan, Messrs. Evans, Vaughan, ~Crotch.~ and Kellner, ‘Lo! Star-led Chiefs’

Quartett, Messrs. Yaniewicz, Watts, Spagnoletti, and ~Haydn.~ Lindley

Finale, Men of Prometheus ~Beethoven.~

Leader, Mr. F. CRAMER.--Piano-forte, Mr. CRAMER.

SEVENTH CONCERT, Monday, June 14th, 1813.

~Part I.~

Overture, Creation } } ~Haydn.~ Introduction and Chorus, ‘The heavens are telling’ }

Quartetto, Piano-forte, Violin, Tenor, and ~Beethoven.~ Violoncello, Messrs. Berger, Yaniewicz, Watts, and Neate

Symphony ~Clementi.~

~Part II.~

Symphony (No. 10) ~Haydn.~

Terzetto, Mad. Storace, Mrs. Ashe, and Mr. Braham, ~Cimarosa.~ ‘O dolce e caro istante’

Quartetto, Two Violins, Tenor, and Violoncello, ~Beethoven.~ Messrs. Yaniewicz, Gattie, Moralt, and Lindley

Finale, L’Hôtellerie Portugaise ~Cherubini.~

Leader, Mr. YANIEWICZ--Piano-forte, Mr. CLEMENTI.

EIGHTH CONCERT, Monday, June 21st, 1813.

~Part I.~

Overture, La Chasse, Jeune Henri ~Mehul.~

Quartetto, Mrs. Bianchi Lacy, Miss Hughes, Mrs. ~Mozart.~ Moralt, and Mr. Ledesma, ‘Andrò Ramingo’

Quartetto, Two Violins, Tenor, and Violoncello, ~Romberg.~ Messrs. Vaccari, Watts, Moralt, and Lindley

Symphony ~Beethoven.~

~Part II.~

Symphony ~Mozart.~

Terzetto, Mrs. Moralt, Mrs. Bianchi Lacy, and Mr. ~Mozart.~ Ledesma, ‘Pria di partir’

Quartetto, Two Violins, Tenor, and Violoncello, ~Haydn.~ Messrs. Salomon, Watts, W. Griesbach, and Lindley

Finale, Elvira ~Cherubini.~

Leader, Mr. VACCARI.--Piano-forte, Mr. CRAMER.

We shall continue the history of this society to the period when our own reports of it commenced, in 1823.

A THEORETICAL WORK BY BEETHOVEN.

The Leipzig Musical Gazette of a few weeks back, contains the annexed account of a publication which cannot but excite a strong interest in the whole musical world, and most likely will prove highly instructive. We are in daily expectation of a copy, and shall certainly lay portions of its contents before our readers. The title, as given in the German journal, is--Ludwig van Beethoven’s Studies in Thorough Bass, Counterpoint, and the Theory of Composition, collected from his Autograph MSS. and edited by the Chevalier Ignaz von Seyfried. Vienna. T. Haslinger. Price 2 th. 16 gr.

The anxiety, says the writer of the article, which prevailed among the numerous admirers of the great composer for the publication of this important work, is sufficiently apparent from the list of subscribers to it, the great number of whom enabled the publisher to adhere to the price originally fixed, although the book contained about ten sheets more than the first estimate allowed for it. The studies alone occupy 352 pages. We are then presented with a fac-simile of Beethoven’s writing, representing, in almost enigmatical characters, the first draft of the composition of his fine cantata Adelaide. After this are given prints of two medals in honour of him, the one struck at Vienna, the other at Paris. The appendix contains biographical notices, anecdotes, a transcript of the will, letters, an account of the obsequies, with the music, orations, poems, a drawing of his tombstone, and a systematic catalogue of all the original compositions of the great master. A very striking likeness of Beethoven precedes the whole. This slight sketch of the contents will at least have the effect of attracting to the work the attention of all those friends of the art who may, up to the present time, have remained in ignorance of its appearance. Who would not be anxious to observe for himself the manner in which our Beethoven formed his mind and cultivated his genius? It is not for us to say one word in recommendation of a work whose importance speaks for itself in the most forcible manner.

Much less occasion have we to criticise; for, in the present case, the question is not regarding the mode, but the substance, as it is presented to us, and the manner in which every one ought to avail himself of such a publication, and apply the conclusions which he may draw from it. We do not expect that, in our notice of the work, we can offer, except in a very few instances, any new views. However, it is to be supposed that a great number of those who would take an interest in the work are not yet in possession of it. For the benefit of such we here give the concise and appropriate preface of the editor, which adverts to most of what is necessary to be impressed on the mind in relation to the work itself:--

‘These studies of the great genius are to the whole musical world a valuable legacy, far too inestimable for any one to dare to risk the slightest alteration in them. I have, therefore, endeavoured with the utmost care to give every thing exact, and in the very order in which I found it. I have even, on most occasions, preserved the author’s own words and expressions. In those cases alone, however, where our persevering and indefatigable student had given numerous examples in illustration of one and the same rule, I considered myself at liberty to make an omission or abridgment, in order that the work might not be swelled out to an unnecessary bulk. [The information as to how many examples have been omitted, and in what part of the work, would have been acceptable to many.] What is here offered to the public cannot, by any means, serve as a systematic book of instruction, but is rather to be viewed as the course of study pursued by the great artist himself; and it affords incontrovertible proof, to those who have hitherto entertained doubts on the subject, that Beethoven dedicated the two last years of his musical education, with unwearying assiduity, to theoretical study, under the guidance of Albrechtsberger, his beloved mentor, and further, that he was master of the substance of all the rules, although in process of time his sublime genius cast off the slavish fetters; and his master-mind, soaring far beyond the standard of times past or present, disregarded so many which antiquity and invariable usage alone had hitherto entitled to religious observance as settled laws.’

It is certainly a very different thing when one man, who knows well what he is doing, advisedly, or with innate tact, occasionally transgresses a rule,--and when another, who has learned nothing, and is unwilling to learn anything, evinces his pretended originality in no other way than in the contempt of that of which he is actually ignorant. Were ignorance and presumption the only characteristics of genius, we should have no lack of it.

At the conclusion of the thorough-bass rules, page 74, is the following remark in a fac-simile of Beethoven’s hand-writing:--‘Dear friends, I took all these pains merely to be enabled to figure thorough-bass correctly, and hereafter to point out to others any faults they might commit: for myself, I hardly had occasion to learn this at any time; I had from my childhood so nice a feeling, that I observed all the established rules without knowing that what I did should be so or could well be otherwise.’

So important are these studies, and so attractive are the numerous but too few notices from his life, to which fact it is scarcely necessary for us to bear witness, that an adequate idea of its full value cannot be formed but from the work itself entire.

THE NEW GERMAN OPERA OF FORTUNATUS.

The Musical Gazette of Leipzig contains the following detailed account of a new opera lately produced in that city, which, if its merit be at all commensurate with the encomiums bestowed on it, cannot but be a work of uncommon ability. Granting that the writer had listened to this with very favouring ears--that he may have been biassed by partiality of some kind, yet if he is in any degree to be relied on--and we have no reason to doubt his general fidelity--the opera he thus praises in so almost unqualified a manner must possess many pieces of no ordinary excellence, and is worth being further inquired into by the managers of our theatres. The critique has the German defect of verbosity; we therefore have considerably abridged it. The writer accompanies his remarks with two airs as specimens of the melodies; the first of which will be found in the musical portion of our present number.

* * * * *

Fortunat mit dem Säckel und Wunschhutlein, (Fortunatus with the Purse and Wishing-cap,) an Opera composed by ~Schnyder~, of Wartensee; the Drama by ~Georg Doring~. Performed, for the first time, at Frankfort on the Maine.

M. Schnyder, of Wartensee, well known to the public by many valuable musical works, has here attempted dramatic composition with particular success, and charmed us by an abundance of very excellent music. He is a man rich in musical ideas; his productions are frequently original, always clear and melodious, and, at the same time, of a rare correctness. His airs are pleasing, and often very delicate; his choruses powerful and full of dramatic effect. Above all, the opera bears the stamp of considerable thought, (particularly as regards harmony,) and of cultivated taste and great judgment. It presents plan, unity, good keeping in the different characters, and displays poetic elevation of no ordinary description. His harmony, frequently peculiar to himself, is not to be termed mere accompaniment to the melody; it may be considered as exhibiting a manner particularly his own of enlarging the means of musical expression, or of employing the rich store of musical colouring.

In his instrumental pieces, the progressions unfold many entirely new ideas; he modulates with caution, but at the same time naturally, and a rude transition is nowhere to be met with. It is true that we sometimes encounter laboured, lengthy passages, and obsolete forms of melody; the latter, however, considered with reference to situation, probably not unintentionally introduced. An analytical review of the opera is subjoined, that it may be more justly estimated.

The overture begins with a characteristic subject, which is afterwards introduced whenever the Wishing-Cap is at work. To this succeeds a soft piece, in the choral style, for the wind instruments, (motivo of the chorus of the Genii attendant upon Fortuna,) in which the first subject is gradually interwoven into the parts assigned to the stringed instruments. After a novel progression of harmony--where the chord of the dominant seventh of E♭ major, breathed, as it were, pianissimo by the clarionets and bassoons alone, succeeds the chord of the dominant of C minor given fortissimo by the whole orchestra--the Allegro commences. A graceful, light theme, in contrast with the significant romantic introduction, gives notice that we are to expect a comic opera, in which the marvellous and fantastic spirit of a fairy-tale is blended with the humorous. A profusion of unlooked-for imitations, an attractive motivo, the interesting and striking management of the inner parts, together with an excellent employment of the brass instruments, distinguish this piece, and the introduction of three trombones towards the end imparts great force and life to the conclusion.

No. 1. Duet (as introduction) between the two lovers, Fortunatus and Alide, daughter of Claudio, king of Cyprus. The melody, tender and affectionate; the accompaniment corresponding. In this, the passage where Fortunatus, accompanying himself on the guitar, sings the words[4], ‘Im Haine klagt’s,’ deserves particular mention--an excellent air, tender in melody, and of most beautiful effect. While Fortunatus is declaring his passion to Alide, they are surprised by the king, his cousin Agrippina, and her brother Pedro. The king threatens Fortunatus with death, and sends him to prison in the custody of Carlino, a courtier. The duet merges into a concerted piece of considerable importance, in which the characteristics of the different persons and their respective feelings are depicted with great dramatic effect. The lovers are doomed to separate, and the introduction appropriately closes with the lovely bars of the opening of the duet, expressing their hopes of seeing each other again.

No. 2. A Duet between the King and Pedro. The latter conceitedly enumerates his good qualities, which the king listens to with satisfaction. The boastings of Pedro are humorously expressed by some original trumpet passages, while the insignificance and frivolity of his majesty are happily marked by triplets.

A great contrast to this is shown in the Aria No. 4, which Fortunatus sings, under the impression that he is to languish his days in prison. This scene, together with the subsequent appearance of Fortuna, we consider the gem of the Opera. A solo for the violoncello is introduced here; the few bars of which, if entrusted to an able player, are calculated to express the bitterest anguish and the deepest despair. The sweet melody which follows is highly favourable for the display of the singers’ talent. Fortunatus expresses the grief of separation, but Hope whispers that he will be liberated by a superior power. The Sombre F minor gives way to the tranquil A♭ major, and the melancholy sounds of the violoncello are succeeded by the cheering tones of the violin, which now steps in with a solo. A gentle sleep, produced by magic, then steals on Fortunatus, and the chord of E major, softly breathed by the wind instruments, hints already the approach of Fortuna, who shortly afterwards appears with her genii, singing tender choruses; bestows on Fortunatus her gifts--the wishing-cap and ever-full purse--then disappears. As Fortunatus awakes, the key of E major suddenly changes again into A, and the transition gives to the whole situation a dream-like character. Fortunatus is now free, and the orchestra bursts out fortissimo, with all its brass instruments and drums, and seems to revel with the happy youth, who can scarcely calculate the extent of his good fortune. He now wishes himself in Famagusta’s rich market-place; the scene changes, and the dealers of all kinds sing a popular air, No. 5, extolling their wares. Carlino appears, banished from the court on the suspicion of being the cause of Fortunatus’s escape, and sings a song, No. 6[5].

No. 7. Finale is comic throughout. King Claudio appears with the two ladies, Pedro, and attendants. Fortunatus, recognized by Alide alone, attracts the attention of the king by the splendour of his dress. Pedro makes inquiries respecting him of Carlino, who has entered the service of Fortunatus. When the king is told that the stranger is Count Minian of Flanders, and that he is worth ten millions, his joy knows no bounds, and he invites him immediately to the palace. The music of the Finale is lively, dramatic, and well put together; the chorus at the conclusion, however, borders on the trivial. The scene in which Fortunatus is presented to the king by Pedro (tempo di minuetto) is highly diverting, the melody is in the antique stiff style, and at the end, four bars universal rest can scarcely fail to draw from the audience a burst of laughter.

Second Act.--Fortunatus has been victorious in the tournament. The king greets the rich Count of Flanders, in the presence of the whole court, as his intended son-in-law. Pedro, too, for his valour in the tournament, receives from the king a scarf. This forms the subject of the chorus No. 8, of which it may be said, that it is powerful and effectively written, and the solo parts are in true character. Fortunatus acquaints Alide with the properties of the magic gifts, and is overheard by Agrippina.

No. 9. A very beautiful duet between Fortunatus and Alide commences. The motivo is uncommonly sweet, and the whole piece is calculated for the display of vocal talent.

No. 10. Aria of Agrippina, almost in the bravura style. Agrippina has revealed everything to her brother, and they resolve to despoil Fortunatus of his magic gifts.

No. 11. Terzet between Agrippina, Pedro, and Fortunatus. This and the following aria of Alide are the weakest pieces in the opera; the colouring and inspiration, more or less conspicuous in the other pieces, are wanting here. It should, however, be remarked that the action of the drama begins to drag in the second act, and that no situation predominates that is deserving of distinguished musical treatment, except the finale, No. 13. Fortunatus, deprived of his talismans, and wandering about in a rocky glen, deplores his fate. He relates how Agrippina and Pedro bereft him of his magic gifts. To quench his thirst he plucks an apple from a tree, on the tasting of which he becomes as black as a negro. His good genius, however, directs him to pluck an apple from the opposite tree, the taste of which dissolves the spell. Upon this, he forms a plan for avenging himself, and recovering his lost treasures. The finale begins with an aria in C minor, in which Fortunatus expresses his eagerness for revenge. He plucks the apples which turn black such as taste them; but on gathering those which restore the original colour, and the effect of which is, therefore, just the reverse, the orchestra plays the same musical phrase reversed. The choruses of male and female gardeners are of a pastoral character. The awful passage of the horn solo when Fortunatus appears under the guise of a magic spirit, and which is introduced with great effect as a second melody, simultaneously with the peculiar subject which accompanies the plucking of the apples, forms a striking contrast to the chorus of the courtiers, who assent to the king’s remarks, and laugh at every stupid joke he utters. Agrippina and Pedro, tasting the apples, become black. General consternation ensues. The king curses the place, and the scene closes with a chorus.

No. 14. The commencement of the third act re-introduces the opening chorus of the first act. Fortunatus then appears as a Quack Doctor, and takes Carlino into his service as Punch. Pedro, understanding that the Doctor possesses unfailing remedies for diseases of the skin, is in hopes, through his means, to retrieve his lost colour.

Now begins No. 15, a terzet between Fortunatus, Carlino, and Pedro, during which the latter, by eating the healing apples, (the same musical phrase being played at the time which expressed the plucking of them,) recovers his complexion. The whole scene of the disenchantment is very original and dramatically written. Pedro hastens to his sister with Fortunatus to effect her cure also.

No. 16. Aria of Alide, who attempts to console her cousin Agrippina; full of melody, and concertante for the oboe, and of exquisite effect.

No. 17. Duet between Agrippina and Fortunatus. The latter being introduced by Pedro to his sister in order to accomplish her cure, obtains possession of the Wishing-Cap and Purse, and, grasping Agrippina, wishes himself and her in a convent on the coast of Sicily, where he compels her to pass the remainder of her days. This duet, with the chorus belonging to it, forms one of the most original and effective situations in the opera. Behind the scenes the nuns chaunt an old choral hymn, a piece of sacred harmony still sung in convents; to which, with the accompaniment of the orchestra, the above two sing the duet, wherein the violent and wicked character of Agrippina reaches its climax. The chorus is treated as canto fermo, and the dramatic air proceeds with it, free and unshackled; it is a composition worthy the highest praise. Agrippina takes the veil, and the invisible chorus finishes with an ~Amen~.

No. 18. Aria with concerted parts. Alide is to be united to Pedro. The King announces this in a pompous aria to the people, who express their joy. Here is introduced a very fine march. Fortunatus appears, unmasks the villain Pedro, and marries Alide. The opera closes with a concerted movement.

The representation of this work in Frankfort was admirable. M. Schmetzer, as Fortunatus, had ample opportunity to display his magnificent voce di petto. Demlle. Lampmann also proved very successful in the character of Alide. The getting up was worthy the theatre, and the applause unqualified.

M. MOSCHELES AT LEIPZIG.

(From the Musicalische Zeitung.)

M. Moscheles, whose talents as a pianist are held in such high estimation by every country where the musical art is appreciated, gave us an unrivalled treat on the 22nd instant (October), and again proved to us how much the character of a composition, and the feelings intended to be excited, depend on the taste, judgment, and animation with which it is performed. Our celebrated guest was welcomed in a manner correspondent to his high merits by an audience that completely thronged the Gewandhaus; and we trust that all who were present not only came to hear and to enjoy, but to learn. M. M. played his new concerto in C, and his fantasia, ‘Recollections of Denmark.’ It would be presumptuous to offer a judgment on works of art after but once hearing them, and more particularly so in the present instance, where the performance was so bewitching, that the critic’s attention was unavoidably drawn from the composition to the composer. It would be mere commonplace to call M. M. the true representative of the true school of piano-forte playing, or to say that a perfect gradation of power, brilliancy of touch, precision of time, and all the charms of rhythm are united in his performance. A detailed description of the merits of a master conveys no adequate idea of the qualities and powers peculiar to a man of genius. M. M. has all the difficulties of his instrument in such complete subjection, that as they increase, so does his command over them; while to the minutest particulars he has the happy art of giving a value and communicating an interest, so that the attention of his hearer never relaxes, and is always gratified.

In the midst of his energy he has a self-control which gives it dignity. Light and shade, power and sweetness are so admirably contrasted, or beautifully interwoven, that in the midst of his admiration the hearer is instructed. All M. M.’s peculiar merits were united in his extemporaneous fantasia, for which he had four themes of Mozart given to him by the audience. The most striking modulations blended with the most brilliant traits, that happy union and reunion of his subjects, in which Hummel also excels, the imposing dignity of his style, and an expression of lyrical feeling peculiar to himself, completed a combination of excellence that called forth the warmest marks of admiration from the delighted audience.

REVIEW OF NEW MUSIC.

SACRED MUSIC.

1. ~Musæ Lyricæ~, original melodies composed for four voices, by the ~Rev. Charles Day~, LL.B., Vicar of Rushmere, 1832. (Mori and Lavenu.)

2. ~Christian Vespers~, written and composed by ~C. Hucheson~, Esq., 1832. (Glasgow, R. and J. Finlay.)

Of all the accomplishments which shed a grace over the clerical character, music is the most becoming. There is ‘nothing more strong and potent unto good than music,’ says Hooker; and Martin Luther ranks it next to theology. It is a social art, which draws persons together to enjoy a pleasure which can excite no bad passion, and who separate without any cause to regret an aching head, or a lightened purse, and, probably, a loss of temper. It very much assists in confining what are called the pleasures of the table within reasonable limits. It softens, though it never enervates the mind; and even if indulged in to excess, to the exclusion of more important pursuits, leaves at least the bodily health unimpaired. But, viewed as part of our church service--an essential part, indeed, the great length of the liturgy being considered--it is incumbent on the ministers of religion to acquire a competent knowledge of that which ought to be calculated to act very influentially, though calmly, on their congregations. In cathedrals it is absolutely necessary that the officiating clergy be well acquainted with music, for the greater part of the service in those establishments is set to musical notes. Hence we think it will be admitted, that a divine does not leave his calling when he dedicates some portion of his studies to an art so closely connected with his profession; and Mr. Day, while writing his present work, may truly be said to have been labouring in his vocation. Much more so, past all dispute, than if, following the example of so many of his brethren, he had devoted the same time to the performance of magisterial duties. We say nothing of hunting, and such unintellectual, savage amusements, presuming that very few of our clergy now engage in pursuits so utterly incompatible with the sacred character.

The volume before us contains twenty-two short pieces of vocal harmony, much, in fact, in the style of the psalm-tune, but more modern in all respects. The melodies are pleasing, some of them original; and in harmonizing these the composer has been quite successful, except in the few instances hereafter to be mentioned. Indeed a superior taste, and a knowledge of the best schools, distinguish most of Mr. Day’s pages. The words--which we must observe seem to partake strongly of what is called Evangelical feeling--are selected from Bishop Heber, Watts, Cowper, Wesley, Toplady, &c., the expression and accentuation whereof are irreproachable, except in one or two trifling instances not worthy of remark. But pleasing and good as the harmony generally is, we discover a few errors in it, which, in a work displaying so much talent and skill, rather surprise us. At page 14, third bar from the end, are three octaves. At page 26, the latter four bars exhibit more of such errors--that is, if it be intended that the base should take the lower notes. If otherwise, however, the unisons are very meagre. But severe critics will exclaim loudly at two consecutive fifths between the second and third bars of page 46, which, notwithstanding the enormity of the offence, we confess are less painful to our ears than the eighths we have just pointed out, though they will meet with no mercy from musical rigorists, and undoubtedly ought to have been detected by the composer, and corrected.

The manner in which this volume is brought out is an undeniable proof of the elegant taste of either the proprietor or his publisher; and the charitable purpose to which the profits arising from the sale of it are to be applied, is no less indicative of the benevolent feeling of the reverend author.

* * * * *

Mr. Hucheson’s work consists of sixteen original airs, harmonized for three and four voices. But to these are prefixed nine full quarto pages of what the writer denominates an ‘Introductory Sketch,’ to which, being by far the best and most interesting part of the volume, we first give our attention. It is a brief account of the origin and progress of musical psalmody, which he shows, from ecclesiastical historians, to have been introduced into England by Gregory the Great, at about the close of the sixth century. ‘In the seventh century a person not only taught the Monks sacred music, in the neighbourhood of Wearmouth, but also opened schools for musical instruction in the northern shires of England. Afterwards a similar school was established in Canterbury, and other places were provided with teachers from that country. The reign of Alfred adorned the close of the ninth century, and by him music was liberally patronised. St. Dunstan, in the tenth century, excelled in sacred music, as well as in the arts of painting and sculpture.’ In succeeding centuries much of the ample revenues of the church were expended in the encouragement of music. ‘Indeed, so much was it then studied, that the priests of almost every European nation travelled to Rome to learn chanting.’

Mr. Hucheson is a strenuous advocate for congregational psalm-singing. His arguments are incontrovertible, if those who would sing, could, and if those who could sing, would; but, unhappily, the want of ability in some, and either the shyness or the pride (we fear the latter) of others, presents an insurmountable obstacle to so desirable a practice. The author is of opinion that congregations should be instructed in psalmody, and that ‘a choir, consisting of their own members, ought to occupy a situation in the church near the conductor of the music.’ ... ‘The music of the church would immediately become a theme of conversation at home, and of remark abroad; and the subject being frequently discussed, would lead to just views of its importance, and originate plans for its improvement, by the influence of judicious criticism.’

As we have said above, if the great length of our morning service is to continue unabridged, music must remain an essential part of it: without the intervention of this, attention could hardly for so long a time, and amidst so many repetitions, be kept alive; and if introduced, it ought to be good. At all events, whatever in any degree tends to excite ridiculous ideas should be most scrupulously avoided; and what can be more ludicrous than the squalling of a bevy of charity-children--the vocal musicians of most parish churches? But will congregations be induced to join heart and voice in the psalm, or any other kind of music? We fear not; for though, owing to the increased diffusion of musical knowledge, numbers are qualified, and would soon qualify others, yet absurd aristocratic feeling is so prevalent in this our country, that where humility should be most felt--in places of worship,--each class, from the highest to almost the lowest, considers it a degradation to unite with those beneath it, and pride, the denounced of religion and bane of society, is as little suppressed in the church as at Almack’s.

Of the music in this work we cannot say much that will prove gratifying to the composer. His melodies are not censurable, we admit, except as being common; but his knowledge of harmony, as evinced in his accompaniments, is of a very imperfect kind, and he seems not to have taken the precaution to avail himself of that assistance which we presume was easily to have been obtained.

PIANO FORTE.

~Fifth Concerto~, (in ~C~ major) with or without Orchestral Accompaniments, composed by I. ~Moscheles~. Op. 87. (Cramer and Co. and Mori.)

This Concerto was produced, for the first time, if we mistake not, at Mr. Moscheles’ concert in June last; and the impression it made on us was so strong, that the piano-forte part alone now brings to our recollection most of the effects produced by an efficient orchestra. This might almost be considered as a symphony, so full and active are the instrumental parts; but the present publication, without the accompaniments, includes all that belongs to the instrument for which it is principally written, and is so far complete in itself; though, of course, much of the grandeur of the composition, as well as many highly important effects, must be lost, if unaccompanied. The very opening of the concerto leads us to expect a work of great originality, and we are not disappointed in its progress. The following are the first dozen bars:--

The solo part enters thus unceremoniously,--

The progress of the principal and subordinate subjects is through nearly all the keys and every variety of passage, and the ingenuity with which this is managed is, in most instances, rewarded by the effect produced. Though it must be granted that there are, in this movement, certain difficulties which can have no other object than to show the dexterity of the performer. And as to the sestine of semiquavers, (page 20,) against four of the same notes, we must say that, even when executed with mathematical precision, which is nearly impossible, (would it were quite so!) the result is confusion between the two parts, and, consequently, the effect on the ear painful.

The second movement is beautiful throughout; the commencement, in which the violoncello takes the melody, is so lovely a piece of simple harmony, that we cannot forbear extracting it:--

But the most popular part of the present work,--and amongst much originality we may also mention it as the most original,--is the finale, or last movement. When performed, on the occasion before alluded to, the very opening excited a murmur of applause, and increasing satisfaction was marked on the countenances of the audience as it proceeded. An examination of this does not lessen our admiration of it; the invention, consistency, and spirit of the whole, are manifest from the first to the last bars. We shall add to our quotations the commencement of this, by which the reader will see that the movement is not cast in a common mould.

The three bars, or second subject, from the word dolce, are afterwards taken, but in the relative minor, as the point of a fugato, which morsel of science à l’ancienne, coming in so unexpectedly, and not continuing long enough to puzzle and weary the unlearned, must be counted among the happiest thoughts in the work.

This concerto, having been written for Mr. Moscheles’ own performance, therefore for effect of all kinds, including a display of his powers of execution, is, as will be supposed, abundantly difficult--we therefore only recommend it to very superior players; to such it cannot but prove highly valuable.

* * * * *

1. ~Rondo Brillant~ (à la Russe) with an Introduction, composed by J. B. ~Cramer~. (Cramer and Co.)

2. La Narcisse ~Polonaise~, composée par ~Charles Czerny~, avec Introduction, par ~Jerome Payer~, Op. 175. (Wessel and Co.)

The opera, 8 of Cramer, long ago taught us to associate agreeably his name and airs à la Russe; we therefore anticipated much of the pleasure which the above publication has afforded us, and feel confident that it will find an admirer in every lover of true piano-forte music. The Rondo Brillant is in ~A~, 2/4 time, allegretto scherzando; the subject simple, melodious, and treated in a fanciful, sprightly manner;--with great taste, it is superfluous to add, for whoever knew this quality wanting in any of Cramer’s productions? It is also practicable by all tolerable performers, and comprehensible to every one with a musical ear, a praise unmerited by many composers of great name in the present day. We were much struck by a very bold enharmonic change from ~E~ to ~E~♭ and back again (page 3); it will always rouse the attention of the hearer, however drowsy he may happen to be. The introduction, adagio, is expressive, energetic, and just the right length. At page 6, bar 15, is a ~C~♯, which ought to be ~D~♯. As the same error is repeated two bars beyond, it might mislead the performer, if not pointed out as a misprint.

* * * * *

No. 2 is a Polonaise, which, if played in the time indicated by the composer,--that is, not quick, for so we are to understand the term grazioso,--will produce very considerable effect. The subject is exciting, and well supported, the modulations good, the passages mostly lie well for the hand, and the whole being included in nine pages, the interest never flags. But as if M. Payer were resolved that no one composition by M. Czerny should appear without some drawback, he has written an introduction to this, in which is a passage of semitones more ingeniously tormenting to the ear than any we ever had the ill-fortune to meet with. The whole of this part is full of pretence, and wretchedly unmeaning. We advise the performer (who ought to be a skilful one to execute the Polonaise) to substitute a few chords for M. Payer’s senseless page, begrimmed as it is with half demi-semiquavers, for so sure as his hideous notes are played, the auditors will simultaneously take to flight; while the canine species, if any are within hearing, will proclaim their sufferings in corresponding sounds.

* * * * *

1. ~Air de Ballet~, tiré de l’opera La Tentation, et arrangé en Rondeau, par J. ~Herz~, Op. 23. No. 1. (Mori and Lavenu.)

2. ~L’Orgie, Rondo~ sur des thêmes de La Tentation, arrangée par ~Adolphe Adam~. (Chappell.)

No. 1, from an opera now having a great run in Paris, composed by Halevy, is an excellent rondo, the air graceful and pleasing, and the amplification of it exhibiting delicacy of taste and a full knowledge of the character and capabilities of the instrument. Here we find no notes sixty-four to a bar,--no leaps of 17ths and 19ths,--no howling runs of semitones,--all is rational, and worthy of a clever, spirited writer. Let it, however, be observed, that the author of this is not Henri Herz, but his brother, who appears to have a soul for music; while his relative only shows that he has fingers and thumbs for the art. This air is named La Romeca in the opera; it is by comparison short, and though it looks easy, requires an experienced player, and one with a wide hand, the base passages continually embracing ten notes.

* * * * *

No. 2 is clearly a dance-tune: its rhythm of three and two bars shows that the measure is made to yield to stage action. The air is rather pretty--somewhat national in character, and the composer’s chief aim seems to have been, to make the rondo as easy to the performer as was possible, short of being rendered fit for a learner of three months’ standing.

* * * * *

1. ‘Nel cor piu,’ arranged, with variations after the style of ~Paganini~, &c. &c. &c. by ~John Purkis~. (Purday.)

2. ~Rondoletto~, from the Barcarole of Marie, by ~Henry Karr~. (Welsh.)

The least meritorious part of No. 1 is the title-page, which we have cut short; not, however, from any disrespect to her Majesty, our queen, whose name, ‘by special permission,’ appears on it, but because it contains much nonsense. The five variations on Paisiello’s air, ‘Nel cor piu non mi sento,’ are rather clever in contrivance, and pleasing, but let us hope that not above half of these were ever played on the organ, for semidemisemiquavers on that instrument would be as much out of character as a bravura from the pulpit. Indeed, we must say that, however well suited to the piano-forte, there is hardly a single page of this calculated for that noble piece of mechanism, the organ. If, nevertheless, the whole were ever performed on the Apollonicon, and met with the ‘unbounded applause’ which the composer--reviving a vain, childish, absurd phrase, which we hoped had been exploded--boasts of, such applause only proves what a modicum of discrimination his auditors must have brought with them into the room.

* * * * *

No. 2 has much to recommend it to general notice;--the barcarolle, by Herold, is a beautiful melody; it is exceedingly well worked into a rondo, by Mr. Karr; the piece is not long, shews much taste, and is well adapted to the instrument.

1. ~Six Variations~ on The Blue Bells of Scotland, composed by ~J. T. Surenne~. (Monro and May.)

2. Air, ‘The stilly night,’ with variations, composed by ~J. F. Leeson~. (Dublin, Power.)

The variations on the Blue-bells are very much like numberless other things of the kind; the composer does not seem to have even made an effort to strike out of the highway; he has followed the beaten path, and committed no offence. The only attempt at novelty is to be found in the title-page--(your title-pages are great tests of understanding)--where, in dedicating his variations to a friend, in English, he tells us, in French, that the dedicatee is an ‘élève de Bochsa!’--as if the words were untranslatable; and also as if the world cared one straw about such a piece of information.

* * * * *

The delicious air, ‘Oft in the stilly night,’ would, we should have thought, have spoken for itself, and pointed out an elegant calmness as the proper character of any variations written on it; but the composer either has not heard, or has not listened to, the ‘still small voice’ of reason; he has given us, first, a page of demisemiquavers, ‘brillante’, 2/4 time; next a crowd of skipping triplets; then poured on us another flood of three-tailed notes, ‘Con Fuoco;’ and afterwards as many more of the same kind, ‘presto!’--to say nothing of a coda in a similar style. There is not a single new idea to be found in the whole piece. If such things as this confer the title of ‘composer,’ we then can only say that it is a title very easily obtained.

ROBERT LE DIABLE.

1. The ~Overture~ and ~Introduction~ to the opera of Robert le Diable, with flute or violin accompaniment, ad lib., composed by ~G. Meyerbeer~ (Chappell.)

2. The Pas de la Bouquetière, danced by Madlle. Taglioni, in the same, composed and arranged by ~Meyerbeer~. (Chappell.)

3. ~Bacchanalian Chorus~ in the opening scene of the same, arranged as a ~Brilliant Rondo~, by ~J. Herz~. (Chappell.)

4. The Pilgrim’s Ballad, ‘Jadis regnait en Normandie,’ from the same, arranged with Variations, by ~Charles Czerny~. (Chappell.)

5. ~Sicilienne~, ‘L’or est une chimère,’ in the same, arranged by ~T. Valentine~. (Chappell.)

The Overture to Robert is in two movements; the first an andante maestoso in C minor, meant as a prologue to the diablerie of the drama--a very much laboured composition, which does not make a return equal to the trouble bestowed on it. The second is an anticipation of the admirable and really popular air, ‘Jadis regnait en Normandie.’ The introduction wants the voices and stage action to give due effect to it, but there are some fine musical points in it, which the pianoforte is quite sufficient to bring forth. The whole of this is most judiciously arranged.

* * * * *

We never discovered the great merit of the Dance of the Flower-Girl, No. 2, and suspect that the grace (not, let us hope, the distortions) of Mademoiselle Taglioni produced more effect than the music. The coda to this, however, is melodious and enlivening; and the whole piece is adapted in a manner to have been expected from so sensible a man as M. Meyerbeer.

* * * * *

No. 3, the Chorus in the introduction, we have spoken of above. This is also remarkably well arranged by M. Jules (such Christian name we believe he bears) Herz. Much of this is pleasing, and the whole showy, without annoying the player and hearer with any sleight-of-hand tricks.

* * * * *

In No. 4, M. Czerny appears not only in a rational, but almost in an amiable shape. It would have been unpardonable to slay so good an air as this under its parent’s eye. The first variation is a little skittish, but afterwards the composer becomes sober, though very animated, brilliant, and agreeable. The Introduction is the best thing of the kind we ever saw from the pen of M. Czerny. The whole makes a very delightful, and not very difficult, divertimento.

* * * * *

Mr. Valentine, in No. 5, has given us a simple, unaffected, good arrangement of one of the most original airs in the opera. This is short, perfectly easy, and is adapted to those whose progress, or practical skill, may deter them from undertaking any of the foregoing pieces.

* * * * *

1. ~Grand Waltz~, with ~Variations~ and ~Polonaise~, composed by ~James M’Calla~; Op. 10. (Goulding and D’Almaine.)

2. ~Les Brillantes~, ~Waltzer~, composée par ~James T. May~. (Same)

3. A set of ~Quadrilles~, composed and published as the preceding.

4. A second set, ditto, ditto.

No. 1 is a pleasing, short waltz, but the grandeur of it, predicated in the title-page, has not been revealed to us, though, doubtless, very apparent to the author. The variations are few, moderate in length, spirited, and though not very novel, are agreeable. The finale, a Polacca, is exhilarating, well put together, and can never lack admirers.

* * * * *

No. 2 comprises five well-written waltzes, which will not fail to please. But of what country is the composer? His title would incline us to suppose him a Frenchman, but that the grammar is false. The word waltzer, neither English nor French, tempts us to ask if he is a native of Germany. Perhaps it is not a matter of very singular importance, but we abhor remaining in doubt, and like everything to be in good keeping.

* * * * *

No. 3 and 4 possess a sufficiency of agreeable melody, but not of that sort which surprises by its novelty. The quadrilles are all strictly correct, and call for no greater exertion on the part of the performer, than they seem to have cost the composer.

* * * * *

~Instructions for the Piano-Forte~, &c., including a variety of Fingered Exercises, favourite Airs, &c. &c., by ~R. W. Keith~. (Keith, Prowse, and Co.)

This, it appears, is the fifth edition of the work, though the first that ever fell under our notice. But the word ‘edition’ is not always construed in the same manner by music publishers as by publishers of literature. By the former, a second, &c. impression, of perhaps a hundred copies from the same plates, is sometimes called an edition, though, in point of fact, two thousand copies are always taken from one set of plates, if there is a demand for so many. Correctly speaking, then, an edition of a musical work, printed from pewter plates, and that has a large sale, is never under two thousand; and if, in announcing the present as the ‘fifth edition’ is meant that eight thousand copies have already been sold, we can only express our surprise at never having met with the work till now. Comparing it with many other publications of the same nature, it certainly is entitled to commendation, though far from being perfect; indeed, as we have more than once hinted, a good elementary work: a work which, in method, perspicuity, and accuracy of definition, may rival the didactic publications of the present day in other arts and sciences, is still a desideratum.

Mr. Keith is correct in his principles: his examples, though not always judiciously selected, are well fingered, and his annotations are, for the most part, accurate and useful; but his language is frequently not sufficiently precise, his punctuation often involves him in obscurity, and his definitions are sometimes erroneous. For instance, he tells us (page 16), that a bar ‘determines the place on which the accent is laid.’ Now, a bar has nothing whatever to do with determining the accent, it only assists in pointing out the note which is to be accented. Again, in the same page, it is said, that ‘a crescendo is effected on the piano-forte, by pressing down the key immediately after it is struck.’ But the truth is, that loudness, or softness, wholly depends on the force with which the key is struck; pressure after the key is down is useful in the legato style, but cannot, by any possibility, increase or diminish the degree of sound. At page 19, and in many other parts of the book, we read of a ‘grave angle!’ The only representative, in our mind, of a grave angle, is the corner of a tomb-stone. There is but one angle used as a sign in music, and that is an acute angle.

We protest most strongly against Mr. Keith’s mode of accompanying the scale, both major and minor: his seventh, on the rising sub-mediant of the former; his minor third, on the dominant of the latter, and his change from the perfect chord to that of 4/2 on the octave, are opposed to the best authorities, differ from universal practice, are at variance with theory, and, in our opinion, hostile to good taste.

In his dictionary of Italian words we likewise find objectionable points. The orthography of several words stands in need of amendment, and the explanation of some is incorrect. Here, also, is a want of that strict definition, which is of so much importance in education. A child, while even learning music, might, if instructed by a well-informed, sensible master, incidentally have her mind opened on many other subjects.

We call the author’s attention to these defects, considering them remediable. If amended, his book will, we repeat, be found equal to most of the kind, and superior to many.

* * * * *

VOCAL.--DRAMATIC.

1. ~Air~, ‘La trompette guerrière,’ dans l’opera Robert le Diable de ~Meyerbeer~. (Chappell.)

2. ~Air~, ‘Hark! the trumpet,’ ditto ditto ditto.

3. ~Air~, ‘Dès qu’une amie,’ in La Bayadère, composed by ~Auber~. (Chappell.)

4. ~Ballad~, ‘I never can forget thee,’ from the Operetta of The Fancy Ball; the Poetry by ~Edward Morton~, Esq.; composed by ~Alex. Lee~. (Dean.)

5. ~Ballad~, ‘O! where are the joys?’ Ditto ditto ditto.

6. ~Ballad~, ‘Of love beware.’ Ditto ditto ditto.

The first and second of the above are one and the same air: it is in three movements; the two last of the bravura kind, and all requiring a voice of great compass and flexibility. The opening reminds the hearer of the most famous of all the Tyrolian airs; and there are passages in the air which at once father it on the composer of Il Crociato. The whole is energetic, and full of dramatic effect.

* * * * *

No. 3 was much sung here last season, by Madame Cinti, who can render almost anything agreeable. It would be thought long in the hands of singers of the second class, though there is a great deal of originality in the first movement, and considerable merit in the whole. But the latter part is certainly too much spun out, the first stanza being repeated over and over again till it becomes somewhat fatiguing. The effect of this considerably depends on action; it is therefore better suited to the stage than to concert or drawing-rooms.

* * * * *

The three ballads by Mr. Lee all possess a certain degree of insipid prettiness, which enables them to pass uncensured, for they exhibit no fault in composition, or in the setting of the words; while it would be very difficult, if not impossible, to discover a single original trait in any one of them. Hence they are easily understood by an audience, and give not the slightest trouble to either singer or accompanist in private.

* * * * *

1. ~Glee~, The New-Year’s Welcome, for three voices, the words by ~Edward Morton~, Esq.; composed by ~T. Cooke~. (Morton, late Dean.)

2. ~Ballad~, ‘I’ll ne’er forget that happy hour,’ composed by Mrs. ~P. Millard~. (Chappell.)

3. ‘The little bark goes slowly on,’ the poetry by ~L. O. Cumming~, A.M.; the music by Mrs. ~George Bubb~. (Duff.)

4. ~Song~, ‘From thy shores, my loved Scotland,’ composed by ~H. R. Bishop~. (Chappell.)

5. ~Ballad~, ‘Waken, O waken! my bonnie dove,’ composed by ~Fred. W. Horncastle~. (Hawes.)

6. ~Ode~ to the memory of Sir ~Walter Scott~, ‘The Minstrel sleeps,’ written by ~Robert Gilfillan~; composed by ~Finlay Dun~. (Edinburgh, Paterson and Ray.)

7. ~Song~, ‘Come sing to me,’ the words by Miss ~E. Acton~, the music by ~Finlay Dun~. (Paterson and Co.)

8. ~Ballad~, ‘My own,’ the poetry by ~Charles Swain~, Esq., composed by ~Edwin J. Nielson~. (Purday.)

9. ~Scotch Song~, ‘What care I for gowd and gear,’ written by ~William Paul~, the music by ~James P. Clarke~. (Glasgow, Brown.)

10. ~Song~, ‘As gentle rains refresh the earth,’ written by ~C. V. Incledon~, composed by ~T. H. Severn~. (Hawes.)

11. ~Song~, ‘You ask me for a pledge, love,’ composed by ~J. F. Leeson~. (Goulding and Co.)

12. ~Ballad~, ‘O saftly sleep, my bonnie bairn,’ poetry by ~Leitch Ritchie~, Esq., composed by ~R. A. Rowe~. (Dean.)

No. 1 is as easy to sing as it was to write. The composer certainly did not rack his brains in search of novelty when he put this glee on paper; neither, we are equally sure, did he bestow much thought of any kind on any one line of it.

* * * * *

No. 2 is well set, as regards accentuation, and the melody, though made up of not any uncommon phrases and cadences, is far from inelegant, and the whole is quite easy.

* * * * *

No. 3, meant to be descriptive of a calm followed by a storm, is not very successful. The first part may perhaps pass, but it was a great mistake to relate the fatal catastrophe in notes which described stillness and security--in a kind of da capo.

* * * * *

No. 4 is, we presume, one of those things which the composer has penned down after dinner, to avert a fit of somnolency; which, however, will be transferred to all who listen to this song.

* * * * *

No. 5 is a brisk Aubade, or morning-song, which may prove useful in ordinary cases, but has not sufficient potency to rouse the nymph who is cast into a very deep slumber. In the opening symphony, the last bar, the fifth, should be omitted; and in the first bar of page 2, the ~F~ must, of course, be sharp. Being natural a second time, in the following verse, may raise a doubt as to the author’s meaning.

* * * * *

To No. 6 no fault can be imputed. But though the music is good, and the verses set with great propriety, yet we expected more from so intellectual a composer, the exciting nature of the occasion being considered.

* * * * *

No. 7 is indebted to Haydn’s Mermaid’s Song for the commencement. The whole is airy, and quietly but well accompanied; and there is a good deal of variety in the song, just indeed such as the words required. We should be better satisfied with the symphony were the seventh and tenth bars discarded, and a pause given to the last rest in the ninth. The rhythm, in fact, requires this, or some such change, for the last bar here counts for nothing in musical prosody.

* * * * *

No. 8 is not equal to some of Mr. Nielson’s songs; there is nothing in it to fix attention, either in melody or accompaniment. The disjunction of the words, bars two and three, page 3, just where they ought to have been joined, is injudicious; and the error is not less in making the last syllable long in ‘companionship,’ and the first so drawlingly slow in ‘apathy.’

* * * * *

No. 9 is just such a cheerful melody as we can imagine a frank, independent, right-thinking Scottish lassie would sing to such words. The song has only the merit of what the schoolmen call congruity.

* * * * *

The composer of No. 10 has produced much better things: he has failed in this.

* * * * *

No. 11 shows some fancy, much enterprise, but a want of study and experience.

* * * * *

No. 12 has the appearance of being an imitation of Charles Smith’s popular song, but exhibits errors not to be found in the model. Between the sixth and seventh bars of page 2 are fifths which few ears will tolerate; these occurring again in the second verse. And in order to have got out of an embarrassment in which the composer evidently found himself while writing bars eight and nine, same page, he should have struck out the ~E~♮ and the first ~D~♭ in the treble staff. There are, nevertheless, symptoms of taste and feeling in parts of this ballad.

FLUTE AND PIANO-FORTE.

1. First ~Grand Trio~ Concertante, composed by ~Fred. Kuhlau~ (of Copenhagen). Op. 119. (Wessel and Co.)

2. ~Introduction~ and ~Variations~, with a ~Polacca~, on an air in ~Semiramide~, composed by ~T. Bucher~. (Op. 38.) (Gerock.)

Music for the flute is seldom written in a learned and laborious manner. With this fact in view, we may venture to say that Kuhlau’s trio for two flutes and piano-forte is a clever composition; it abounds in air, not of a common kind, and the harmony is rich, particularly in the adagio, a short movement in ~E~♭, full of expression. The first and last movements are in ~G~; the former melodious and elegant; the latter, a gay, brilliant rondo. This is not very difficult for the instruments, though it requires practised performers; and will, we cannot doubt, be exceedingly well received in any small party of connoisseurs.

* * * * *

No. 2 is the charming chorus and cavatina, ‘Bel raggio lusinghiere,’ which M. Bucher, according to the practice of too many flutists, has twisted into all kinds of unnatural shapes, by means of variations, in which execution is the only aim of the composer. That much cleverness, in one sense of the word, is evinced in these, we do not deny; but cannot allow that what ought to be the chief object--good and pleasing music, in which the art, not the performer, is most prominent--has been sufficiently, if at all, taken into consideration.

* * * * *

1. ~Rondo Favorit~ de ~Mayseder~, arrangé par ~Eugene Walckers~. Op. 5. (Wessel and Co.)

2. ~Select Italian Airs~, arranged by ~J. Sedlatzek~ and ~A. Diabelli~. No. 1. (Wessel and Co.)

3. Ditto, No. 2.

4. Ditto, No. 3.

No. 1 is the eternal air in ~A~-- certainly very pleasantly and well arranged, moderate in length, and calling for only reasonable powers in the flutist. The accompaniment quite easy.

* * * * *

Nos. 2, 3, and 4 form a highly useful work, at least to those who admire modern opera airs. These numbers contain ‘Ah, come rapida!’ from Meyerbeer’s Crociato; ‘Soave e bel contento,’ from Pacini’s Niobe; and ‘Deh! Calma, o ciel!’ from Rossini’s Otello. The flute part is difficult; the accompaniment otherwise. Both are printed together, but the former is also in a detached sheet.

* * * * *

FLUTE.

1. Old Friends with new Faces, a collection of the most popular National Airs, &c. &c., arranged by ~T. Lindsay~. _Books 2 and 3._ (Cramer and Co.)

2. ~The Flutonicon~, or Flute-player’s Monthly Companion. No. IX. (Sherwood and Co.)

The ‘old friends’ are Scottish and Irish melodies, the best that could be chosen, with variations to each; some in character with the airs, and suited to the instrument; others yielding to fashion, therefore not remarkable for appropriateness. This little work has an apposite motto, ‘Should auld acquaintance be forgot?’ and those who say ‘nay,’ will do well to purchase the work.

* * * * *

No. 2 is the first number we have received of this periodical. It consists of twelve octavo pages, containing short airs, also duets for two flutes, arranged from popular compositions. We find here the six airs performed by Paganini; a waltz; a prelude and adagio, by Gabrielsky, and three other pieces. The work is neatly printed on good paper.

EXTRACTS FROM THE DIARY OF A DILETTANTE.

[Resumed from page 284 of last Volume.]

December 1st.--Nothing is talked about, or thought of, except the siege of Antwerp and the general election. Sounds are heard on the Kent and Essex coasts, which turn out to be only the thundering of artillery, and the hopes of a dilettante are cast down long before the walls of the citadel begin to tremble. Bands of music are collecting in all quarters, but they eschew symphonies, overtures, and even serenades; their sole purpose is to drown, not accompany, the voices of rival candidates for parliamentary seats, who, by the way, are commonly gainers thereby, in having speeches reported which they could not have made. The autumn has passed away without a concert in the provinces worth mentioning, and the foreign journals are as barren of musical matter as our own newspapers. The doer of small Monday’s articles in the Chronicle, who used at this season to tell his hebdomadal tales of what great things were to be expected at the opening of the Italian opera--of Signori and Signore, surpassing all that had before been heard--of musical dramas, of which ‘green-room report’ invariably spoke ‘in the highest terms,’--of some wonderful wonder of wonders, whose fiddle was to reduce that of Calliope’s son to a mere kit, or to whose voice Stentor’s was but a gentle whisper,--even this urbane propagator of pleasing exaggerations is mute! However, a Polish Paganini, it is said, is on his way hither; but let us hope that he will leave his name behind him, for, if we have it correctly spelt, every syllable would cost a tooth in pronouncing. Also the celebrated concerto-drummer, and the famous guimbardist, with the young lady renowned for her grindery on the Vielle, are expected shortly; and rumour states, though I do not believe it, that the King’s theatre is to be the scene of their astonishing exploits; the whole pit to be converted into stalls at a guinea each, and the boxes, at ten, to be reserved exclusively for the Almackites. Query, is this the grand secret which we have been told Christmas is to divulge?

* * * * *

The Sphinx has now no riddle; but a neighbouring statue has long puzzled the learned of all nations by its supposed hymn to the rising sun. A very intelligent traveller, however, who lately visited Egyptian Thebes, and has published an interesting account of its antiquities, therein communicates the grand secret of the vocal stone, which he had from a gentleman who has long lived in its immediate vicinity. It fairly belongs to musical history, for the instrument employed by the cunning priestly performers was, it would appear, decidedly a musical instrument. The following is the statement:--

‘The famous musical statue of ~Memnon~ is still seated on its throne, dignified and serene as the plain of Thebes. It is a colossus, fifty feet in height, and the base of the figure is covered with inscriptions of the Greek and Roman travellers, vouching that they had listened to the wild sunrise melody. The learned and ingenious Mr. Wilkinson, who has resided at Thebes upwards of ten years, studying the monuments of Egypt, appears to me to have solved the mystery of this music. He informed me that having ascended the statue, he discovered that some metallic substance had been inserted in its breast, which, when struck, emitted a very melodious sound. From the attitude of the statue a priest might easily have ascended in the night, and remained completely concealed behind the mighty arms, while he struck the breast: or, which is not improbable, there was some secret way to ascend, now blocked up, for this statue, with its companion, although now isolated, were once part of an enormous temple, the plan of which may now be traced.

‘Thanks to the Phonetic system, we now know that this musical statue is one of ~Amunoph~ the ~Second~, who lived many centuries before the Trojan war. The truth is, that the Greeks, who have exercised almost as fatal an influence over modern knowledge as they have a beneficial one over modern taste, had no conception of anything more ancient than the Trojan war, except chaos. Chaos is a poetic legend, and the Trojan war was the squabble of a few marauding clans.’

* * * * *

3rd. A Manchester paper of a few days ago, relates the following ‘~Singular effect of Music~.’ At the Cheetham-hill Glee-club, on Monday evening, during the performance of “Non nobis, Domine,” which was sung by about forty voices, a tumbler glass which stood upon a table in the room, broke into a thousand pieces, as if shattered by an explosion of gunpowder. When Dragonetti heard this paragraph read, he exclaimed, in his patois,--‘it vas no maraviglia du tout dat de canon made great noise, and cassée de glass[6].’

But a Lady’s Magazine for last November relates something much more marvellous than the foregoing: it tells us that one single man, by only breathing into a glass, shivered it to pieces! Even this is as nothing compared to the power ascribed to Lablache in the same article. The whole is a choice specimen of literary composition, of appropriate words, and of scientific knowledge.--

‘The voice of Lablache,’ says the writer, ‘has lost the usual extent of base voices--from sol to mi. With the exception of the two extreme notes, his voice sounds equally on all points. It rings like a bell by the force of its vibrations, and not by the action or contraction of the gullet. The sound escapes as freely from his breast as from the pipe of an organ of eight feet. Some of our readers may have heard of the fine voice of Cheron. After Cheron had been singing, he would, after refreshing himself with sugared water, breathe in the empty glass, and the fragile crystal flew in a thousand fragments; but if the Italian Hercules chose to send forth his re in a salon, with the strength of volume he can give, all the glass in the room would fly in shivers.’

Let us express a fervent wish that Signor Lablache may never exhibit his full powers in the Hanover Square Rooms, where there are valuable mirrors and chandeliers. But it is still more earnestly to be hoped that nothing may tempt him to utter his re in Hancock’s, or in Collins’s warehouse: his single note there would do more damage than one of the new French bombs:--the pranks of a mad bull in a china-shop would be harmlessness itself compared to the desolation which the Italian’s ~D~ would produce in the splendid show-rooms of either of those great manufacturers.

* * * * *

5th. I have often laughed at Paganini’s single-string feats, and regretted the waste of his talent on witches’ dances, the clucking of hens, &c., but I quite agree with him that there is a philosophy of the violin, though many people, judging too hastily, will smile at the expression. I am led to this remark by the Court Journal of the 1st of this month, where a writer, who has published Recollections of Paganini, states, under the date of July 2, 1831, that he had read to the violinist some remarks on his playing which appeared in the Harmonicon. ‘I explained to him,’ it is said, ‘how eloquently they (the we of the Harmonicon) had spoken of the truth of his intonation,’ &c. &c. ‘And’--interposed Paganini, with a triumphant smile, as if to anticipate what they ought to have been most eloquent upon--‘della filosofia del violino.’

Perhaps the authority of Paganini may lead some musicians, who are his admirers, to think that there actually is a philosophy in their art. As this philosophy is what many of them do not very well understand, the vainest and most obtuse among the number have pretended to ridicule it, and, like the fox in the fable, affected to despise what they could not attain. But the schoolmaster is abroad, and musical men, who do not advance with the rest of the world, will soon sink to their proper level. They must begin to reason as well as play, or contempt will be their lot. Much good would ensue from philosophising a little on music, for its principles--I mean the principles which practical men ought to understand--are founded on a purely philosophical basis. But how few, even of the best composers, to say nothing of mere performers, have devoted the least attention to this subject! Is the Royal Academy in Tenterden-Street beginning at last to think of it?--I fear not.

The writer of the article alluded to in the following, will, no doubt, be glad to see his error corrected. A few days after the above conversation, the author of the Recollections tells us, ‘When I called on the Signor, he requested me to translate him an article in the Harmonicon, relative to his talent. He paid great attention to it as I proceeded. To the assertion about his using his thumb, to make some of the stops on his instrument, he gave a direct contradiction, but said, “Let them believe it: as I have so many notes, they think I have plenty to do for ten fingers.” He was greatly diverted with the joke of his performing on strings supposed to have been extracted from the intestinal system of a certain illustrious prelate, and thus rendering his notes infallible.’

* * * * *

16th.--It has been said, that empire began in the east and will end in the west. Bishop Berkeley’s prophecy is--

Westward the course of empire takes its way. The four first acts already past, A fifth shall close the drama with the day; Time’s noblest offspring is the last.

I have great faith in this; and if for empire we read opera, the prediction will, probably, in the course of half a century, be also verified. The New-York American says, ‘It is settled that we are to have a permanent opera-house. The ground has been bought, the subscription opened, 60,000 dollars out of 100,000 were at once taken, ten trustees appointed, and an application will be made next Session of the legislature to incorporate the “Italian Opera Association,” with a capital stock of 100,000 dollars.’ The Italian Opera, therefore, is now naturalized in a country which was only discovered about the time that the lyric drama had its origin in Europe!

* * * * *

23rd.--In the history of the march of intellect, the swan, it seems, will make a figure. In spite of what has been said of her ‘silent throat,’ and of her singing ‘her first and last’ when at the point of death, it now appears that she is become accomplished, to a certain degree at least, in the vocal art. A Sunday paper (Bell’s) of this day, states, that a periodical work published at Stralsund contains a paper on the song of the swan, by an eminent naturalist in Pomerania, which he closes by observing that, ‘in a state of nature, the swan, as evening approaches, joins with its companions in a species of choral melody, which falls upon the ear, in the distance, with the sweetness almost of an Æolian harp. But when a person is near, it more resembles the quick sharp clang of a carriage traversing frozen snow on a sledge.’ According to the author’s account, the chorus is not unlike the Russian horn-band, ‘for each bird emits but a single note, and a response is given by each of his clan. The fishermen consider the swan’s song as prognosticating a storm.’

FOREIGN MUSICAL REPORT.

VIENNA.

Josephstadt Theater.--Donizetti’s opera Der Verwiesene aus Rom (L’ Esule di Roma) has been brought out here with tolerable success, though it is not likely to become a permanent favourite. Die Stumme von Portici has also been produced, and was well received.

On the 22nd September a concert was given by Mr. Fried. Wilh. Pixis, the violin player, and Madlle. Elise Barth, the pianiste, both of the Conservatoire at Prague, and Mad. Podhorsky, prima donna at Prague. The three artists distinguished themselves by a rich display of their respective talents, and were warmly applauded.

M. Girolamo Salieri, a clarionet player from Venice, gave a concert here on the 7th October: this virtuoso, who has attained the most perfect mastery over his instrument, afforded a rich treat to his audience, which was unfortunately, however, not very numerous.

Madlle. Heinefetter is at present here, and is engaged for a few nights at the Court Theatre.

BERLIN.

On the 22nd October was performed Die Hochzeit des Figaro, with M. and Mad. Reichel as Figaro and the Countess: the former sang with much spirit, and Mad. R. displayed all the qualities of an excellent singer, though not perfectly matured.

The first winter concert, given by Mad. Milder, took place on the 25th, on which occasion were performed several pieces of Neukomm’s, which, though compositions of great merit, were not very remarkable in point of invention. M. Felix Mendelssohn played Mozart’s Concerto in ~D~ minor. This young artist, it is stated, is about to get up three charitable concerts during the winter, in which he will bring forward some pieces of his own, not yet performed here, besides other compositions of sterling worth, among them a symphony in D major, by Ludwig Berger. In short it is intended that these concerts shall be equally interesting and attractive to the cultivated musician and to the amateur.

The Singing Academy proposes to give four Oratorios, Salomon, and Joshua of Handel, St. John the Evangelist, by Seb. Bach, and the fourth will probably be one of Haydn’s, but which it is not yet determined.

The four brothers Müller, the quartet-players, are expected to return in a short time from Brunswick.

The musical soirées of M. M. D. Möser commenced on the 31st October, when Mozart’s and Beethoven’s Symphonies in C major and the overture to Euryanthe were played.

LEIPZIG.

At the winter concerts, which commenced at Michaelmas, have already been played Beethoven’s Pastoral Symphony, Kalliwoda’s Symphony, No 3, Onslow’s first Symphony, and a second of Beethoven’s, and the overtures to Ulysses and Circe by B. Romberg, and Euryanthe. Also a new overture by M. J. B. Gross, a young virtuoso on the violoncello, which, though its difficult rhythmical proportions and harmonic progressions are little in accordance with the present fashion, had the good fortune to be well received. Madlle. Henriette Graban is again the principal singer, and Madlle. Livia Gerhardt is engaged as second singer: she has a very sweet voice, particularly in the upper notes, great purity of intonation and considerable flexibility. M. Otto, the tenor, and M. Pögner, the bass, formerly of the Königliche Theater, have also sung at these concerts; and choruses have been given from Euryanthe, I Capuletti e Montechi, and Zemire und Azor. The solo players have been Madlle. Clara Wieck, and M. D. Schlesinger on the piano-forte; on the violin, M. Ullrich and M. Kalliwoda, kapellmeister in Donaueschingen, who played his last violin concertino to the delight of all present; and on the violoncello, M. Gross, who has great powers of execution, and his tone is remarkably sweet.

On the 15th October, a concert was given by M. Kalliwoda, and the selection consisted chiefly of new compositions of that highly gifted master; two new overtures, powerfully instrumentalized, remarkable for their light flowing melodies, a rondo, a pot-pourri, and a concertante for two violins, were among the number; the second violin, in the latter, was played by M. Eichler. The principal singers were Madlle. Livia Gerhardt and MM. Eichberger and Hauser. M. K. is about to leave Leipzig, on a tour to Magdeburg, Berlin, Hamburg, Hanover, Bremen, &c.

The next concert was that which M. Moscheles gave on the 22nd October, at which he performed his new concerto in ~C~ major, and his Recollections of Denmark, Op. 83. Mad. Beranek sang the scena Ocean du Ungeheur (Ocean, thou mighty monster), from Oberon, with energy and much feeling.

A. M. Ferd. Vogel, from Berlin, has given two organ concerts at the church of St. Paul. Fugues by Seb. Bach and others, choruses of men, symphonies with trumpet accompaniment, sonatas (Mozart’s) arranged for the organ, elegiac romances, and other pieces chiefly compositions of the young organist himself, rendered the whole, by their judicious selection and order of succession, very attractive.

M. Stegmeier, late of the Königstadt Theater at Berlin, is appointed music director at the theatre here.

KÖNIGSBERG.

M. Friedrich Wilhelm Eichler, the excellent violinist of Leipzig, a young man twenty-five years of age, zealous in his profession and of great promise, is engaged as leader here, and is shortly expected; he is a pupil of Spohr’s.

WARSAW.

A Polish journal (Dziennik powszechny), speaks in the highest terms of the violin-playing of a Mad. Filipowicz, a pupil of Spohr. Her cantilena is superb, and she overcomes the must formidable difficulties with apparent ease; her performance of Rode’s Variations in ~E~, produced the greatest effect. She has given three concerts in Warsaw, and has on every occasion inspired her audience with enthusiasm.

BRESLAU.

At the church of St. Bernhardin a sacred concert was given on the 19th October, for the benefit of the poor, at which, besides several pieces for the organ, in which MM. Köhler and Hesse particularly distinguished themselves, was performed the first part of the oratorio Tobias, composed by the latter.

On the 25th, a grand concert was given by Madlle. Elise Barth, and M. Fried. W. Pixis, who richly merited the applause which was lavished upon them.

The winter concerts have already commenced.

LEGHORN.

Ferdinand Ries is at present here. At Milan, in fact at all places in his way where the celebrated composer visited his brother artists, he met with the warmest welcome, and the most cordial treatment.

PARIS.

Théatre Royal Italien. Bellini’s opera, La Straniera, (the Stranger) was produced here, lately, with success. In this Madlle. Judith Grisi made her début, in the character of Alaide. She much resembles her sister, Madlle. Giulietta Grisi, and the voices have a family likeness; that of the débutante extends to two octaves, from si to si (i.e. from ~B~ below the lines to ~B~ above), is of a brilliant quality, though not flexible, but there is much energy in her style; she distinctly marks whatever she performs, and sustained her part with talent, both as singer and actress. She was supported by Rubini and Tamburini. The former was allowed to introduce a song, by Pacini, of very inferior merit, a practice which, whatever may be the value of the composition, ought to be discouraged, if not by directors--who too frequently are themselves directed--the public should take the matter into their own hands, and prevent such absurd and injurious intrusions.

THE DRAMA.

~Drury-Lane Theatre.~

Whatever former general elections may have done, the present certainly has not operated favourably for the two winter theatres. The labours of canvassing, and the meetings of committees, sub-committees, branch committees, &c. in each parish, have engaged a great number of heads of families, while the anxiety which has pervaded all ranks, has been excitement enough for numberless persons who would otherwise have sought it in the theatre.

The musical novelties at both houses have been singularly unsuccessful this season, so far as it has gone. The public are becoming better and better acquainted with the art; are fast growing into critics, therefore more nice than formerly. Besides which, much talent for musical composition has not lately been shown at our theatres, for the encouragement is insufficient to produce effectual competition. Several who can write have not inducement enough to exert their abilities, knowing how much time they must bestow, how many vexations they will have to encounter, how precarious is success, and the certainty, even if successful, of being very inadequately rewarded for their efforts and labours.

Old pieces revived have proved the most fortunate; among which Masaniello has drawn many to this theatre, to see Mr. ~Braham~ in the character of the ambitious Fisherman, which he performed admirably.

On Tuesday, the 18th ult., Mrs. ~Centlivre’s~ Bold Stroke for a Wife, with the newly-given title of Win her and Wear her, and converted into a musical piece, was performed for the first time, ~Braham~ undertaking the part of Colonel Feignwell. There is so much absurdity in the plot of this, and the language betrays so many symptoms of poverty, that had it not been for the variety in every act, and the constant bustle kept up, it would, long ago, have been banished the stage. The coarseness of the allusions, as they appeared in the original drama, at one time recommended it, but it has been much chastened since, and now has little in it to offend the most fastidious ears. We really thought that the proposed alterations in this, by Mr. ~Beaseley~, and the addition of music, promised well, but the attempt has not succeeded; and after having been performed twice, was not announced for a third representation; at least up to the writing of these remarks.

In the most arduous part of this play--indeed the only part requiring much talent or exertion--~Braham~ succeeded beyond expectation. Such an effort in acting he had never made before, and most are agreed that his Dutchman was excellent; his Quaker very characteristic, and entertaining to those who have no objection to see this sect ridiculed; and his old steward a really fine piece of acting.

Of the music, by Mr. ~Barnett~, there is some that all will agree in commending. As a whole it wants the charm of novelty: we cannot mention any one piece that bears the true stamp of originality; though we do not mean to say that the composer has, either by design or accident, availed himself of the thoughts of others. There may be a general resemblance to many things, without a plagiarism from any one. Certain phrases and cadences are common property, and he who uses them is not chargeable with the act of borrowing, though he may be denied the merit of invention. However, most of the compositions will, in all likelihood, come before us in another department, when we shall have a fairer and better opportunity of analysing and judging them.

Don Giovanni is getting up here, cast in a manner that has never been equalled on the English stage.

* * * * *

~Covent-Garden Theatre.~

On the first of last month, a débutant, Mr. ~Lennox~, appeared as Artabanes. This gentleman is the same, we believe, who has sung in some few London concerts, during the last two or three seasons, and was a pupil of Sig. De Begnis. He enjoys the advantage of a powerful base voice of considerable compass, and sings in time and tune; but either as singer or actor we cannot venture to say more, judging him from this, his first appearance on the stage, when it is possible that the newness of the situation operated as some check on his powers. Miss ~Shirreff~, in Mandane, displayed unequivocal signs of general improvement; and Miss ~H. Cawse’s~ Artaxerxes was, as it always is, without affectation, correct and pleasing.

The ballet of Masaniello has been produced here, with French dancers, and drew some better houses than have been seen lately.

THE MUSIC OF THE PRESENT NUMBER.

The Overture to Tigrane, a serious opera performed at Berlin in 1799, is, we feel assured, totally unknown in this country. If its orchestral effect is at all equal to what the piano-forte arrangement leads us to expect, it cannot much longer remain a stranger to our concerts and theatres. Clearness and unity of design, and sweetness of melody, are its chief attributes; whether skilful contrivance of the parts and grandeur of effect are to be added to these, we cannot say, not having seen the score, or heard the composition performed by a band. Concerning the author we refer to the memoir in the present Number.

* * * * *

The Terzetto, by Sarti, is, in the original, set to the second verse of the 51st Psalm, ‘Amplius lava me,’--and to these Latin words is published by the Rev. C. J. Latrobe, in his excellent but voluminous and expensive collection of sacred music by foreign composers. Our arrangement is made from the score printed in Shield’s Harmony, a work become very scarce, where it appears to the verses now given; but this is the first time it has been published conjointly with English words and a piano-forte arrangement. The many beauties in this composition do not require to be pointed out.

* * * * *

The Arietta (as the author himself denominates it) by Beethoven is one of the very finest of his vocal productions. In the expression of deep passion it has never been excelled; and now rarely equalled! But it must be sung with the feeling that inspired the composer when he wrote it: coldness or tameness would prove fatal to so highly finished a piece of musical colouring.

This extraordinary composition is yet very little known in this country, and--still stranger to say--not much anywhere.

* * * * *

Palestrina’s name is known to all; his works to very few. Greatly and deservedly as they were esteemed in his day, and for ages after, most of them now seem dry, and, no doubt, are occasionally crude and uninteresting. The present specimen, however, we trust, will not be liable to either charge, except, perhaps, in the case of one or two notes, which, though somewhat harsh, we have not ventured to alter. The present terzetto--the air and harmony of which more resemble the music of recent date than any we ever met with of the same composer--is from a mass printed in two staves in an old German work in our possession. We have expanded it into what is called a vocal score.

* * * * *

Handel’s Suites de Pièces are in few hands. The Chaconne[7], now given--the elegant melody of which, if only heard, can never want admirers--is followed by no less than sixty-two variations in the original work! We have selected a few of those we considered the best, and put the mark 8va alta over two, conceiving that the author might thus have written them, had the instruments in his day furnished the notes.

* * * * *

The Romance and Duet from Fortunatus require no further remark than what appears in our account of that new German Opera. Not having had time to obtain a good and adaptable translation of the original words, we have set others to them, which certainly suit the music.

[Sidenote: ~February, 1833.~]

MEMOIRS OF GARCIA AND RUBINI.

~Manuel del Populo Vincente Garcia~ was born at Seville the 21st of January, 1775. At six years old he was received into the choir of the cathedral, and commenced his musical studies under the instruction of Don Antonio Ripa and Juan Almarcha. At this time there was no theatre in Seville, and sacred music was in high estimation; the vocal corps belonging to the cathedral was not only strong in number, but contained, also, some distinguished performers, particularly a tenor and a male soprano. Garcia, having a very agreeable voice and extraordinary talents for music, was soon distinguished amongst his compeers, and by the time he was seventeen, his fame not only as a singer, but also as a composer and chef d’orchestre, had spread far beyond the limits of his native city. The manager of the Cadiz Theatre engaged him, and brought him forward in a toccadilla, in which the young debutant sang several pieces of his own composition. Here he obtained considerable reputation as a singer. His voice--a fine tenor--very flexible, and very extensive, particularly in the upper part, was much admired; but his action was so embarrassed and cold, that the most discerning spectator could never have detected in the awkward youth before him even the germ of that dramatic talent which afterwards classed him so high among acting singers. From Cadiz, Garcia proceeded to Madrid, where, arriving during Lent, he appeared in an oratorio, the only species of music allowed to be performed during that season in Spain. His residence in Madrid was of considerable duration; and he there composed several toccadillas.

When Garcia at length quitted Madrid, he proceeded to Malaga, in which city he composed his first opera, entitled El Preso, the libretto of which was borrowed from a French piece called ‘The Prisoner, or the Likeness.’ While he was at Malaga an epidemic fever raged there with such virulence as nearly to depopulate whole districts, but Garcia was fortunate enough to escape its ravages and get back safe to Madrid. On his return to the capital, he brought into fashion a species of operettas, in one or two acts, similar to those which were then in vogue in France; the plots, indeed, were chiefly taken from French pieces. These operas made the round of the Spanish theatres, and were almost all received with great applause. Garcia is one of the few Spanish composers who have written in the style of the national music of the country, which, as is well known, possesses a character entirely distinct from that of either Italy, Germany, or France. Several of his airs became highly popular; one in particular called Lo Cavallo, sung by him in the character of a smuggler, is as well known throughout Spain as Charmante Gabrielle in France, or God save the King in England. Some persons have denied Garcia’s claim to be considered as the composer of this most original melody; it is true the names of those who write popular airs are quickly forgotten, but in this case the fact is of easy proof, for there are many amateurs still living in Madrid who well remember the effect made by the air Yo che soy contrabandista, when Garcia sang it for the first time not thirty years ago.

On the 11th February, 1808, Garcia made his appearance in Paris, selecting for his début the Griselda of Paer, being the first time he had ever performed in an Italian opera. A journalist, whose criticisms carried much weight with them at that time, says of him--‘Don Garcia is a young artist of distinguished talent; his countenance is agreeable and expressive--his delivery correct--his action natural and animated; his voice is sweet-toned, graceful, of very extensive compass and extreme flexibility. It is evident that he is a man of great ability and experience in his art; his singing is rich in ornament, but frequently too much embroidered.’ In point of fact, however, Garcia owed all his talents as a singer to himself alone: he had never really studied it as an art, but had merely listened, imitated, and practised. On the 15th March, 1809, he gave for his benefit a Spanish monologue operetta, called El Poeta Calculista, (the first and only Spanish opera that has ever been performed in Paris,) with such decided success, that it was repeated several times running, until the excessive fatigue of supporting alone a piece in which four compositions out of the seven it comprised, were constantly encored, obliged him to suspend the representations.

Garcia continued in Paris till the commencement of 1811, when he went to Italy, and appeared successively on the theatres of Turin, Naples, and Rome. He was elected an academician of the Philharmonic Society at Bologna, and appointed by Murat principal tenor of his chamber and chapel. It was at this period that he became acquainted with Anzani, one of the most celebrated tenors in Italy, from whose instructions and example he acquired those secrets in the art of singing which were long monopolized by the old Italian masters for their own profit, or that of a few privileged scholars. In 1812 he brought out with great success at the St. Carlo an opera in two acts, imitated from the French, Il Califo di Bagdad. In 1816 Rossini wrote for him the parts of Almaviva in the Barber of Seville and of Otello. The air with variations, now sung as a finale to the Cenerentola, was composed originally for Garcia in Almaviva, and placed at the end of the second act of Il Barbiere, but only sung by him at Rome. In the autumn of the same year he returned to Paris, being engaged by Madame Catalani, at that time directress of the Théâtre Italien, and made his debut on the 17th October in Il Matrimonio Secreto. He afterwards performed in his own opera, Il Califo di Bagdad, in Griselda, Cosi fan tutte, Le Nozze di Figaro, Portogallo’s Semiramide, and several others, with equal distinction as an actor and a singer. By selecting Mad. Cinti to represent the principal female character in the Califf he gave that charming singer, who had hitherto been confined to secondary parts, the first opportunity of displaying her talents in a favourable light. The piece, the actor, and the actress enjoyed a moment of popularity, when all at once Garcia and his Califf disappeared. It was whispered that his chief offence was having called down as much applause in Semiramide, as the Queen of Babylon herself, and so reducing that august princess to the necessity of playing, for several days, the character of La finta Ammalata (the pretended patient). However this may be, Garcia, tired and ashamed of being eternally haggling for sixpences, left Paris and went to London, where he made his début on the 10th March, 1818, in his favourite part of Almaviva, and remained until the end of the ensuing season, 1819, when he returned to Paris.

It is to Garcia that the Parisian audiences owe their first acquaintance with the music of Rossini; and if the public knew all green-room intrigues that were resorted to, and all the obstacles Garcia had to encounter before he succeeded in having that great composer’s operas performed, its sense of obligation for the eminent services he at length succeeded in rendering them would not be small. In 1817 he had played Lindoro in the Italiana in Algeri, the first opera of Rossini’s ever performed in Paris; but when he wished to bring out the Barber of Seville for his own benefit, the opera was judged unworthy of the capital of France, and the singer forced to select another piece. Better instructed this time, he made the bringing out of Il Barbiere the sine quâ non of his engagement, and thus to his perseverance Paris owes the hearing this masterpiece of the comic opera within three years of its being composed.

The period between the autumn of 1819 and the beginning of 1824, which Garcia spent in Paris, formed the most brilliant portion of his musical career. As an actor and singer he enjoyed the highest popularity, especially in the parts of Almaviva, Otello, and Don Juan. As a composer, he wrote La Mort du Tasse and Florestan for the French opera; Il Fazzoletto for the Théâtre Italien and for the Gymnasium La Meunière; finally, as a professor of singing, he numbered amongst his pupils Adolphe Nourrit, the Countess Merlin, Mad. Favelli, and Mad. Méric Lalande. About this time he was also appointed first tenor of the chamber and chapel to the king. In 1824, Garcia was again engaged for the London opera, and returned to England. It was in London that Garcia completed the education of his gifted daughter, the present Mad. Malibran. In London he also opened an academy for singing. In the autumn of 1825, the Garcias left London; made a tour of the midland and northern parts of England; sang at some concerts and music-meetings at Manchester, Derby, and York; and finally embarked at Liverpool, on an excursion to the western continent.

To recount the whole of Garcia’s adventures in the New World; to lay before the reader the state of music in New York and Mexico at the moment he arrived in those cities; to paint all the difficulties he had to surmount, or speculate on the effect his residence amongst them had upon a population to whom the arts were quite new, would require too much space: a few of the principal events in his active and brilliant career is all we can afford room for. The company with which he crossed the Atlantic consisted of himself and the younger Crivelli, tenors; his son Manuel Garcia, and Angrisani, bassi cantanti; Rosich, buffo caricato; with Mad. Barbiere, Mad. Garcia, and her daughter Marietta, soprani. Il Barbiere, the opera which they chose as their introduction to an American audience, was almost entirely performed by the family party; Garcia playing Almaviva, his daughter Rosina, his son Figaro, and his wife Berta. In the course of the season they successively brought forward Otello, Romeo, Il Turco in Italia, Don Giovanni, Tancredi, La Cenerentola, and two operas of Garcia’s composition, L’Amante Astuto, and La Figlia dell’ Aria,--the latter written expressly for his daughter and Angrisani.

The air of New York did not agree with an Andalusian constitution, and Garcia removed, in search of a more congenial climate, from the United States to Mexico. Instead of finding in the capital of New Spain the repose which he had promised himself, he was soon compelled to sing and compose more than ever. Three Italian operas had been got up with the original words; but the Mexicans, though they had taste enough to relish the music, were not satisfied with performances of which they did not understand a single syllable. Garcia had no resource but to compose Spanish operas, or adapt Spanish words to the Italian: he did both. Amongst the operas written by him for the Mexican theatre, Semiramide and _Abufarez _may be particularly mentioned; and he adapted Spanish words to his own Amante Astuto, which was performed several nights running. The Mexican company, half native and half foreign, was nothing remarkable before Garcia arrived amongst them; he soon found that the duties of composer, director, chief of the orchestra, singing-master, chorus leader, and even machinist and decorator, must all centre in himself. His indefatigable activity was rewarded with such success, that he often said, ‘I would exhibit my Mexican performers now before a Parisian audience, and they would not be unworthy the honour.’

Notwithstanding the favourable reception he had met with in Mexico, Garcia could not avoid being uneasy at the daily increasing symptoms of animosity between the natives and the Spaniards. Foreseeing a speedy rupture between them, he resolved to return to Europe: he had great difficulty in obtaining passports, but at length succeeded, and set off for Vera Cruz, provided with a guard of soldiers, which, however, proved too weak, or too faithless, to protect him and his goods. At a place called Tepeyagualco, his convoy was attacked by brigands, and himself obliged to lie flat on his face, while his baggage was plundered of 1000 ounces of gold--the savings of his industry and economy. He came off with his life, however, and succeeded in getting once more to Paris, where he determined to dedicate the rest of his days to teaching. He appeared again at the Théâtre Italien, but declined very advantageous offers of an engagement at the Scala, and applied himself with new ardour to the instruction of his pupils[8]. The last, whose education he completed, were Madame Raimbeaux, Mademoiselle Edwige, and Madame Ruiz Garcia. Garcia died on the 9th of June, 1832, after a short illness, which was not at first considered at all dangerous.

To the last moment of his life Garcia was incessantly occupied with the art to which the whole of that life had been dedicated, enjoying a wonderful facility and an activity of mind not less astonishing. He has left behind him an immense number of manuscripts. Besides the operas already mentioned in the course of this narrative, he was the author of numerous others, most of which have not been brought out. The list of such of them as are known to us follows:--Il Lupo d’Ostende, two acts; Acendi (Spanish), two acts; Astuzia e Prudenza, one act, performed in London at the Argyle Rooms; I Banditi, two acts; La Buona Famiglia (words as well as music), by Garcia, one act; Don Chisciotte (Spanish), two acts; La Gioventù d’Enrico Quarto, two acts; El Jetano por Amore and Los Maridos Solteros (Spanish), two acts each; Sophonès (French), the words by M. de Jouy; Le Tre Sultane, two acts; Un Ora di Matrimonio, one act, with both Spanish and Italian words, played in Mexico; Xaira and El Zapatero de Bagdad (Spanish), two acts each; Zemira ed Azor, two acts. The last works of Garcia were five operettas for the chamber, with piano-forte accompaniment, L’Isola Disabitata, Li Cinesi, Un Avertimento ai Gelosi, I Tre Gobbi, and Il Finto Sordo. Garcia was also the author of a number of less extensive works, both for the voice and for instruments.

* * * * *

For the substance of the foregoing Memoir we are indebted to the Revue Musicale, the editor of which, or the writer of the article in that work, has apparently been somewhat biassed by feelings of personal friendship. He has viewed Garcia both as an actor and as a composer, with partial eyes. In the former capacity he was anything but refined; and in the latter, except a few trifles of a purely Spanish kind, whatever he may have produced is now utterly forgotten, and has not the slightest chance of ever being rescued from oblivion. He was to a certain extent a good musician, and had he not been so much addicted to what are, by abuse of language, called ornaments, would have deserved all the praise bestowed on him as a singer, for he possessed great energy, a full knowledge of the score, and at one time a rich, beautiful voice, of very considerable compass.

RUBINI.

~Gian Battista Rubini~ was born at Romano, a small town in the province of Bergamo, on the 7th of April, 1795. He is the youngest of three brothers, all tenor singers of considerable celebrity; the eldest, Jeremiah, has quitted the stage from inability to continue the fatigues of a theatrical life: the second, Giacomo is first tenor in the chapel of the king of Saxony, and is besides a stage singer of great talent. Their father was a small music-master, played the horn in the theatre, and to his other occupations added that of being a getter-up of fêtes and musical performances in the neighbouring churches and chapels. He had a complete corps of singers and players, with a collection of masses, vespers, motets, and litanies, all at the service of any chapter or convent that chose to hire them. Rubini, the father, was entrepreneur, and blew the horn--his three sons, as they grew up, were enlisted in his vocal corps; but as their voices were not always required, and he neither chose nor could afford to let them be idle, Jeremiah was taught to play the organ, and Giacomo and Gian Battista the violin, by which means his whole family quartet was in constant requisition.

At eight years of age the little Rubini had already enchanted divers convents of nuns by his performance of the Salve Regina, perched up on a high stool, which was necessary to elevate his head to the level of the violins. At ten, his father, diffident of his own powers as a singing-master, placed the child under one Don Santo, priest and organist of Adro, a town in the province of Brescia, who, at the expiration of a year, sent him back to his parents with the consoling assurance, that nothing would ever make him a singer, so they had better look about for some other trade or profession to bring him up to. The father, who thought he knew better the boy’s capacity, took him again under his own care, and succeeded so well, that he not long after invited the same Don Santo to hear a mass, in which his rejected scholar sang the Qui tollis in such a style, that the parent enjoyed at once the pleasure and revenge of forcing the old organist to admit that he was mistaken in the judgment he had so hastily pronounced.

In his twelfth year, Gian Battista made his début on the boards of the Romano Theatre, in a female character, and for his own benefit: his receipts, both in applause and money, were gratifying, and he soon after went to Bergamo, where he was engaged to play the violin between the acts of the comedy, and to sing in the chorus during the opera season. While here, a petite comédie was put in rehearsal, in one scene of which was a cavatina--but, alas! no one in the troop could sing: somebody suggested Rubini, and at length the manager offered him an extra five-franc piece to study and sing this troublesome air. The terms were accepted, and young Gian Battista’s performance created a complete furore in Bergamo. The song was composed by Lamberti; and Rubini is still fond of singing it occasionally, to remind him of his first success.

For some time after this, however, Rubini appears to have led the precarious and miserable life of a stroller; but at length, being in Milan in the year 1814, he met with a Marquis Belcredi, one of those numerous Italian counts, marquesses, &c., who follow sometimes the honourable occupation of engagement-brokers for the theatres, and not unfrequently even less reputable means of making money. By Belcredi he was offered an engagement, for the autumn season, of four months at Pavia, at the liberal salary of eleven crowns, or about 1_l._ 18_s._ a month. Rubini’s necessities would not allow him to refuse this offer: he went to Pavia, and distinguished himself so much that his success made a sensation even at Milan. Belcredi engaged him immediately for the carnival of 1815 at 1000 francs the season; and sent him to perform at Brescia, whence he transferred him for the spring season to the theatre of St. Moire, at Venice, at a salary of 2000 francs. Here he had an opportunity of singing with the bass Zamboni, and the contralto Mad. Marcolini, for whom Rossini wrote his Italiana in Algeri. Rubini next entered into an engagement with Barbaja, director of the theatres of Naples for six months, at eighty-four ducats (about 16_l._) per month, with a clause providing that, at the end of the first three months, the engagement should be renewable for a year at the increased salary of 100 ducats a month. He sang at the Teatro dei Fiorentini with Pellegrini, and was rising in public favour, when Barbaja, instead of renewing his engagement at the higher salary, proposed to dismiss him entirely, and only consented to retain him on condition of his terms being lowered to seventy ducats. Rubini had many cogent reasons which made him anxious to remain at Naples: he naturally desired to improve the hold which he had already upon the public favour there; he found himself in the society of the celebrated tenor, Nozzari, a countryman of his own, from whom he received most valuable hints and lessons; and whose example, as Rubini carefully watched and imitated him, both as an actor and singer, was nearly, if not quite, as valuable as his instructions. He therefore accepted Barbaja’s terms,--saying, however, at the same time, with the consciousness of talent, ‘You take advantage of my present situation, but will have to pay for it before long.’

The getting up of La Gazza Ladra, in the carnival of 1819, is still remembered among the fasti of Roman theatricals. The duet between Giannetto and Ninetta, in the prison scene, ‘forse un di conoscerai,’ was constantly encored; and the Roman ladies, during the whole carnival, carried about with them to the balls puppets dressed in the costume of their favourite actor and actress.

From Rome, Rubini, still under engagements to Barbaja, returned to Naples, and thence crossed over to Palermo, where he sang with Donzelli and Lablache. His début in Sicily was in an opera of Mosca, which would never have survived the first night’s performance, but for a ruse of the singer. From the very beginning the poor maestro was hissed: piece after piece shared the same fate, until the principal tenor began his cavatina; the adagio, although it escaped hisses, made little impression on the audience; but the allegretto movement which followed called forth rounds of enthusiastic applause, which Mosca was only too happy to acknowledge and appropriate by repeated bows. The fact was, that Rubini, finding Mosca’s adagio passable, but his allegretto worse than bad, had insisted on substituting the similar movement from the air of Orestes, in Rossini’s Ermione, ‘Ah come mai nascondere.’ For ten days the deception remained undiscovered; and the Palermitans could hardly bestow praises enough on the author of so heavenly an allegretto. But, alas! on the eleventh a printed copy of the air arrived from Naples, and stripped poor Mosca of his borrowed plumes.

While at Palermo, Rubini was the hero, and narrowly escaped being the victim of an adventure as romantic, but fortunately for him not so fatal, as that of Stradella. On his arrival in Sicily he waited on a certain princess, to whom he had letters of recommendation, and was received with the kindness which talents and even his personal appearance seemed to deserve. In the evening, on coming before the audience, Rubini made a respectful inclination towards his fair patroness, and appeared to address towards her box his most touching passages and most brilliant roulades. In Sicily jealousy is as instantaneous as lightning, and vengeance follows it as rapidly as thunder the flash. The prince, who did not understand the musical homage paid to his wife, forthwith employed two bravoes to poignard the presumptuous primo tenore, and dispose of his body as usual in such cases--that is, by throwing it into the sea. Accordingly, on quitting the theatre, he was suddenly sprung upon by two men, who seized his arms, muffled his head in a cloak, and began to drag him towards the sea-shore. He had no power to call out, and if he had had, nobody attends to such calls in Sicily: in fact he had already made up his mind that his last cavatina in this world was sung, when, luckily for him, one of the bravi recognized his victim. He was an amateur, to whom Rubini had often given orders for the opera. So soon as he was aware who it was that he had engaged to exercise his profession upon, his heart failed him; and, instead of using his stiletto, he acquainted Rubini with the offence he had committed, set him at liberty, and recommended him to escape from Sicily without loss of time. On his return to Naples, Rubini heard, for the first time, Madlle. Chaumel, who was passing through that city in her way to fulfil an engagement at Palermo, and was so charmed with her voice and style, that he recommended Barbaja to retain her at Naples. Barbaja took the advice--Mad. Chaumel shone during two or three seasons a bright star at the St. Carlo and the Fondo; and the lady and Rubini so often enacted the lover and mistress, that at length they realised the illusion of the theatre, and became man and wife.

In 1824 Barbaja was removed from the management of the Neapolitan theatres; whereupon he migrated to Vienna, taking with him the whole corps of singers who were under engagements to him,--and amongst them Rubini and his wife. The company assembled in the Austrian capital, on this occasion, was perhaps the most numerous and splendid that was ever united at one time in one city. The prime donne amounted to nine, most of whom had already established a high reputation, and of whom the remainder nearly all have now attained the first rank in their profession; Sontag, Fodor, Mombelli, Rubini, Eckerlin, Ungher, Giudetta Grisi, Dardanelli, and Grimbaum. The tenors were David, Rubini, Donzelli, and Cicimira; and the basses, Lablache, Ambrogi, Botticelli, and Bassi. At the end of this brilliant season Rubini returned to Naples; and, in the autumn of 1825, made his first appearance at Paris, where his reception was perhaps more enthusiastic than in any other city he had visited. His performance in the Cenerentola, La Donna del Lago, Otello, and La Gazza Ladra, established him at once, in the judgment of the Parisian dilettanti, at the very summit of his profession, and gained him the appellation of Roi des tenors.

From Paris Rubini returned to Naples, and thence went to Milan, where the then new composer, Bellini, wrote the fine part of Gualtero in Il Pirata, especially for him. In the following year, 1827, he appeared in two new operas, Donizetti’s Anna Bolena, and the Sonnambula of Bellini. Both these composers, in writing for Rubini, adopted a style which had been so long neglected that it appeared new. Instead of florid compositions, loaded with roulades and divisions, they limited themselves, in the airs and duets intended for him, to simple, graceful, and pathetic melodies, calculated to display to the greatest advantage his elocutionary and impassioned style[9].

In the summer of 1831, Rubini, together with his wife, appeared at the London Opera: he has since that withdrawn Mad. Rubini entirely from the stage, finding his own earnings, since he has been out of Barbaja’s clutches, quite sufficient for their joint support. For fifteen years he was at the command of this leviathan of the opera, who disposed of his voice and talents, and sent him to this capital or the other, according as it suited his own interest or combinations, and receiving for his exertions enormous sums, of which by far the greater part went to enrich the entrepreneur, not the singer. Before he was emancipated from Barbaja, the salary of himself and his wife was only (!) 60,000 francs (2500_l._); the first year of his emancipation, his earnings amounted to 125,000 francs, upwards of 5200_l._ (!!)

In the autumn of 1831, Rubini again visited Paris, where he was received with renewed enthusiasm, and in which city he is still performing with undiminished popularity.

CHARACTERISTIC TRAITS AND ANECDOTES OF BEETHOVEN.

[In our last number (page 6), we inserted an account, from the Leipzig Musical Gazette, of Beethoven’s Studien in Generalbasse, &c.--a work recently published in Vienna,--and have since received the volume, which comprises the studies, with numerous and most valuable remarks by Beethoven, and many of his fragments, or unconnected observations, on musical subjects, chiefly on recitative, in 352 octavo pages. These are followed by thirteen pages of biography,--in which nothing is added to what has already appeared in our work,--and the following anecdotes, together with other matter, of which we shall avail ourselves in the two or three succeeding numbers. In our next will appear his chapter on Canon, a species of composition which he seems to have estimated according to its real value, therefore has dwelt most on the canon in unison,--the only rational kind,--of which he gives short, simple, and very pleasing examples, the most interesting whereof we shall reprint.]

* * * * *

Beethoven should by no means be offered as a model for directors of orchestras. The performers under him were obliged cautiously to avoid being led astray by their conductor, who thought only of his composition, and constantly laboured to depict the exact expression required, by the most varied gesticulations. Thus, when the passage was loud he often beat time downwards, when his hand should have been up. A diminuendo he was in the habit of marking by contracting his person, making himself smaller and smaller; and when a pianissimo occurred, he seemed to slink, if the word is allowable, beneath the conductor’s desk. As the sounds increased in loudness, so did he gradually rise up, as if out of an abyss; and when the full force of the united instruments broke upon the ear, raising himself on tiptoe, he looked of gigantic stature, and, with both his arms floating about in undulating motion, seemed as if he would soar to the clouds. He was all motion, no part of him remained inactive, and the entire man could only be compared to a perpetuum mobile.

When his deafness increased, it was productive of frequent mischief, for the Maestro’s hand went up when it ought to have descended. He contrived to set himself right again most easily in the piano passages, but of the most powerful fortes he could make nothing. In many cases, however, his eye afforded him assistance, for he watched the movements of the bows, and thus discovering what was going on, soon corrected himself.

* * * * *

Among his favourite dishes was a bread soup, made in the manner of pap, in which he indulged every Thursday. To compose this, ten eggs were set before him, which he tried before mixing them with the other ingredients, and if it unfortunately happened that any of them were musty, a grand scene ensued; the offending cook was summoned to the presence by a tremendous ejaculation. She, however, well knowing what might occur, took care cautiously to stand on the threshold of the door, prepared to make a precipitate retreat; but the moment she made her appearance the attack commenced, and the broken eggs, like bombs from well-directed batteries, flew about her ears, their yellow and white contents covering her with viscous streams.

He never walked in the streets without a note-book, in which he entered whatever occurred to him at the moment. If the conversation accidentally turned upon this habit, he parodied the words of Joan of Arc,--“Without my colours I must not come,” and with undeviating firmness observed the self-imposed law. But his regularity was confined to this; the most exquisite confusion reigned in his house:--Books and music were scattered in all directions; here the residue of a cold luncheon--there some full, some half-emptied, bottles. On the desk the hasty sketch of a new quartett; in another corner the remains of breakfast. On the piano-forte, the scribbled hints for a noble symphony, yet little more than in embryo--hard by, a proof-sheet, waiting to be returned. Letters from friends, and on business, spread all over the floor. Between the windows a goodly Stracchino cheese: on one side of it ample vestiges of a genuine Verona Salami; and, notwithstanding all this confusion, he constantly eulogised, with Ciceronian eloquence, his own neatness and love of order! When, however, for whole hours, days, and often weeks, something mislaid was looked for, and all search had proved fruitless, then he changed his tone, and bitterly complained that everything was done to annoy him. But the servants knew the natural goodness of their master; they suffered him to rave, and in a few minutes all was forgotten,--till a similar occasion renewed the scene.

* * * * *

He himself often joked about his almost illegible characters, and used to add, by way of excuse, ‘Life is too short to paint letters or notes, and fairer notes would hardly rescue me from poverty,’ (punning upon the words noten and nöthen.)

The whole of the morning, from the earliest dawn till dinner time, was employed in the mechanical work of writing: the rest of the day was devoted to thought, and the arrangement of his ideas. Scarcely had the last morsel been swallowed, than, if he had no more distant excursion in view, he took his usual walk; that is to say, he ran in double quick time, as if hunted by bailiffs, twice round the town. Whether it rained, or snowed, or hailed, or the thermometer stood an inch or two below freezing point--whether Boreas blew a chilling blast from the Bohemian mountains,--or whether the thunder roared, and forked lightnings played,--what signified it to the enthusiastic lover of his art, in whose genial mind, perhaps, were budding, at the very moment when the elements were in fiercest conflict, the harmonious feelings of a balmy spring?

* * * * *

Beethoven permitted himself but rarely, even among his intimate friends, to express his opinions of contemporary artists. His own words, however, will attest what he thought of the four following masters:--

‘Cherubini is, in my opinion, of all the living composers, the most admirable. Moreover, as regards his conception of the requiem, my ideas are in perfect accordance with his, and some time or other, if I can but once set about it, I mean to profit by the hints to be found in that work.’

‘C. M. Weber began to learn too late: the art had not time to develope itself, and his only and very perceptible effort was, to attain the reputation of geniality.’

‘Mozart’s Zauberflöte will ever remain his greatest work; for in this he first showed himself the true German composer. In Don Giovanni he still retained the complete Italian cut and style, and moreover the sacred art should never suffer itself to be degraded to the foolery of so scandalous a subject.’[10]

‘Handel is the unequalled master of all masters! Go, turn to him, and learn, with few means, how to produce such effects[11]!’

* * * * *

During his last illness it was found necessary to draw off his water, and during the operation, he observed--‘Rather water from my body than from my pen.’

* * * * *

He received a flattering invitation from a musical society to compose a cantata, the request being accompanied by a portion of the sum to be paid for the work. Beethoven accepted it. For a very long time, however, nothing more was heard of him. Then came, couched in the most delicate terms, a letter to remind him of his engagement, signed, in consequence of the absence of the president of the society, by his locum tenens (Stellvertreter). The reply was,--‘I have not forgotten; such things must not be precipitated; I shall keep my word.--Beethoven, ~M.P.~[12] (Selbstvertreter), se ipsum tenens.’

Alas! he could not keep his word.

* * * * *

If he happened not to be in the humour, it required pressing and reiterated entreaties to get him to the piano-forte. Before he began in earnest, he used sportively to strike the keys with the palm of his hand, draw his finger along the key-board, from one end to the other, and play all manner of gambols, at which he laughed heartily.

* * * * *

During his summer residence at the seat of a Mecænas, he was on one occasion so rudely pressed to exhibit before the stranger guests, that he became quite enraged, and obstinately refused a compliance which he considered would be an act of servility. A threat that he should be confined a prisoner to the house,--uttered, no doubt, without the slightest idea of its being carried into execution,--so provoked Beethoven, that, night time as it was, he ran off, upwards of three miles, to the next town, and thence, travelling post, hurried to Vienna. As some satisfaction for the indignity offered him, the bust of his patron became an expiatory sacrifice. It fell, shattered into fragments, from the bookcase to the floor.

* * * * *

After he had become deaf, Beethoven spoke little, but wrote his observations on his tablet. ‘What is Rossini?’ he was once asked. He wrote, in answer, ‘A good scene-painter.’

SONG OF THE SWAN.

To the ~Editor~ of the ~Harmonicon~.

~Sir~,

The passage in last month’s ‘Diary of a Dilettante,’ relative to the assertion of an eminent Swedish naturalist, that the swan, instead of being a silent bird, has a peculiar and musical note of its own, recalls to mind a discussion on which critics and commentators, as well as naturalists, have spent much time and ink without effect. The late Mr. Joddrell, in his elaborate illustrations of Euripides, dedicated thirty-four octavo pages to the collecting, classing, and balancing all the authorities pro and con, but concludes without arriving a whit nearer certainty than when he began. The modern evidence he thus sums up:

‘If we recapitulate in a summary manner the modern evidence, we shall find that Leland and Olaus Magnus believed it. Aldrovraudus has added to his own knowledge the testimony of Fred. Pendasius, George Bracus, Albertus, and Antonius Musa Brasavelus, who declared it on the evidence of their own senses. Olaus Wormius, besides the assertion of several of his scholars who were natives of Iceland, mentions the attestation of John Rostorph, upon oath. Bartholinus, to his own observation on the vernal song of the swan, has annexed the personal experience of Geo. Wilkelius and Paulus Melisius Schedius Francus: and Ernestus has cited the testimony of an Asiatic, and of Paulus Vidalinus. There are the authors and witnesses of more modern times, who acknowledge and support the ancient idea of the harmony of the swan; and it is remarkable that the expression of “swan-song” is used to this day as proverbial in Sweden, to express any great eclat of a person when taking his last farewell. On the other hand, in opposition to these authorities, Erasmus, Scaliger, Bodin, Dr. Brown, Willoughby, Morin, Pennant, and Bryant, consider this supposed song a visionary notion, without any natural foundation to support it.’

I quote the above from a letter in the Gentleman’s Magazine for Sept. 1782, written by a correspondent who advocates decidedly the negative side of the question, appeals to the ancients for further support, and finally proposes that the celebrated John Hunter should set the point at rest, by dissecting a swan, and ascertaining whether its throat contained organs competent to the formation of musical sound or no. This letter produced an answer in the following November, which will serve to shew that Sweden and Iceland are, at all events, not the only countries frequented by the swan in a state of nature, in which the inhabitants firmly believe in its musical powers. After a short introductory paragraph, the writer says,--

‘In the Hebrides, of one of which I am a native, the swan is not uncommon. There is in Argyleshire a loch, or lake, called Lochanell, or the Lake of the Swans, which gives title to a considerable family of the Campbells. Swans frequent this and other lakes in that country; and it is the current opinion (by no means a matter of question or debate) amongst all ranks of the people, that they utter certain plaintive, yet melodious notes. The voice of the swan upon the floods is frequently introduced in their little songs to express the complaints and grief of a fair one, on the loss or absence of a lover. Amongst a people not highly polished, poetical similes are generally from nature: in nature, therefore, I should think there is some foundation for this so frequent a comparison. I do not remember that the author of Fingal made use of this simile.

‘In the month of October, 1769, upon their return to the inlets of the sea (for I was told they disappear in summer), I myself heard, at different times, one simple but plaintive note, the birds being at a distance on the water. I do not recollect to have been told anything concerning the swans’ vernal song in particular, but I remember it was said, that at other times their notes were various. But that the following tune--Gath nah cala, or the Song, or Note of the Swan--has been familiar to me from my infancy, and to every one else in the country who has an ear for music, I am as certain of as of any other fact I can mention. It is the first tune, on account of its simplicity, that musical scholars begin with, in the same manner as the King’s Anthem is first taught in England.’

Here the correspondence ended without reply or rejoinder. For my own part, it would be errant presumption to venture an opinion on a point already discussed by so many learned men, particularly as I have no fact within my own knowledge to found even an argument upon; but I cannot, nevertheless, help thinking that the evidence is in favour of the affirmative. Perhaps in its wide circulation your miscellany may fall into the hands of some person competent, from his own knowledge, to confirm or contradict the statement above quoted; though it is far from improbable, that within the last fifty years the march of civilization may have driven the wild birds from their haunts[13], and that tradition of their vocal powers alone remains, unless, indeed, they were to be followed to the distant Iona.--The air is not to be found among Dr. Crotch’s specimens of Scottish music.

I am, Sir, &c. S. D.

ON THE STATE OF OUR THEATRES, CHIEFLY AS RELATES TO THE OPERA DEPARTMENT.

That we are on the eve of great changes in our patent winter theatres is a fact now too obvious to admit of doubt. That their size must be diminished if it be intended any longer to represent what is called ‘the legitimate drama,’ and that the prices of admission must be reduced if the lessees do not mean to be ruined, are equally clear. It is also past dispute that very considerable alterations must be made in the nature of the performances, as well as in the general system of management; and that not only in those vast establishments, but in all other theatres, the rights and emoluments of authors and composers must be so secured and augmented as to induce men of superior intellect and attainments to devote their labours to the service of the public.

In a work like ours, it would be exceeding the prescribed bounds to enter on the subject of the drama generally, otherwise we would endeavour to show that the taste for tragedy, except of the splendid historic kind, is rapidly declining; that though the public will occasionally crowd to hear the fresh production of some celebrated writer, or to see a new and talented or much-extolled performer, yet, as they are beginning to discover that real scenes of misery, enough for all the possible purposes of excitement, are to be witnessed in great abundance, they will not much longer seek those that are fictitious. The salutary truth is now opening to their view, that relief from painful or laborious thought,--or, in a word, amusement, is, in most instances, the only rational object of a visit to the theatre, and that this cannot be extracted from a Jane Shore dying in the streets from inanition, or a Beverley expiring in the arms of his wife from the effects of poison.

Comedy amuses while it instructs; but this admits of very little increase of the voice beyond its ordinary speaking powers; and who can make himself heard in our vast theatres without exerting his lungs in a manner quite destructive of the ease so indispensably necessary to the finished performance of genteel comedy?--Opera, melodrama, and dancing remain, to which Covent Garden seems already driven; and Drury Lane is on the point of following the example of the rival patent temple of legitimate drama!

Opera will most likely take the lead decidedly, and when we shall have selected everything good from foreign repertories, which are almost exhausted, what will be our resource? Are we always to look abroad for fresh supplies, or to trust for assistance to our native composers? Let us hope that a country which has given birth to a Lock, a Purcell, an Arne, a Linley, a Shield, an Arnold, and a Storace, will yet produce successors to them, who may become their rivals in melody, and, profiting by the improvements for which we are indebted to the German school, surpass them in harmony and in richness of accompaniment. In concerted music they could hardly fail to excel their predecessors, at least those of the last century, who rarely turned their thoughts to it, the stage during their time affording no means of executing such compositions in a manner at all likely to do them justice.

Let it not be supposed that we are overlooking, or intentionally passing by unregarded, the merits of Mr. Bishop. He has supplied our theatres, principally Covent Garden, with much that will transmit his name to posterity; and had he continued to write in the style which he at first adopted--an improved English style--he might have established a school, the foundation of which was well laid by Arne, nearly a hundred years ago; but, allured by the applause bestowed on Mozart, Rossini, and Weber, he became an imitator, since when his success has not been equal to that which attended his former efforts; and latterly almost everything he has produced for the stage has failed; owing in part, no doubt, to his music having been united to dramas which possessed little, if any, claim to public favour. But he has plenty of time before him, and as we have been among the number of his warm admirers, so we shall be the first to hail his return to a path which led to fame and to profit.

Formerly the copyright of a successful opera would sell for three, four, or five hundred guineas; nay, a thousand, and even twelve hundred, has been the price demanded and paid. But now no publisher will buy an entire work; for a popular song or two out of it, or perhaps a duet, he will offer a sum, not enough, however, to remunerate the composer for the labour of a single week, and the theatres pay him nothing, be his success what it may. The managers find that they are conferring a favour by accepting the music of an opera, and plenty of composers, or pseudo-composers, press forward to be obliged. The consequence of this is so apparent to all, that we may be spared the ungracious and disagreeable task of pointing it out.

To what, then, is the present inferiority of most of our dramatic composers to be imputed?--Is the want of encouragement a cause or an effect?--Certain it is, that what is called the fashionable world will hardly listen to the music of an English composer, while almost any trash of a foreigner, especially if an Italian, (for even Germans are not in very good odour with them,) is received with favour. But the people of fashion do not now carry their influence into the English theatres: some other reason, therefore, must be assigned for the preference given to music by continental composers, and we fear that its superiority is the real cause. Hence springs another question,--from what does this superiority arise? Our belief is, that it is chiefly owing to difference in education. The English composer is commonly not so well instructed, either professionally or otherwise, as the German or French one; he is neither so well grounded in his own art, nor is his mind equally enlarged by the acquisition of other knowledge: he too frequently knows nothing but music, and that often rather imperfectly, because he has not been enabled to study it systematically, and because no one art can be thoroughly understood without the aid of that collateral knowledge which education supplies, but which he has not had any opportunity of acquiring. Another cause is, the necessity he is under of giving lessons,--of travelling from school to school, from house to house, teaching, in three cases out of four, music of the most trivial kind, not from choice, but because such is suited to the taste of the great majority of learners. Hence his own mind is occupied with what must weaken it, and even his taste in the art is in danger of becoming depraved by the examples of what is feeble, if not actually bad, that are hourly before him.

There are, no doubt, exceptions to this rule, and what we have advanced on the subject is to be understood as applying generally, and not pointed at any individual whatever, living or dead. That education, by which we mean the expansion of mind which results from it, is as essential to the composer as to the professor of any other liberal art or science, will not be disputed by those who give the matter anything like serious consideration: that in most cases the English composer has not the advantages which are to be derived from it, few will be hardy enough to deny. A still smaller number, we believe, will venture to question the fact, that the daily occupation of teaching children to play, must deaden the imaginative faculty, and consequently very much tend to disqualify for all the higher branches of composition.

We shall close this article by an authorised account of the ‘Receipts of Covent Garden Theatre, in each season, from 1809-10, to 1831-32,’ as given in the Appendix to the Parliamentary Report on Dramatic Literature.

£. s. d. 1809-10 77,575 6 4 1810-11 98,110 4 8 1811-12 88,703 19 4 1812-13 69,929 7 6 1813-14 83,765 15 6 1814-15 89,972 17 6 1815-16 80,091 14 5 1816-17 70,529 3 3 1817-18 72,968 7 1 1818-19 72,115 12 5 1819-20 53,591 1 10 1820-21 68,168 13 4 1821-22 58,171 17 2 1822-23 52,318 19 6 1823-24 60,496 17 5 1824-25 72,160 5 1 1825-26 51,017 1 2 1826-27 53,032 2 8 1827-28 55,212 16 9 1828-29 41,029 2 1 1829-30 57,431 12 10 1830-31 49,248 14 4 1831-32 43,318 19 11

The following are the ‘Comparative Dimensions of various Theatres, furnished by Samuel Beazley, architect,’ also printed in the Appendix above-mentioned.

Feet. In. Drury Lane 1799 From curtain to front box 70 0 Across the pit 56 0 ---- 1812 From curtain to front box 66 0 Across the pit 56 0 ---- 1832 From curtain to front box 61 0 Across the pit 50 0 Covent Garden From curtain to boxes 63 0 Across the pit 50 0 Haymarket From curtain to boxes 47 0 Across the pit 35 0 Late English Opera House From curtain to boxes 52 0 Across the pit 35 0 Pantheon 1791 From curtain to front box 55 0 Across the pit 60 0 Italian Opera From curtain to box 90 0 Width of pit 62 0 Olympic From curtain to box 34 0 Width 32 0 Garrick’s Theatre, Goodman’s Fields From curtain to front box 25 0 Width 35 0 Dublin 1829 From curtain to front box 52 6 Across the pit 45 0 Tottenham-street Theatre Curtain to front boxes 38 0 Across the pit 22 4

ON SOME COMPOSITIONS OF HANDEL.

To the ~Editor~ of the ~Harmonicon~.

~Sir~, January 18, 1833.

I read the communication of your correspondent, Honorius, in your number for December, 1832, with considerable interest, as it referred to a subject which I had long desired to see touched upon--the faults of the great Handel. There are, however, one or two points in his letter upon which I beg leave to offer a few observations. Your correspondent treats as a fallacy the first of Dr. Brown’s objections, which imputes to Handel ‘too much musical division upon single syllables, to the neglect of the true sense and meaning of the song.’ I must say, that I think there are not a few instances in Handel which directly corroborate this charge. In the song in Saul, ‘O Lord, whose mercies numberless,’ we have the word ‘fail’ in the first verse, and ‘soul’ in the second, most unnaturally tortured: the singer has, positively, two or three rests placed in the midst of his laborious enunciation of these words, in order to allow him to take breath between; in consequence whereof, the continuity of the air is broken, and the close of the song materially injured in effect. How can it possibly be said that such divisions ‘increase the meaning of the words on which they are employed?’ In the duet, ‘Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness,’ there are again instances of words most unpleasingly drawled out into long uninteresting passages; one part imitating the other, almost to the entire exclusion of meaning and expression.

Upon the second charge I have nothing to say; but surely the instance in the third movement of the Dettingen Te Deum is almost ludicrously gross.

The latter part of the third charge I admit, as exposing what I have always considered as the most glaring defect of Handel’s style. Almost every air has, first, its allotted number of bars in the major key, then its quantum in the minor, and then returns to the major with the most undeviating and uncompromising regularity. Take, for instance, the well-known song, ‘Let the bright Seraphim.’ Why should ‘the cherubic host’ be forced to ‘strike their immortal harps’ in the minor key, whilst their brethren, the seraphim, are allowed ‘to blow their trumpets’ in the major? Why should there be any minor at all, unless interwoven naturally in the principal movement of the song? Surely those who arrogate to Handel the praise of having deviated from the bad customs of his age, and formed a new style of his own, must allow, that in this most important particular he was as faulty as any of his predecessors. And this, I rejoice to see, your correspondent concedes without a word of defence. Let any unprejudiced person compare those songs where the minor movement and Da Capo are introduced, with those in which they are omitted, and he will at once perceive the superiority of the latter. But, ‘O, what art can teach,’ ‘Pious orgies,’ and ‘But thou didst not leave,’ in the Messiah, are as chaste and beautiful compositions as have ever existed; and it is upon such songs as these, and upon his magnificent chorusses that, in my opinion, the true glory of Handel rests.

There is also, I think, another general defect in Handel’s writings, not adverted to in your correspondent’s letter; which is, a constant sacrifice of harmony to melody. Allow him the praise of melody; but surely his harmony is deficient in richness, depth, and grandeur. Where do we find anything in Handel at all equal to ‘The Heavens are telling,’ in Haydn’s Creation? Examples might also be adduced from Handel, where the harmony and melody are almost equally neglected--as the duet, ‘Joys in gentle train;’ the air of which, if we can call it an air, is as tame and meagre as we can well conceive possible. With many apologies for this long letter, which you will oblige me by inserting in the Harmonicon,

I remain your obedient servant, and constant reader, W. H. P.

P.S. I hope to see this subject resumed, ere long, in your valuable pages.

GRESHAM PRIZE MEDAL FOR 1832.

The gold medal, for the best original composition in sacred vocal music, has been adjudged to Mr. Kellow John Pye, of Exeter[14]. Dr. Crotch, Professor of Music in the University of Oxford, R. J. S. Stevens, Esq., Professor of Music in Gresham College, and L. Horsley, Esq., Mus. Bac., were the umpires by whom the prize was awarded.

Mr. Pye was a pupil in the Royal Academy of Music.

The composition, an anthem for five voices, in the true cathedral style, will be performed at the commemoration of Sir Thomas Gresham in the ensuing spring.

THE MANCHESTER GENTLEMEN’S GLEE CLUB.

~Prize Glees~ for 1832.

This club, in furtherance of the purpose for which it was established--the cultivation of the glee--gives annually prizes for the best serious and the best cheerful glee. The prizes offered last year to be decided this, were ten pounds each, and have just been awarded.

There were forty-six candidate compositions--twenty-five serious, and twenty-one cheerful--written by twenty-nine different composers, including many of the most distinguished composers of this kind of music in the kingdom. Twenty-four of the glees were sent in by authors residing in London, all of whom, with an exception or two, are eminent in the profession. Seven came from Manchester gentlemen; the remainder from Liverpool, Edinburgh, Glasgow, York, Bristol, Hull, and Plymouth.

The productions which this competition--unparalleled, we believe, for the extent and variety of the compositions--furnished, were many of them of a high order: the serious glees were particularly excellent, a large proportion of them being, in style and merit, beyond the average of such as are considered established works. The whole collection exhibited a gratifying proof that this peculiarly English branch of musical science is extensively and successfully cultivated.

All the glees were, by means of frequent rehearsals, well executed by the singers. They were sung before the committee appointed to award the prizes at five successive meetings, especially held for the purpose; the last of which took place on Monday, the 21st of January, when, on opening the sealed packets containing the names and mottos of the respective authors, it appeared that the prize for the serious glee had been adjudged to Mr. Henry R. Bishop, for a four-voice glee, beginning ‘Where shall we make her grave?’ and that for the cheerful glee, by Mr. Vincent Novello, a glee also for four voices, to original words, commencing “Old May morning.”

OBITUARY.

The French school of music, and indeed the lovers of the art everywhere, have just sustained a great loss by the death of ~M. Herold~. He fell a victim to a pulmonary complaint with which he had been for some time afflicted, and which has carried him off before he had completed his fortieth year. His death is an almost irreparable loss to the French school of music, as he almost alone, among the operatic composers of the present day, had shown a genius worthy to compete with those great German masters whom he had made the idols of his adoration. He was a pupil of the Conservatoire, where he obtained the grand prize of composition, and was sent to complete his studies at Rome at the expense of Government. His opera Marie first made his name popular, and shortly afterwards Zampa, particularly the finale of the first act, secured to him a more solid and imperishable renown. His last work, Pré aux clercs, is now in the zenith of its popularity. It is said that the agitation which he felt in consequence of the suspension of the performances of that opera after its first representation, in consequence of the refusal of Madame Casimir to sing, tended to hasten his end. The managers of the Opera Comique, as soon as they learnt the fatal event, announced that the theatre would be shut for one night.

* * * * *

~Signor Nozzari~, the celebrated tenor singer, died at Naples, the beginning of last month. He was born in 1775, and studied under the famous David, who was in England some forty years ago. Nozzari first appeared at Milan, and in 1802 and 1807 sang at the Opera Buffa in Paris. He afterwards went to Naples, where at the theatre San Carlos, he continued to perform till bad health much weakened his vocal powers, and finally compelled him to quit public life. He has left a fortune of above 100,000 dollars.

* * * * *

Early in last month, ~Signor Giuseppe Deville~, who for many years had been a useful performer at the King’s Theatre, was found dead in his chamber, owing, it appeared upon examination, to apoplexy. He first arrived in this country in 1816; afterwards was engaged at the Théâtre Italien in Paris; then went to St. Petersburg, where he sang during three or four seasons at the Italian Opera in that city, and subsequently returned and settled in London. Though never much distinguished as a singer, Signor Deville was highly valued for the regularity and zeal with which he performed his professional duties; while his high sense of honour, his generous nature, and the benevolence of his disposition, made him respected by all to whom he was known, and loved by the few with whom he lived on terms of intimacy. The newspapers have represented that he died in the possession of a large sum of money, but erroneously: though not expensive in himself, he was too liberal-minded, too kind to such of his countrymen as needed assistance, to be able to save much of his income. In fact when his funeral and other expenses are defrayed, very little will be left to transmit to his nearest of kin, who are residing in Italy.

REVIEW OF NEW MUSIC.

~Eight Songs~, by ~Barry Cornwall~ and the ~Chevalier Neukomm~. (Cramer, Addison, and Beale.)

Our pages during the last two years will attest how often and how successfully the poet who writes under the above name, and the musician who composes in his own, have combined their talents: ‘The Sea,’ and ‘David’s Lament for Absalom,’ are sufficient, had those authors produced nothing else in union, to float them together down the stream of time, and will assist in proving that the age which certainly brought forth a good deal of trash,--as all ages have done, and will continue to do,--also gave birth to what is, without other evidence, quite sufficient to rescue it from a sweeping charge of false taste and inability. Those canzonets, difficult as they are to ordinary amateurs, are now in almost every house where a musical instrument is to be found, and are sung, especially the first, by all who are blessed with a voice, and by some who possess scarcely any at all.

Barry Cornwall, the pseudonyme adopted by one of the most distinguished of the really good lyric poets of the day, last year published a delightful little volume of ‘English Songs, and other small Poems,’ a fact so well known in the world of literature and taste, that we should not have repeated it here, but for the purpose of showing the connexion of that work with the present. The Chevalier Neukomm had set some of the songs before they appeared in print; and the eight now before us are among the hundred and seventy, or thereabouts, contained in the volume mentioned.

Great success naturally leads to further efforts, and the applause which attended the two songs above-named, has tempted the composer to write perhaps rather too fast. The most fertile fancy, like the richest soil, must be allowed time to recruit: the mind that creates needs fallows as much as the earth which produces. A want of a little of this restorative appears in the songs now under notice. There is no absence of exertion,--certainly no want of whatever science or labour can yield; but we do not meet with those evidences of the inventive faculty that are so strong in the compositions to which we have alluded. We know full well that he who always expects works of equal value from the same pen must infallibly be disappointed, and slightly touch upon a comparison only in order to make our opinion more accurately understood by our readers.

The first of the set, ‘The happy hours,’ is in two movements; the last partly in three-eight time, and partly in six-eight, is rather common. At page 3, however, is a redeeming modulation from ~C~ to ~A~♭.

The second, ‘Hide me, O twilight air!’ is a clever composition, the concluding page exceedingly effective, and the poet’s general meaning is well expressed; but in the setting of particular words, the foreigner, the stranger to the niceties of our accent, is very visible. The style of the early part of the seventeenth century is here so ably imitated by the poet, that we must beg leave to lay his verses before our readers:--

SONG FOR TWILIGHT.

Hide me, O twilight air! Hide me from thought, from care, From all things, foul or fair, Until to-morrow!

To-night I strive no more; No more my soul shall soar; Come, Sleep, and shut the door ’Gainst Pain and Sorrow!

If I must see through dreams, Be mine Elysian gleams, Be mine by morning streams To watch and wander!

So may my spirit cast (Serpent-like) off the past, And my free soul at last Have leave to ponder!

And should’st thou ’scape controul, Ponder on love, sweet soul, On joy,--the end--the goal Of all endeavour!

But if earth’s pains will rise (As damps will seek the skies) Then, Night, seal thou mine eyes In sleep for ever!

The ‘Serenade’ is too long and laboured for an evensong in the open air; and the sameness of the accompaniment, running on in one unvarying stream through three verses, becomes at last rather fatiguing.

The fourth, ‘The Night,’ opens with a sweet and gentle melody; the changes of time, however, are too frequent for a song, though, as well as the declamatory parts, they would be proper enough in a cantata. The whole of this appears the result of study. In truth the words are difficult to set.

No. 5, ‘The Evening Star,’ presents no feature at all remarkable. The accentuation of this is free from all reproach.

The sixth, ‘My Sword,’ is a fine, spirited, martial air, the accompaniments in excellent keeping, and the whole characteristic and exciting.

‘The Exile,’ in ~C~ minor, the seventh of the set, is deeply pathetic: a well-imagined andantino in ~F~ comes in beautifully, expressing a gleam of future hope; but this is checked again by reflection; and the last part, ‘Farewell to old England’ is affectingly uttered in the mournful tones of the minor key.

The eighth, ‘Oh, pleasant is the fisher’s life,’ does not conclude the volume in a very brilliant manner; the phrases and cadences offer nothing new, and no part of the song is likely to make any impression on the hearer, whether he belong to the learned or unlearned class of auditors.

This volume is much increased in value by portraits of the poet and composer, drawn by Wivell and engraved by Holt. They are admirable likenesses, and executed in a superior manner. How far preferable are such additions to a work, to those fancy things miscalled embellishments, which we rejoice to find are now pretty generally discarded in musical publications. Portraits, if at all faithful resemblances, are always interesting, and gratify a very natural curiosity; while imaginary scenes and emblematical designs are most commonly destitute of any charm, being too often mean in conception and faulty in execution.

* * * * *

PIANO-FORTE.

~Grand Exercice~ ~d’Octaves~ dans tous les tons, majeur et mineur composée par ~Charles Czerny~, Op. 152. (Wessel and Co.)

Were an inhabitant of another sphere--of one of those worlds which many folks think made only for our amusement, for us to spy at through a telescope--to be shown this grand exercise, he would straightway and naturally conclude that all those belonging to the planet Earth, who ‘handle’ the piano-forte, must be under the immediate influence of their own satellite:--‘For who,’ he would ask, ‘but moon-struck people would submit to a piece sixteen pages long, consisting of nought else, from beginning to end, but semiquavers running in octaves without the slightest break or intermission, without air, or rhythm, or any reasonable object, till one solitary chord ends the mad ramble?’ And this is no exaggerated account of the ‘grand’ composition on our desk, strange and almost incredible as it may appear.

It is to be presumed that a nondescript of the present kind would not have been published unless there had been a chance, amounting almost to a certainty, of finding purchasers for it; and we can only say, that if there are many to waste their money, and what is worse their time, upon such a matchless piece of absurdity, good taste in music, and the common sense of its votaries, are in a more declining state than even the former productions of this composer, and others of the same school, have led us to suppose.

* * * * *

1. ~Rondeau~, de l’Opéra de ~Boieldieu~, la Dame Blanche, composé par ~Fred. Kuhlau.~ (Wessel and Co.)

2. Ditto, do. do.

3. ~Preciosa Lied~, from ~Weber’s Preciosa~, varied by ~Fred. Kuhlau.~ (Wessel and Co.)

Kuhlau should ‘have died hereafter.’ Suddenly his sun set before its expected time. Nearly the same packet that brought us the first proofs we ever saw of his talents, bore the news of his death; and since then, every production of his that has reached us has furnished an additional proof of the loss music sustained by his premature decease. Two out of the three pieces conjoined is this article are further evidences of his ability, the subjects of which have been treated by many, by few so well, and by none better.

The first is on the airs ‘Chantez, joyeux Ménestrel,’ and ‘Robin Adair,’ the latter, since Boieldieu introduced it in his opera, having become as popular on the continent as it was here some years ago. The second is on ‘Pauvre Dame Marguerite;’ and the third is the ballad, or Lied, ‘Einsam bin ich nicht alleine,’ with variations.

In Nos. 1 and 2, the melodies, though fully accompanied, are distinctly heard; the harmony, abundant as it is, does not obscure the subject, and the arpeggioed passages, in all shapes, are in due relation to it. Both are well calculated for the instrument, and the manner in which they are written would alone be sufficient to prove the composer a real master of the piano-forte. They are not difficult for good players, but far from easy for the generality, and will excite more pleasure than astonishment. We must, however, express our regret that a wish to comply with custom--for M. K.’s own taste surely must have revolted against it--should have betrayed him into the commission of semitonic passages of the worst kind. His introduction to No. 1, in which are some fine effects, is spoiled at the end by an up-and-down run of half notes which seems to have no end, and almost prejudices the ear against the melody that immediately succeeds.

The ten variations, including the finale, on the German air, No. 3, possess all the vivacity which, arises from the active motion of the hand on the instrument, sweeping in arpeggios from low to high and back again, but this is the whole amount of the praise due to them, except that they are not carried on to any immoderate length.

* * * * *

1. La Noce, second ~Rondo~ sur des Thêmes de la Tentation (musique de ~Halevy~) arrangée par ~Adolphe Adam~. (Chappell).

2. Les Dons à Céline, Trois Pièces agréables, en forme de Sonatines, composées par ~Aloys Schmidt~, de Francfort. (Wessel and Co.)

The airs incorporated in No. 1 are pretty, and free from that kind of commonness, which is almost another word for vulgarity, but the same paucity of new ideas is visible here, as in too many of the publications of the day. It is evident that we must go back to old favourites, most of which are forgotten, and would be novelties to the present generation.

* * * * *

No. 2 are easy enough, certainly, as the word Sonatine announces, but are trite and childish as well as easy, with old-fashioned bases, cantering either in triplets of quavers, or moving à l’Alberti, in chords broken into semiquavers. We certainly should have expected from a man of M. Aloys Schmidt’s talent, trifles of a less trifling kind.

Both the above publications are calculated for very juvenile learners only.

* * * * *

1. ~Divertimento~, from ~Rossini’s~ Barbiere di Siviglia, arranged by ~W. Etherington~. (Metzler and Sons.)

2. ~The Alpine March~, arranged as an easy ~Rondo~, by ~Thomas Valentine~. (Chappell.)

Mr. Etherington’s Divertimento is compounded of ‘Una voce poco fà’ with its second movement: ‘Zitti! Zitti!’ and ‘Largo al Factotum,’ all of which, it is true, have been so often arranged, and are so perfectly known by heart by every one with a musical ear--nay, they are actually played about the streets of Constantinople; the very Moslems hum them--that we should have thought the present arranger too late for the market; but of this he is the fittest judge; we have only to speak of the manner of working up the airs into their present form, which is very creditable to Mr. Etherington’s taste. Indeed he has done little more than arrange from the score, his additions are just enough to blend the three, and these are modestly and judiciously made. He has retained the key ~E~, kept within very moderate bounds as regards length, and consulted both the character of the instrument and convenience of the performer.

* * * * *

No. 2 is a very brief and easy version of this popular march, in two pages and a half. It is suited to very youthful practitioners, whom it will please, without in any degree vitiating their taste.

* * * * *

DUETS, PIANO-FORTE.

1. Souvenirs of ~Meyerbeer’s~ Opera, Robert le Diable, consisting of the favourite Airs arranged by ~W. Watts~. _Book 1._ (Chappell.)

2. Ditto. Book 2. Ditto.

Robert has already taken many shapes, and now assumes that of duets, Mr. Watts, the chief agent in the business, having so willed it, and a better qualified person for the purpose could not have been found. It is sufficient now, since we so often have had to speak of the various parts of this opera, to mention what pieces are here chosen; our opinion of their respective merits has already been given. The first book contains the introduction, with the chorus ‘Aux seuls Plaisirs;’ the popular air, ‘Jadis régnait en Normandie,’ of course; and the chorus, ‘Non! il faut qu’il soit punit.’ The second is almost wholly occupied with ‘O Fortune! à ton caprice.’ and the remainder of the scene, preceded by the chorus, ‘Nous sommes tous flattés.’

There is nothing in any of these which could have been rendered difficult when distributed among four hands, and the present is too wary an adapter to throw impediments in the way of performers of the purchasing class.

* * * * *

~Overture~ to Spohr’s Grand Romantic Opera Jessonda, arranged by ~L. Zerbini~. (Wessel and Co.)

Piano-forte performers are now so abundant that overtures, and full orchestral compositions, when arranged, generally take the shape of duets. We are become so accustomed to them in this form, that very few players will singly attempt them, knowing how comparatively meagre they sound when committed to two hands. This is a faithful and good adaptation of the score, and renders that easy and effective for two performers which is quite the reverse for one.

How long will Mr. L. Zerbini continue to announce himself in his title-pages as a ‘pupil’?--The public, he ought to know, are inclined to think more favourably of publications by masters than by scholars.

* * * * *

1. ~Variations~ on ~Caraffa’s~ air, ‘O cara Memoria,’ arranged by ~A. Diabelli~. (Aldridge.)

2. ‘Una Voce poco fà;’ ~Rossini’s~ aria in Il Barbiere, arranged by ~George Perry~. (Luff.)

3. ‘Papuccie! chi vuol Papuccie?’ ~Pacini’s~ air in La Schiava di Bagdad, arranged by Signor Maestro ~G. P. Cittadini~. (Purday.)

No. 1 consists of five clever and very pleasant variations on an air which appears to much greater advantage instrumentally than vocally. This is short enough to admit an encore, and if played with neatness and some degree of brilliancy, will very often induce the hearers to ask for it a second time.

* * * * *

In No. 2, Mr. Perry has given us the air, with its second movement, ‘Io sono docile,’ exactly according to the score. We do not perceive that he has added or taken away a single note; but he has transposed the whole from ~E~ to ~F~, and this we cannot consider an improvement. In days long gone by, the key of ~E~ with four sharps looked formidably; the march of music has robbed it of its terrors; and every one who has the slightest faith in the character of keys, will protest against so violent a change.

* * * * *

No. 3 is the air made so amusing by Signor Lablache; though many laughed while he was crying ‘Slippers! who wants slippers?’ without very well knowing what they laughed at. Signor (Maestro) Cittadini might have chosen something better adapted to the purpose than an air, the merit of which depends so much on the words and the humour in singing them. Spread, as this is, over nineteen pages, and exhibiting so little variety, we must say that, should it sell, it will prove more useful to the stationer and publisher than the purchaser. We do not, however, mean to cast any slur on the arrangement itself, which is faultless, but in the selection made by the Maestro.

* * * * *

VOCAL.

~The Art~ of ~Singing~, a Method, in Three Parts, on an entirely new plan of vocalization, &c., by ~J. P. Le Camus~. (Published by the Author.)

This is a ponderous tome indeed! Two hundred and twelve large folio pages! But considering what it is to achieve--or rather, what the author most courageously asserts it will effect--such vastness of extent is by no means unnecessary. But let the author himself be heard.

‘The Method,’ he says, ‘I now publish has more novelty, and (I may say) more importance than the public usually attribute to works of this nature. It is the fruit of a singular but fertile idea, developed with conscientious care, and with the intention of superseding all the treatises on singing that have hitherto appeared.’--(Preface.)

There is no bashfulness in this, but much candour. Whenever a work is published the author wishes it to be thought the best that ever appeared, and hopes that it may cast into utter oblivion all others of the kind; but he seldom has honesty enough to declare this. M. Le Camus has no disguise.

‘Do we,’ he continues, ‘look for a proof of the insufficiency of all these treatises? Let us examine the actual state of the art. Vocal music was never so generally cultivated, and yet nothing is more uncommon than to meet with a singer whose principles are invariable, and whose execution is always perfect.’--(Preface.)

Very true, indeed, M. Le Camus; and, let us add, we should think the millennium actually arrived were we to meet with a singer, or any other description of human being, ‘always perfect.’

The Method herein proposed and followed, is to accompany the voice of the student, whether he be singing the diatonic or chromatic scales, the different intervals, or melodies of any kind, with a full harmony, in which as many ‘varied modulations are introduced as possible, in order to familiarize his ear with every harmonical combination, so that no transition, however abrupt, may take him by surprise.’--(Preface.)

There is no novelty in all this, we can assure the author; every good master has pursued the same plan. We grant that the number of such masters is not very great; we know that singing is taught,--aye in most instances,--by persons who possess very little, if any, knowledge of principles, or the power of communicating them to others, even if themselves are acquainted with them. But does it follow that, because there are many incapable teachers, a good system has never been followed by those who have studied and know their art? M. Le Camus can have inquired very little into the subject, can have consulted very few works, if he supposes that he now promulgates a system entirely new. We could at once show him three or four treatises in which the same principles are much more fully developed.

In a work of such magnitude it was to be expected that nothing relating to the vocal art would be left unsaid; but the author of this has omitted the mention of much that is essential: he gives no directions for the formation of the voice, touches very briefly on the management of the breath, is wholly silent on the subject of pronunciation, and equally reserved on a point of vital importance--expression[15]. In short, though the author of the Method, which he seems to consider so perfect of its kind, has done something in furtherance of his plan, he has left much more undone; and if, instead of examples of his own (which fill about nineteen-twentieths of the volume), he had chosen fit compositions, in various styles, of the great masters, and treated on the best manner of executing them, he would have rendered a much greater service to the musical world, and made his book far more worth the high price he has fixed on it.

* * * * *

1. ~Serious Glee~, ‘The parted Spirit,’ for four voices, which gained the prize at the Gentlemen’s Glee Club, Manchester, in 1831; the words by ~John Malcolm~, Esq.; the music by ~Finlay Dun~, of Edinburgh. (Mori and Lavenu.)

2. ~Serenade~, ‘Lady of Beauty,’ for three voices, by ~H. Giffin~. (Brown.)

~Mr. Finlay Dun~’s glee is rather a successful study than work of genius;--it exhibits more signs of persevering labour than of flights of imagination. And such is the character of some of the best compositions of this kind to which the last quarter of a century has given birth. Many, indeed, brought forth during the same period have nothing to distinguish them but the smell of the lamp,--their only merit consisting in the avoidance of grammatical errors. To write these is exceedingly easy; but it requires talent to compose an effective glee,--genius to produce such as is great or beautiful.

This fortunate work opens with a Largo in ~F~ minor, common time, which changes into an andante, and ends with a movement in the major key, three-four time. The poet’s sentiments are, upon the whole, well expressed, though the accentuation is frequently incorrect. At the seventh bar a crescendo on the word ‘blast’ is, indeed, an abortive attempt to make the sound an echo to the sense; and after ‘I call upon the heavens to show,’ there ought to be a rest, or pause of some kind. There is melody in this, but the harmony is most deserving of praise. The gracefulness, though not of a very original kind, of the last movement, most probably carried the votes of the judges; but we speak on this subject with reserve, not knowing the quality of the rivals with which the work had to contend.

The piano-forte accompaniment we cannot approve: with it the composition is no longer a glee. Moreover, by often running in octaves with the alto and other parts, the worst possible effect is produced. If uncertain singers require aid, the only allowable accompaniment to a glee is confined to the very notes given to the voices.

* * * * *

The second of these must surely claim as its parent either a very youthful or an extremely inexperienced composer.

* * * * *

1. The Maid of Abbotsford, written and composed by ~Mrs. J. F. Turner~. (Collard and Collard.)

2. ~Ballad~, ‘Mary, meet me there,’ composed by ~Miss Mounsey~. (Collard and Co.)

3. ~Romance~, The Bridal Death, written and composed by ~J. Augustine Wade~, Esq. (Chappell.)

4. ~Ballad~, ‘Here do we meet again,’ Ditto ditto ditto.

5. ~Ballad~, ‘I saw her at the Fancy Fair,’ the poetry by ~Edm. Smith~, Esq., composed by ~John Barnett~. (Goulding and D’Almaine.)

6. ~Ballad~. ‘That lovely girl,’ the poetry by ~E. Smith~, Esq., composed by ~J. A. Barnett~. (Goulding and Co.)

7. ~Song~, ‘’Tis the season of friendship,’ the words by ~W. F. Collard~, the music by ~C. M. Sola~. (Collard and Collard.)

8. ~Swiss Air~, ‘The Emmethaler Shepherd’, written by ~J. A. Wade~, Esq., and arranged by ~F. Stockhausen~. (Chappell.)

9. ~Canzonet~, ‘Sweet pensive woodland nightingale,’ the poetry by ~Lily Godwin~, composed by ~Thomas Graham~. (Chappell.)

10. ~Cavatina~, ‘The Flowers’, the poetry by ~Mrs. Charles Greville~, the music composed by ~Bianchi Taylor~. (Collard and Collard.)

Though we may be charged with a want of gallantry, yet we cannot say much in commendation of either Nos. 1 or 2.

* * * * *

The music of No. 3 is far better than the verses, which are very inferior to most of Mr. Wade’s lyrical productions.

* * * * *

No. 4 has appeared in a musical annual reviewed by us long ago.

* * * * *

If the success of No. 5 is as great as many very bold advertisements might lead us to believe, popularity is not invariably a test of merit in a song. The air is rather pleasing, but such an utter disregard of poetical accent we have rarely ever witnessed, e. g.

Heav’n was in her diamond eye, And roses crimson’d o’er her cheek.

Then we have--

* * * * *

No. 6 is a worthy companion to the preceding. The poet and musician rival each other in good sense: Par nobile fratrum.--The one sings,--

That lovely girl enchants me still, Through each changing scene of pleasure; Her brilliant charms with rapture _fill My soul for such a treasure_--

which the other sets thus:--

Her brilliant charms with rapture fill, With rapture fill-- My soul for such a treasure.

At the second page things get worse--but we have shown up enough.

* * * * *

No. 7 is a good Christmas song, with chorus for soprano and base. The words and music are both exhilarating, and the whole is easy.

* * * * *

No. 8 is one of the numerous class of Swiss airs which so much resemble each other. The few bars, however, of opening, slow and in the minor key, give some variety and character to this, and rather distinguish it from the many. We cannot say much in favour of the words, which savour of nonsense verses.

* * * * *

No. 9 is well designed, but in the execution the composer seems to have been at a loss; there are in this many proofs of inexperience as a writer,--not exactly errors, but want of habit. We, however, recommend him to persevere, practice will remedy defects of the kind to which we allude.

* * * * *

No. 10 evinces talent that we hope will be often called forth. The melody is exceedingly pleasing, and far from common; some of the phrases remind us of the classical schools, and are as unexpected as charming, particularly that in the second page, beginning at the fifth bar. The accompaniment, too, is not less to be approved.

VOCAL SOCIETY.

We have great pleasure in announcing the first meeting of a Society, under the above designation, comprising a body of musical talent, calculated, as we think, to render most essential service to the cause of music generally, but more especially so to the exhibition of vocal excellence, unfettered by the caprice or tyranny of that non-descript, but all-powerful, influence which is known under the familiar term--Fashion. It is, perhaps, the fairest way that the Society should speak for itself; and we therefore insert a considerable portion of the prospectus put forth by its members, which is sufficiently explanatory of what it purposes to accomplish:--‘It has often been a subject of regret among the lovers of English vocal music, that the opportunities of hearing it effectively performed are becoming more rare. The compositions of native musicians are nearly banished from the concerts of the metropolis; the glees of Webbe, Calcott, Cooke, and Battishill, as well as those of their living successors, being superseded by the productions of foreign composers. Were excellence alone made the test of admission, the English musician would have no right to complain; but it may be questioned whether such a principle of exclusion is called for by public opinion or the progress of musical science; or whether the compositions of modern Italy are better calculated to improve the taste of the professor, and to increase the gratification of the amateur, than those of our own country. The regulations of the several societies formed for the encouragement of glee writing, and the practice of glee singing, preclude the presence of ladies, while they are attended with considerable expense wholly unconnected with their musical objects. The intention of the Vocal Society is to present, as its principal feature, the vocal music of the English school, both ancient and modern, including that of the church, the chamber, and the theatre; with the addition of foreign compositions of excellence, songs, duets, concerted pieces, and chorusses, several of which (hitherto almost unknown in this country) are preparing for performance. To this object, its members respectfully invite the co-operation of those who cherish a love for that species of music in which the most celebrated English composers have been proved to excel, and to unite with them in a strenuous effort to vindicate its claim to public attention and patronage.’

To this rational and ingenuous address thirty names are appended, both male and female, including most of the vocal performers of acknowledged merit in the metropolis. We now proceed to give the program of the first concert, to which we shall add such observations as occurred to us during the performance:--

FIRST CONCERT OF THE VOCAL SOCIETY, King’s Concert Room, Hanover Square, Monday, January 7th, 1833.

Leader, Mr. T. COOKE.--Organ and Piano-forte, Messrs. TURLE, GOSS, and HORNCASTLE.

~Part I.~

God Save the King,--Verse and Chorus.

1. Sestetto and Chorus, Ode to St. Cecilia. (Miss ~Webbe.~ C. Novello, Master Howe, Messrs. Terrail, Bennett, Turle, and Sale)

2. Duet, ‘In this glad Season.’ (The Seasons.) ~Haydn.~ Mrs. G. Wood and Mrs. Hobbs

3. Trio, ‘Sicut locutus est.’ (Miss C. Novello, ~Fenoglio.~ Hawkins, and Bellamy)

4. Air, ‘Lascia Amor.’ (Orlando.) Mr. Phillips ~Handel.~

5. Madrigal, ‘All creatures now.’ (1601.) ~J. Benet.~

6. Offertorium, ‘Alma Virgo!’ (Mrs. Bishop and ~Hummel.~ Chorus)

7. Glee, ‘In this fair vale.’ (Masters Howe and ~Attwood.~ Hopkins, Messrs. Bennett, Parry, and Chapman)

8. Quintet, Piano-forte, Oboe, Clarinet, Bassoon, ~Beethoven.~ and Horn. (Mrs. Anderson, G. Cooke, Willman, Mackintosh, and Platt)

~Part II.~

9. Chorus, ‘Hark! hark!’ (The Seasons.) ~Haydn.~

10. Selection from a Mass (No. 1) ~Mozart.~

11. Cantata, ‘Mad Tom.’ (Mr. Braham) ~Purcell.~

12. Glee, ‘Deh! Dove.’ (Miss George, Terrail, ~Dr. Cooke.~ Hobbs, and Sale)

13. Song, ‘My ain fire-side.’ (Mr. Broadhurst).

14. Serenade, ‘Sleep, gentle Lady!’ (Hawkins, ~Bishop.~ Hobbs, Fitzwilliam, and Chapman)

15. Terzetto, ‘Tremate, empi tremate.’ (Miss Novello, ~Beethoven.~ Braham, and Philips)

16. Catch, ‘Would you know.’ (Horncastle, C. ~Webbe.~ Taylor, Fitzwilliam, and Bellamy)

17. Chorus, ‘To Rome’s immortal hero.’ (Tito.) ~Mozart.~

We have here presented to our view a wide range of musical compositions embracing a period of upwards of two centuries, and comprising names which will live till ‘music shall untune the sky.’ The performers exerted themselves to the utmost, and the most fastidious critic could have found but little to disapprove. We earnestly hope that the same spirit of emulation will continue to be shown throughout the remaining concerts; and, if such be the case, we cannot entertain a doubt of the liberal patronage of the musical public. Much will depend upon the judgment and taste of those with whom the choice of the selections will rest; and it will involve a point of some delicacy, as well as require a certain firmness, in deciding upon the introduction of the works of living composers, who will naturally be desirous of having their music brought forward under such favourable circumstances. It is in this point of view that we are glad to observe among the names of the members a great preponderance of vocalists, and but few distinguished by their writings; this will render the society more independent, by offering a wider and more extensive field in which to roam, collecting sweets wherever they are to be found; and while not insensible to living merit, yet free to draw largely from the stores of excellence, both ancient and modern, which will amply repay the task of bringing forward, and present the fairest prospect of success and permanence to the ~Vocal Society~.

SECOND CONCERT OF THE VOCAL SOCIETY, Monday, January 21, 1833.

Leader, Mr. T. COOKE.--Organ and Piano-forte, Messrs. TURLE, GOSS, BLACKBOURNE, and HORNCASTLE.

~Part I.~

1. Anthem, ‘Behold how good and joyful’ ~Battishill.~

2. Glee, ‘Mine be a cot.’ (Hawkins, Hobbs, Bennett, ~Horsley.~ and Bellamy)

3. Cantata, ‘The Ghost of Carril.’ (Braham) ~Percy.~

4. Glee, ‘Oh! how I long my careless limbs.’ Sir ~J. L. (Mrs. G. Wood, Master Howe, Turle, Hobbs, Rogers.~ Bellamy, and Sale)

5. Madrigal, ‘Sweet honey-sucking bees!’ (1609) ~Wilbye.~

6. Scena, from the Opera of Faust. (Horncastle.) ~Spohr.~

7. {Quintet, ‘Domine Deus’ } ~Clari.~ {Chorus, ‘Cum Sancto Spiritus’ }

8. Glee, ‘There is beauty on the mountain.’ ~Goss.~ (Miss C. Novello, Messrs. King, Horncastle, and Parry)

10. Concertante, Flute, Oboe, Clarinet, Bassoon, ~Chev. Horn, Trumpet, and Double-Bass Neukomm.~

~Part II.~

11. Glee, (accomp.) ‘Fill, fill me, boy.’ (Hawkins, Horncastle, and Phillips) ~T. Cooke.~

12. Song, (with accompaniments) ‘Peaceful night.’ ~Bishop.~ (Mr. Parry)

13. Glee, ‘Wanton gales’ (Hawkins, Hobbs, ~Webbe.~ Horncastle, and Sale)

14. Duetto, ‘Dolce dell’ anima.’ (Braham and ~Paer.~ Phillips)

15. Madrigal, ‘Lo! where with flowery head.’ ~Morley.~ (1610)

16. Quintetto, ‘Perchè mentir.’ Die Zauberflöte. ~Mozart.~ (Mrs. Bishop, Mrs. G. Wood, Miss C. Novello, Braham, and Taylor)

17. Song, ‘Non preventur.’ (Miss George.) Die ~Mozart.~ Zauberflöte

18. Catch, ‘Ah! how Sophia.’ (Hobbs, C. Taylor, ~Dr. and Fitzwilliam) Calcott.~

19. Chorus, ‘The tiger couches.’ The Maniac ~Bishop.~

This Selection contains some very good music, and is upon the whole, quite equal in merit to its precursor. It commences most appropriately with the fine anthem by Jonathan Battishill (No. 1), of which the three first movements were given; the verse for equal voices, was extremely well sung by Messrs. Hawkins, Hobbs, and Atkins, and the whole went off with much effect. Apropos, in regard to Battishill,--this admirable composer published two volumes of ‘Songs for three and four Voices,’ the greater part of which are models in glee-writing; and we strongly recommend them to the notice of this society, as being worthy of occasional introduction. Two charming Madrigals, one in each act (Nos. 5 and 15) gave general satisfaction, and were called for par acclamation. Several members of the Madrigal Society were present, and judging from “outward and visible signs” were highly gratified with the performance. Mr. Braham sang a long cantata (No. 3), and did all that could be done for it; we should have been glad to have seen his powers exerted to more effect; this gentleman is himself a host, and can perform wonders; but in the present instance had no scope for display. A MS. glee of Sir John Rogers, for six voices (No. 4) was sung with taste and expression; the worthy Baronet, though an amateur, may fearlessly enter the lists with most of the professors of the present day, none of whom but might be justly proud of producing such a specimen of melody and harmony combined. A glee of Mr. Goss was chastely and beautifully performed: it is an elegant piece of writing, and was encored with high plaudits, which it fully merited.

However excellent the plan and arrangements of these Concerts, we confess a considerable difference of opinion with the managers upon one point, and that, a not unimportant one--we allude to what, at the Philharmonic Concerts, is called the conductor’s department. There, it is allotted to one individual throughout the evening; and although we have always considered the conductorship at that Concert a most useless office, yet we would prefer seeing it confined to one, rather than shared by different persons during the same evening. At the first of these Concerts, it was announced, that the organ and piano-forte would be taken by Messrs. Turle, Goss, and Horncastle; and Mr. Blackbourne’s name is added to the list in the present concert. The reputation of these gentlemen is too well-established, to render it necessary to have recourse to this puffing mode; for which there is no occasion, and out of which much inconvenience may arise. We would take the liberty of suggesting as the more preferable course, that the same individual retain his situation for the evening,--upon whom, in that case, would devolve the responsibility of conducting that department of the business of the night; and to this conductor we would in all humility offer our decided opinion, that the less he was heard, except in instances where an accompaniment was obligato, the more perfect would be the effect produced. Genuine glee-singing is essentially injured by the jingling of the piano-forte, especially when singers know their own powers, and can sustain their voices without such artificial aid.

EXTRACTS FROM THE DIARY OF A DILETTANTE.

[Resumed from page 16.]

January 2nd. ~Native Turkish Music!~--Mr. Slade, in his Travels in Turkey, Greece, &c., just published, gives us a curious account of the knowledge of the Turkish Capitan Pacha, or high admiral, in musical matters. This officer had been a shoemaker, and knew as much of naval affairs as of the fine arts. Mr. Slade visited him on board his ship, and, among other amusements got up for the English traveller, was a concert, which he thus describes:--

‘In the middle of the day he (the Capitan Pacha) crept into the kennel abaft the mizen-mast, and reposed for some hours, his example being duly followed by the officers, stretched out on the quarter-deck, and covered by flags to keep off the sun. On awaking, coffee and chibouques were served. Water was then brought, with a complete change of garments! and in the same narrow box, six feet by three, by two high, he washed and dressed; then came out and enjoyed the cool of the evening on his quarter-deck couch; always doing me the honour to place me beside him with a chibouque, and no doubt it was a droll sight to the crew, who all gathered round to see the pacha and me thus cheek by jowl. His band, consisting of as many drums and cymbals as could be collected, with two clarionets and one fife, made a noise for our benefit. It played the hunter’s chorus in Freischütz, Zitti, zitti, and Malbrook, over and over, till I fairly wished it at the bottom of the sea. I not only could not stop my ears, but was obliged to applaud liberally. Thinking that its style was more adapted to Turkish music, at the same time intending a compliment, I asked the pacha whether it could perform any Turkish airs? “Turkish airs!” he repeated with astonishment; “Mashallah! have you not been listening to them these two hours?” I bowed, and took refuge in ignorance.’

* * * * *

7th. The first ~Vocal Concert~.--The unanimous and decided applause with which Bennet’s fine Madrigal was received, proves not only that a love yet remains in this country for such music, but we think indicates that it is on the increase. The truth is, that the concert-going public are completely nauseated with the modern Italian opera songs. The reception, too, of ‘Mad Tom,’ so inimitably sung by Braham, is another indication of a return to a healthy state of taste. By-the-by, only part of this is Purcell’s; the omission, however, of some of D’Urfey’s words, and the addition of two movements, by whomsoever made, are undeniable improvements[16].

The Hanover-square Rooms, where these concerts are held, have undergone a complete repair, are newly decorated, and the alteration in the orchestra must be attended by the most beneficial effect, as relates to sound.

* * * * *

10th. The late John Taylor, Esq. an oculist by profession, but all his life chiefly engaged in literary pursuits, a man of considerable talent, and much respected by a most numerous acquaintance, among which were many distinguished political characters, together with nearly all the best writers, artists, musicians, and players of the last sixty years--left in the hands of his executors a work entitled ‘Records of my own Life,’ which has lately been published in two octavo volumes. It consists almost wholly of anecdotes, town news, green-room history, and conversations of authors and professional persons of all kinds, and is a very amusing work, from which I extract some anecdotes that concern and will interest the musical world, and begin with two relating to the greatest of composers:--

‘Handel, when he first visited Ireland, in consequence of his disgust at the preference given to Bononcini in London, carried a letter of recommendation to Dean Swift. When the Dean heard that he was a musician and a German, he declined receiving him; but when his man added that the bearer of the letter was a great genius,--“A genius and a German!” said Swift,--“Oh, then, show him up immediately.”’ (i. 334.)

Dr. Morell--who furnished Handel with the poetry of many of his oratorios--related to Mr. Taylor, that ‘one fine summer morning, he (Dr. M.) was roused out of bed at five o’clock, by Handel, who came in his carriage a short distance from London. The doctor went to the window and spoke to Handel, who would not leave his carriage. Handel was at that time composing an oratorio. When the doctor asked him what he wanted, he said,--“What de devil means de vord billow?” which was in the oratorio the doctor had written for him. The doctor, after laughing at so ludicrous a reason for disturbing him, told him that billow meant a wave, a wave of the sea. “Oh, de vave,” said Handel; and bade his coachman return, without addressing another word to the doctor.’ (i. 355.)

* * * * *

Mr. T. does justice to his friend, the late Dr. Arnold, who, he says, with great truth, ‘was long an ornament of the musical world, and by the general estimation of his professional merits, was a man of great genius, as well as profound in musical science. In private life he was humorous, intelligent, and convivial. He was well acquainted with the world, and always took an active, spirited, and agreeable part in conversation.’

* * * * *

Mr. Taylor was intimately acquainted with two of the finest female singers that the history of music can boast; the following anecdotes and characters he gives of them may, therefore, be received as authentic beyond all doubt.

‘When Madame Mara first appeared as a singer at Berlin, Frederick the Great refused to witness her powers alleging that she was a German, and, therefore, could not, possibly be a good singer. At length, however, he was persuaded to hear her, and when the concert was over, he approached her, and asked if she could sing at sight. She answered in the affirmative, on which he took a piece of manuscript music from his pocket, and asked her if she could sing that. She told him that it was the most difficult piece she had ever met with; but looking it over for a few minutes, she told him that she could. “Do, then,” said the king. She complied, and from that moment his prejudice was at an end, and she became a favourite. Becoming, however, tired of Berlin, she asked permission to visit Italy on account of her health. The king, however, would not suffer her to depart.’

‘She had a very favourite harpsichord, or piano-forte, and the king, who had set a watch over her, believed that while that remained in Berlin he was secure of her. She was therefore obliged to resort to artifice to effect her escape. She sent the instrument to be repaired, but ordered that, instead of being returned to her abode, as soon as the work was done, it should be sent to Vienna. When she had reason to believe that it was secure from capture, she and her husband secretly followed it with all expedition. The wary Frederick was soon apprized of their escape, and despatched a messenger immediately to Joseph II., then Emperor of Germany, desiring that he would arrest them. The emperor, with great kindness, condescended to let them know that there was no resisting the desire of the King of Prussia, and therefore advised them to hurry away as fast as possible, that he might inform the king that his messenger had arrived too late.’

‘Madame Mara possessed a masculine understanding, and had been so much used to male society, which she preferred, that she was little qualified for intercourse with the female world. She was animated in company, and uttered humorous and shrewd remarks.’

* * * * *

Mrs. Billington.--‘I knew this admirable singer when she was very young, and was present when she first appeared in public, and performed a concerto on the piano-forte, at seven years old. Her brother, on the same night, performed a concerto on the violin, when he was nearly the same age. They both displayed extraordinary powers, even without considering the early period at which they had acquired so much skill. She was born at Baugh, in 1765. Her father was of a noble family in Germany, but, by the decline of his fortune, was obliged to cultivate his musical talents as a profession. He was a harsh and severe man, and partly on account of his temper, his wife was induced to quit him, and support herself as a principal vocal performer at Vauxhall-Gardens, retaining the name of Weichsel, though separated from her husband.’

‘That Mrs. Billington possessed a kind disposition, I, who knew her early and long, can confidently affirm. Her great talents rendered her an object of envious rivalry, and interested scribblers defamed her character. The man who, by his influence over her mother, obtained all the property of the latter by a real or pretended will in his favour, took possession of that property, and had the revolting indecency to remove it from her lodgings on the very day of her death; and, notwithstanding his affected friendship for the mother, almost immediately after her death published a scurrilous life of the daughter, recording actions and events which existed only in the invention of disappointed malice and venality.’

‘On her death, her [second] husband [M. Fellisson] returned to this country, and demanded her property from her trustee, Mr. Savory [of Bond street], her firm and zealous friend; and as there was no opposing claim, I understood from Mr. Savory, that he paid him to the amount of 40,000_l._’

I can add to the above, that more than one of her friends, on taking leave of her previously to this journey, felt, all circumstances considered, that they should never see her again, either in England or elsewhere. She fell a sacrifice to a very much mistaken sense of duty; but the immediate cause of her death has never yet been stated.

* * * * *

He tells us that Mr. James Hook, (the most voluminous composer of songs that ever existed) had for his first wife a lady of very respectable talents as an artist. She had also literary talents, and wrote two or three dramatic pieces, which were well received by the public, and to which her husband’s music was adapted. She wrote the words of several of his songs. She died some years before her husband, and a considerable time elapsed before Mr. Hook married again.... ‘His two sons, James and Theodore, both displayed extraordinary abilities at a very early age, and their parents gave them every advantage of education. James was placed very early at Westminster school, where he soon distinguished himself by his classical attainments and literary powers. He also, at a very early period, displayed considerable skill and taste as an artist. He wrote an opera, Jack of Newbury, to which his father contributed the music, which was successfully performed at Drury-Lane Theatre. Mr. (afterwards Dr.) Hook enjoyed several valuable preferments, and finally became Dean of Worcester. He inherited the musical taste of his father. Theodore, his younger brother, also distinguished his talents at Westminster school. He is the author of several dramatic pieces, which have been represented with great success;--(ii. 392.)

* * * * *

Mr. Taylor thus mentions the late Mr. Shield:--‘Perhaps there never was an individual more respected, esteemed, and admired than this late eminent composer. With a shrewd, intelligent, and reflecting mind, and a manly spirit, there was a simplicity in his manners that obviously indicated the benevolence of his disposition. Of his musical merits it is unnecessary to speak, as his compositions were universally admired for their science, as well as for their fancy, taste, and sensibility.’--(ii. 220.)

Of Jackson, the composer, or ‘Jackson of Exeter,’ as he is commonly called, Mr. T. speaks thus:--‘Mr. Jackson possessed an excellent understanding, and literary talents of no ordinary description. His “Thirty Letters on various Subjects” is a work highly creditable to his talents and knowledge of human nature. He was a tall, good-looking man, with an expressive face, and a reserved, grave demeanour. He appeared to me to be well acquainted with history, and with the opinions of the ancient philosophers. According to the report of Mr. Opie and Dr. Wolcot, he was an admirable judge of painting.... He was one of the very few men whom Dr. Wolcot, a shrewd judge of mankind, regarded with particular respect for his intellectual powers.’--(ii. 347.)

* * * * *

16th. A discovery, it is said, has been made, which, were it to turn out as represented, would create an extraordinary sensation in the musical world. In examining a great quantity of manuscripts of all kinds, left by the late Mr. Harris, chief proprietor and long manager of Covent-Garden Theatre, and which had been accumulating during the last forty or fifty years, an opera in score, by Mozart, in his own hand-writing, with his signature in every page, has been found, and which, it is stated, has never been performed. This is all that has been heard on the subject; though some persons of a sanguine turn, and a lively imagination, have already persuaded themselves that it was actually composed for Mr. Harris, but at first neglected, and afterwards forgotten by him. The improbability, if not the impossibility, of this will at once be obvious, when it is considered that Mozart kept a most accurate list of all his compositions, from the commencement of the year 1784, before which time he had produced only one of his great works;--that in that Catalogue Thématique[17] he carefully recorded when, where, and for what purpose his various works were produced; and that therein no notice is taken of any opera written for Mr. Harris, or of any other whatever that has not since been performed. The chances are, then, that if this is not an authenticated copy of some of the well-known operas, it is a transcript of one of those composed by him in his boyhood, whereof there are several extant, all of which have been examined repeatedly, by different persons, and found wholly unworthy of being brought forward in any shape. This is supposed to be the grand secret divulged some weeks ago to a committee of performers at Covent-garden Theatre. At first the story had a suspicious aspect,--it seemed to be a clumsy imitation of the Shakspeare forgeries; but upon inquiry it appears pretty certain, that if there is any deception in the business, the gentlemen in whose hands the Manuscript is placed are not answerable for it. There is not, however the slightest ground for believing that the expectations excited by this circumstance will be, in any manner or degree, realized.

* * * * *

18th. The Royal Society of Musicians have presented Mr. John Parry, the well-known secretary of the Association for the encouragement of Welsh Poetry and Music, with an elegant piece of plate, as an acknowledgment of his zealous and disinterested services, which, it was stated by the chairman of a dinner given on the occasion, had been the means of adding, for the last twelve years, upwards of 60_l_. per annum to the funds of that benevolent and useful society. Such instances of active liberality are worthy of being recorded.

* * * * *

18th. I lately rejoiced, but it seems very prematurely, on hearing that the former excellent president of the Madrigal Society, Sir John Rogers, Bart., had met with so fit and proper a successor as his friend, William Linley, Esq. I now learn that Mr. Linley was elected; but, finding that there had been some informality in the proceeding, he requested to have the ceremony repeated at the next meeting: when, lo! it was proposed and carried, that the president in future should be ephemeral,--that he should be inaugurated at five and abdicate at nine--so that each day should bring with it a new ruler, and that each member should sway the sceptre in turn, whether qualified or not for the duties of the office; a measure which, I humbly conjecture, will sometimes place the symbol of power in hands not very well prepared to hold it. Some of the oldest and best members of the society thought that so able a composer as Mr. Linley,--the son of the author of ‘Let me careless,’--a gentleman in education, station, and fortune--would be a likely person to give efficiency to the chair: the majority at one meeting thought otherwise; and I fear that this ancient, this useful, and agreeable association will suffer by what I cannot but think a hasty, injudicious decision.

* * * * *

26th. A noble master in chancery, who has proposed a mode of reforming the church establishment, is for leaving the incomes of the bishops much as they are, bettering them in some cases, but proposes to abolish at once the cathedral service, and, consequently, to send adrift vicars-choral, lay-clerks, organists, and all appertaining to the musical establishment of our ancient seats of episcopacy. This has produced the following letter to the Times of to-day, and the accompanying copy of verses:--

~Sir~,

Having heard some rumours respecting the strange and awful visitation under which Lord H-nl-y has for some time past been suffering, in consequence of his declared hostility to anthems, solos, duets, &c., I took the liberty of making inquiries at his lordship’s house this morning, and lose no time in transmitting to you such particulars as I could collect. It is said that the screams of his lordship, under the operation of this nightly concert (which is, we doubt, some trick of the radicals), may be heard all over the neighbourhood. The female who personates St. Cecilia is supposed to be the same that, last year, appeared in the character of Isis, at the Rotunda. How the cherubs are managed I have not yet ascertained.

Yours, &c.

P. P.

LORD H-NL-Y AND ST. CECILIA.

---- in Metii descendat judicis aures.--Horat.

As snug in his bed Lord H-nl-y lay, Revolving much his own renown, And hoping to add thereto a ray, By putting duets and anthems down,

Sudden a strain of choral sounds Mellifluous o’er his senses stole; Whereat the reformer mutter’d, ‘Zounds!’ For he loath’d sweet music with all his soul.

Then, starting up, he saw a sight That well might shock so learned a snorer,-- Saint Cecilia, robed in light, With a portable organ slung before her.

And round were cherubs, on rainbow wings, Who, his lordship fear’d, might tire of flitting, So begg’d they’d sit,--but, ah! poor things, They had none of them got the means of sitting[18].

‘Having heard,’ said the saint, ‘you’re fond of hymns, And, indeed, that musical snore betray’d you, Myself, and my choir of cherubims, Are come, for a while, to serenade you.’

In vain did the horrified H-nl-y say, ‘’Twas all a mistake’--‘she was misdirected;’ And point to a concert, over the way, Where fiddlers and angels were expected.

In vain.--The Saint could see in his looks (She civilly said) much tuneful lore; So, at once, all opened their music-books, And herself and her Cherubs set off at score.

All night duets, terzets, quartets, Nay, long quintets, most dire to hear; Ay, and old motets, and canzonets, And glees, in sets, kept boring his ear.

He tried to sleep,--but it wouldn’t do; So loud they squall’d, he must attend to ’em; Though Cherub’s songs, to his cost he knew, Were like themselves, and had no end to ’em.

Oh! judgment dire on judges bold, Who meddle with music’s sacred strains! Judge Midas tried the same of old, And was punish’d, like H-nl-y, for his pains.

But worse on the modern judge, alas! Is the sentence launch’d from Apollo’s throne; For Midas was given the ears of an ass, While H-nl-y is doom’d to keep his own!

FOREIGN MUSICAL REPORT.

VIENNA.

On the occasion of the consecration of the new cross which has been mounted on the steeple of the Wieden parish church, M. Glöggle, the director of the choruses, showed that he could combine musical devotion with patriotic feeling. After the celebration of high mass, during which Haydn’s Nelson’s Mass and Cherubini’s Graduale were performed, the consecration commenced. There were eight trumpeters (together with kettle-drummers) who, after flourishing for some time, played ‘God save the Emperor,’ from the steeple. After which, Haydn’s Te Deum was given in the church; and the choir, with the accompaniment of the organ and the trumpets, repeated the national anthem.

M. Lachner, kapellmeister to the court, lately gave a concert here, for the purpose of producing some of his most recent compositions; at which a symphony was performed, which may rank with the best productions of living composers. The brilliant instrumentation of the first movement, the charming andante, the scherzo fugato, constantly increasing in interest, as well as the grand finale, sufficiently manifested that the clever composer knew how to employ the rich store of his ideas and to follow the best models. The introduction to the oratorio, Moses, is conceived in the noblest style, and is a composition of real genius; its principal feature is a chorus of exquisite effect, which was admirably sung. If M. Lachner brings the oratorio to a conclusion with the genius and skill which characterize the introduction, he will have accomplished a work which alone will entitle him to a place among the most celebrated German composers.

We are in anticipation of a rich treat at a concert to be given by a musical family, lately arrived here from Russia, and who have already acquired considerable fame by their distinguished abilities. Their name is Koutsky, and the members are Eugenia, a singer; Anton and Stanislaus, pianists (the former a pupil of Field’s); and Carl and Apollino, violinists.

BERLIN.

An operetta by C. Blum, entitled Baldrian und Rosa, and founded upon a fairy-tale, was lately produced here: it is altogether an insignificant trifle, containing, however, an occasional pretty little song, in the waltz form.

On the 18th of November, Gretry’s Richard Löwenherz (Richard Cœur de Lion) was reproduced, after a lapse of many years; but the manner in which it was got up was anything but satisfactory; it was, in fact, a disgrace to the management. Irene, too, has been given again, with improved success; and on the 5th of December, Spontini’s Nurmahal was once more brought forward for the début of a Mlle. Stephan, as Namuna. Beyond a very fine voice, this young lady has at present but few recommendations; she is as yet but a hot-house plant; had she only been kept back half a year, and received proper instruction, she might have been listened to with pleasure: as it was, her début was premature.

On the 7th of December, M. Blume appeared, for the first time since his return to Berlin, in the character of Don Juan, with his wonted success.

It is understood that Kapellmeister Marschner, from Hamburgh, will soon be here to bring out his opera, Hans Heiling. Mlle. Schneider, the daughter of our kapellmeister, has lately arrived, and Mad. Schroeder Devrient is shortly expected.

The concerts which have been given in aid of the fund for the widows of the members of the orchestra, have been very attractive. At the first, M. Mendelssohn conducted a symphony of his own composition, which was well received. On the 28th of November a concert was given at the garrison church, by M. Bach, music-director. The selection consisted chiefly of his own compositions; there were, however, two sacred songs by Bernhard Klein, sterling compositions, and finely sung by Mad. Turrschmied. The concert was unfortunately less productive than would probably have been the case had the weather been less severe.

The King of Prussia has appointed Meyerbeer Maestro di Capella to the court. Till now no such office existed here, but the place has been created expressly for M. Meyerbeer, in testimony of the king’s admiration of his Robert le Diable.

DRESDEN.

A musical entertainment was given here a few weeks since by M. Fürstenau, the flute-player; in addition to whose performances, a solo was played upon the flute by his son, eight years of age. The vocal pieces were given by Mad. Schroeder Devrient, and MM. Babnigg, Vestri, and Zegi.

On the 18th of November, M. Molique, music-director to the Court at Stuttgart, played at the theatre some variations for the violin, of his own composition, upon Themas from Die Stumme, and upon Swiss airs. He is stated to combine in his playing, the best points of the German schools; his style is quiet, delicate, and tasteful, and he has, at the same time, uncommon mechanical dexterity; his tone is rich and full, and his octaves and tenths exquisitely pure; his staccato is perfect, and his adagio grand and full of expression.

MUNICH.

At the last concert of the musical academy here, the overture to Samori, by Vogler, and Weber’s Jubilee overture, were very excellently performed. Mlle. Schechner and M. Pellegrini distinguished themselves in the vocal pieces; Mlle. Violanda Dülken, from the Conservatoire at Paris, sang variations of Pacini; M. Menter played a solo on the violoncello; and Mad. Bohrer on the piano-forte.

STUTTGART.

The grand musical society which gave the Messiah so effectively last year, has considerably improved, not only in number, but also in excellence; and their recent performance of Judas Maccabeus was certainly one of the most perfect the work has ever undergone.

PESTH.

A young virtuoso on the piano-forte, Joseph Rigg, has been playing at the theatre here with very great success. He performed the first movement of a concerto of Hummel, and some variations of Czerny, with precision, sweetness, and great execution.

MILAN.

At the Teatro alla Scala, a new opera by Mercadante, called Ismalia Ossia Morte ed Amore, the Libretto by Romanelli, made a fiasco; nothing in the whole opera, save the choruses, gave satisfaction; his Donna Caritea, however, was well received, and Mlle. Vial, from Munich, who sustained the principal character, was much applauded. The principal singers here are, prime donne, Antonia Vial, Teresa Melas, Isabella Fabrica (contralto in male characters); tenore, Giuseppe Binaghi; bassi, Gio. Giordani and Filippo Spada. All of them good singers, say the Milanese, with the addition, ‘di secondo ordine.’ Thus it is when people are accustomed to hear always such singers as Pasta, Rubini, Donzelli, Lablache, Tamburini, &c.

At the Cannobiano, Generali’s somewhat old but still beautiful operetta, Adelina, has been reproduced, with Emma Albertazzi, an English lady, as Adelina; her voice is agreeable, and her style of singing not bad; her pronunciation and acting, however, are but indifferent.

The company which is to perform at La Scala during the carnival, includes the names of Tosi and Pallazesi, principal soprani; Terese Cecconi, first contralto; Reina and Pedrazzi, principal tenors; and Zuchelli and Giordani, first basses. The season will open with Donizetti’s Fausta, which has hitherto been heard only at the St. Carlo, Naples; to that will succeed a new opera, written expressly for the carnival by the young Maestro, Ricci, and called Fernando Cortez; the third is to be Caterina di Guisa, which Coccia is now employed in composing; and Mercadante is engaged to bring out a fourth, of which the name is not yet known.

Amongst the company at the Carcano are Balfe[19] and his wife, Mad. Albertini, Madlle. Michel; the tenor, Bonfigli, and the buffo, Cambiagio. This theatre will open on the 26th of December, with the Capuletti e Montecchi of Bellini.

ROME.

Teatro Valle.--The new opera buffa, Il Disertore Svizzero, by the Neapolitan maestro, Lauro Rossi, was given here with great success. The young maestro--for he is only twenty-two years of age, composed his first opera four years ago, for the Teatro Nuovo at Naples, and this is already his fourth; it is a lively and pleasing production. The prima donna, Anna del Serre, and MM. Giorgio Ranconi, Salvi, and Lauretti, contributed their utmost towards its favourable reception.

BOLOGNA.

From recent accounts, the principal singers here were Mesds. Malibran, Schoberlechner, Bonetti, Rafaella, and Venier, all prime donne; M. Pedrazzi, tenore; and Marcolino and Porto, bassi. On the 3rd of October, Donizetti’s Anna Bolena was given, and on the 13th and 16th, La Gazza Ladra, on which occasion the delightful Malibran enchanted her audience by the exquisite manner in which she sustained the part of Ninetta.

TURIN.

The contralto, Carolina Vietti, a native of this place, and pupil of the Academia Filarmonica, lately made her début at this theatre as Zadig, in Vaccaj’s Zadig ed Astarte; she gave fair promise, and received much encouragement.

NAPLES.

Madame Malibran’s performance in this city has been one continued and splendid triumph: at first, the cognoscenti of Naples were inclined to question the justice of the unbounded praises that have been lavished on this astonishing songstress, and to receive her with sang froid, and weigh her pretensions with all the coolness of determined critics; but she had no sooner opened her mouth than all this was instantly converted into an enthusiasm of applause and admiration, to which the oldest frequenters of the Opera remember no parallel. For seventeen nights the theatre was crowded at double prices, notwithstanding the subscribers’ privileges were on most of these occasions suspended, and although Otello, La Cenerentola, La Gazza Ladra, and pieces of that description, were the only ones offered to a public, long since tired even of the beauties of Rossini, and proverbial for its love of novelty. But her grand triumph of all, was on the night when she took her leave of the Neapolitan audience in the character of Ninetta: nothing can be imagined superior to the spectacle afforded by the immense theatre of St. Carlo, crowded to the very ceiling, and ringing with acclamations and applause. Six times, after the fall of the curtain, Madame Malibran was called forward to receive the reiterated applauses and adieux of an audience, which seemed unable to bear the idea of a final separation from its new idol, who had only strength and spirits left to kiss her hand to the assembled multitude, and indicate, by graceful and expressive gestures, the degree to which she was overpowered by fatigue and emotion. The scene did not even end within the walls of the theatre; a crowd of the most enthusiastic rushed from all parts of the house to the stage-door, and as soon as Madame Malibran’s sedan came out, escorted it with loud acclamations to the Palazzo Barbaja, and renewed their salutations as the charming songstress ascended the steps. Nothing can prove more decidedly how strong an impression Malibran made upon the Neapolitans, than the fact, that the next opera which was performed was received with the most mortifying coolness, though the opera itself, Donizetti’s Esule di Roma, is a standard favourite in Naples, and its various revivals, for ten years past, have been till now successful, although Lablache made his first appearance in it on his return to his native city, and Ronzi de Begnis, whose voice, action, and style, have all improved considerably during her long retreat from the stage, performed the principal female character.

CONSTANTINOPLE.

The reform which the emperor has been so industriously and zealously promoting in the manners and customs of the Turks, will soon be as complete in musical as it already is in military affairs. The Turkish, or rather Arabic music, has given way to that of Europe, and scarcely anything of melody or harmony is now heard in Constantinople that has not been imported from Italy. At four o’clock in the afternoon, at the moment of Yindy, the time when the public functionaries among the Ottomans retire from business, a band of wind instruments is daily heard traversing the interval between the courts of the new palace. This band is called the ‘Band of the Agas of the Seraglio,’ and consists entirely of young Turks who have become able performers, under the instruction of M. Donizetti, brother of the composer. At first, the combinations of European harmony, and the overtures of Rossini, were torture to the ears of all good Mussulmen, but they begin, at length, to be somewhat reconciled by use, and their holy horror at whatever proceeds from the Giaours of the West is not proof against the charms of ‘Di Tanti Palpiti,’ and numerous other melodies of Rossini, &c.

NOVARA.

The Maestro Pietro Generali, a composer of some popularity in his time, died lately in this city, of which he had been, for six years past, Maestro di Capella. Most accounts of this master have been in error, both as to his real name, and in stating him to have been a native of Rome. His name was Pietro Mercandetti, and he was born at Masserano, near Vercelli, in Piedmont; but he went to Rome with his father when very young, and studied music in that city, under an old singer belonging to the Sistine chapel. He had a happy turn for music, made a very rapid progress, and for a short time enjoyed a brilliant reputation. His success would have been greater if he had given himself less up to the dominion of his passions, and led a more regular life. During the latter years of his dramatic career many of his compositions were ill received by the public; this disgusted him with the theatre. His pecuniary means were very precarious, and feeling the necessity of making some provision for approaching age, he returned to his native country, and succeeded in attaining, as mentioned above, the situation of Maestro di Capella, at Novara. One opera of his, Adelina, has been performed both in London and Paris; and it has been said, that if Generali’s works had been more long-lived, many of Rossini’s melodies would lose their claim to originality.

DOUAY.

A society has been established here for some months, under the title of ‘Societé d’Emulation;’ the object of which is, to give the amateurs of this city and its environs an opportunity of hearing their compositions--which would otherwise probably have been doomed to remain for ever in the privacy of portfolios--performed in full orchestra. A band was quickly raised among the amateurs and professors, to the no small satisfaction of the young composers, and it may be hoped not without a fair chance of benefit to the art itself. The success of the inauguration concert surpassed the expectation of those most interested. Mr. E. de C., already favourably known as the author of a collection of romances, produced an overture, an aria for a contralto voice, a waltz without accompaniments, and a romance or two, all distinguished by a happy flow of melody, and an easy style of instrumentation, and all much and deservedly applauded. An overture and chorus by Mr. A. T., and an air with variations, for the horn, by Mr. C. C., formed part of the selection. Institutions of this nature cannot be too much encouraged.

BERGAMO.

It is a curious fact, but no less true, that by far the greater part of the celebrated tenor singers of the present and the last age, have been natives of this province. The three brothers Bianchi, David, father and son, Viganoni, Nozzari, Donzelli, Bordogni, Marchetti, Trezzini, Bonetti, Pasini Bolognesi, (a great singer, but a still greater drinker, who, when he had ruined his voice with brandy, blew out his brains because he could sing no longer,) and last, certainly not least, Rubini and his brothers, were all born in the State of Bergamo. It would be useless to seek here for basses; still more so for sopranos, for, indeed, the Bergamese are sometimes compared to birds, of whom the males only sing.

PARIS.

Mr. Field, the celebrated pianist, and most distinguished pupil of Clementi, is in this city, and proposes to give a public concert on the 25th of December. His success cannot be for an instant doubtful; for, besides ranking deservedly high as a composer, he is, perhaps, the sweetest and most beautiful performer on the pianoforte now in existence. There is in his style that inexpressible charm with which we used formerly to be so delighted when hearing Clementi, Dussek, and some other distinguished members of a school which now can hardly be said to exist but in the recollection of a few. Mr. Field represents that school in all its glory. To look at his hands, which scarcely seem to move; to contemplate the calmness of his countenance while playing, one would be tempted to suppose he was performing nothing but the easiest music in the world; while the fact is, that the greatest, the most complicated difficulties, are really no difficulties at all to him. Under Mr. Field’s fingers the piano is no longer a mere piece of mechanism; it sings, and seems as competent to produce sustained tones, as though it were played with a bow. Touched by this exquisite performer, it is a real musical instrument, and no longer a mere theatre for the exhibition of tours de force, the use to which the kind of talent possessed by a majority of what are called the greatest artists of the present day nearly confines it.

Théâtre Italien.--Although the performance of La Straniera satisfied the Parisian critics, as it had already those of London,[20] how little claim Bellini has to the rank as a composer which his Italian flatterers have assigned him! The beauty of the scenery and decorations, added to the singing of Grisi, Rubini, and more especially Tamburini, gave it a popularity which lasted through several repetitions. It was followed by Il Pirata, this by Donizetti’s Anna Bolena, and the latter by Mosè in Egitto. Otello and Don Giovanni are announced, in the latter of which the three female characters are to be performed by the two sisters Grisi and Mad. Tadolini, and the part of Don Juan by Tamburini. But for the singing and acting of Rubini, the Pirata would have been a complete failure. Mdlle. Doulx, a young lady who has obtained some reputation at the Conservatoire for the purity of her voice and the facility of her execution, selected the part of Imogene for her début: the choice was a bad one, because the qualifications necessary to make a good representative of Imogene are exactly the reverse of those which Mdlle. Doulx is said to possess: Imogene requires energy rather than grace; tone and volume of voice rather than agility in running divisions. It was impossible, however, to judge what the young lady might have done under other circumstances, for she was in a state of such dreadful alarm, especially during the first act, that not a note could be heard from her lips, and it appeared at times as if she could not support herself on the stage.

In Anna Bolena, Giudetta Grisi was no substitute for Mad. Pasta; little was attended to, and nothing applauded but Rubini’s Percy. His aria in the second act, notwithstanding its length and the fatigue of the singer, was vociferously encored. The revival of Mosè in Egitto has been very successful, but owes its success chiefly to the singing of Tamburini and Rubini, whose duet, ‘Parlar, spiegar,’ is one of the most finished exhibitions of the vocal art ever witnessed. Boccabadati was so ill on the first night, that her part, Elcia, has been since taken by Giudetta Grisi.

* * * * *

We had occasion recently to be present at a practice of the pupils educated in the Conservatoire of Classical Music, under the direction of M. Choron, and observed several circumstances, both in the system pursued by that professor, and its practical results, that appeared to us remarkable. The first thing that struck us was the extreme difficulty which must have attended the attempt to make a whole mass of people sing as an individual. At the first blush one would suppose the thing impracticable, but the patience first of the professor, and subsequently of his scholars themselves, has achieved a victory over obstacles that might have been pronounced, until the contrary was proved by the fact, insurmountable. The success of M. Choron’s system of teaching ought to attract the attention of Government the more strongly because he has had for pupils only children taken promiscuously from a population at once poor, and, unfortunately, ill-disposed towards music and the arts in general. From this circumstance some judgment may be formed of what his success would have been had his system been applied to scholars of a more select kind.

One of the most remarkable sights in Mr. Choron’s school are some children, the eldest only five years old, whom the professor obliges to listen constantly to music, with the intention of accustoming their ears to harmonic sensations. He watches with extreme care the development of their infant faculties, and observes every day a progress so sensible, as to encourage the hope that the result will be an organization entirely musical. It is to be hoped that Government will comprehend that so much devotion and intelligence deserves to be encouraged, and that it will enable the establishment directed by M. Choron to extend its efforts as widely as it formerly did, by restoring to it that assistance of which it ought never to have been deprived.

THE DRAMA.

The supply for this department of our work continues as scanty as during the last two or three months. Much is promised and in preparation at the three principal theatres, but nothing yet actually produced.

* * * * *

The circular, or prospectus, from the ~King’s Theatre~ is not yet out, though it used to be issued in the month of November, and never later than the middle of December. The Chronicle, according, to its annual custom, announces a ‘brilliant season;’ we, however, suspect that the small paragraphist does not view the prospect with the same eyes as the entrepreneur. It is evident that everything must be dull at the Italian opera till after Easter, that is to say, till the beginning of May, when those who do take boxes will engage them for only half a season. But considering the fall in the value of everything--except indeed the precious metals--will people give at the same rate for boxes now that they did when rents were high, were regularly paid without deduction, and when economy was not the order of the day in Parliament, and in his Majesty’s Councils? Will Madame Boccabadati bring five shillings to the house?--Will Matilde di Shabran draw a single person?--Will the weakest of Bellini’s feeble operas, his Montecchi e Capuletti, a wretched version of Romeo and Juliet, the music worse than even the contemptible drama--will this tempt one subscriber to place his name on the box-list, or avert the mischief which seems to threaten the King’s Theatre?

* * * * *

At ~Drury Lane~ Don Giovanni is actively preparing, and will be produced on the 4th instant. If it does not succeed it will not be for want of liberality on the part of the manager. Mr. ~Wood~ has, it is said, refused the part of Don Ottavio. Why? we would fain ask. In consequence of this, M. Begrez, who often has had the character assigned to him at the King’s Theatre, is engaged to fill it. The fact is, that it requires en excellent musician to sing this music. So anxious is Captain Polhill to bring out this chef-d’œuvre of ~Mozart~ in as perfect a manner as possible, that he has offered an engagement to ~Dragonetti~, who assisted at its first performance in this country, as principal double-base, in which capacity his services would be of more importance than those of half the persons on the stage.

* * * * *

At ~Covent Garden~ a new opera by Auber is in forwardness, but we have heard no particulars concerning it. This theatre has filled well during the last month, owing to the success of the pantomime, and also to Nell Gwynne, which, though possessing little claim to notice, has drawn very much.

* * * * *

The ~English Opera House~, the building of which is begun, will be ready to open in July next. The extended licence granted to this, and the unlimited privileges which, we have no doubt, it will soon enjoy, (as well, indeed, as the Haymarket) will enable it to meet the winter theatres on fair grounds. A theatrical revolution is at hand; smaller theatres are starting up in all quarters, and the overgrown ones must either shrink into a moderate size, or abandon every kind of dramatic representation except opera and spectacle.

In December Drury Lane filled while Covent Garden was empty. During the last month the case was reversed. Thus it has been for a long time, and thus it will continue, till some great change of system is prudently adopted.

THE MUSIC OF THE PRESENT NUMBER.

The maxim of the French milliner, Nothing so new as that which is forgotten, continually recurs in looking over long-laid-by music. The early works of ~Clementi~ are as unknown to the present generation, his Octave Lesson excepted, as the sonatas of Scarlatti, or the concertos of Emmanuel Bach, yet a single page of almost any one of them contains as much as is to be found in half a dozen of the generality of modern compositions. The sonata we have here republished--raised, we may say, from the tomb--is, considered in every point of view, a master-piece, of surpassing beauty. What a sweet, intelligible melody flows through the whole of the first movement, and how admirably set off by the harmony! The slow movement is a model of deep expression, of grandeur, and of the sublime in music[21]; and the rondo is no less remarkable for air, for gaiety, than for ingenuity--for that kind of treatment which none but a musician of the highest order knows how to bestow on a subject. The Opera VII. of Clementi was first published in Vienna, upwards of fifty years ago. We have carried a few of the passages into the octave above; and in thus slightly altering the original, have, we are persuaded, only done what the author would have approved. When he composed the Three Sonatas of this set, the additional keys had never been dreamt of: the harpsichord, for which they were written, only reached ~F~, an octave below the present highest note.

* * * * *

The Andante of ~Paradies~ is from an edition of his XII Sonata di Gravicembalo, published about seventy years since in London,--a work which charmed our grandsires, but now still less known than the early sonatas of Clementi. The notation of this composer is sometimes perplexed, and difficult of comprehension to the mere modern musician; we have, therefore, reconciled it to the present improved manner of writing, but without altering a single note, except in appearance. This movement, selected from sonata IX. needs no eulogy; the melody sings from first to last bar, and the accompaniment is that of an able contrapuntist.

Pier Dominico Paradies was a Neapolitan, a pupil of Porpora, and lived many years in London, where he arrived in 1742, and composed some operas for the King’s Theatre when under the management of the Earl of Middlesex. He was in high repute as a master, and obtained more reputation for his harpsichord lessons than his vocal works.

* * * * *

The recitative, from the opera of Giuglio Cesare, is one of the finest pieces of musical eloquence that the art ever produced. Dr. Burney says of it[22], that when sung by Senesino, it produced an effect never before equalled; and at the Ancient Concert, some fifty years ago, Pacchierotti used to draw tears from his auditors by his pathetic manner of declaiming it. Were it newly accompanied, with the addition of those instruments which Handel had not at command, we feel quite sure that it would be still as effective as ever; nay, more so, in the hands of a Braham, who surely could express such sentiments with more force than a soprano ever had the power to give them. The poetry is by Haym, who wrote or compiled the drama for Handel, in 1724, the year in which it was first produced at the King’s Theatre.

Dr. Burney[23] gives the following free translation of this recitative:--

These are thy ashes, Pompey, this the mound, Thy soul, invisible, is hovering round! Thy splendid trophies, and thy honours fade, Thy grandeur, like thyself, is now a shade: Thus fare the hopes in which we most confide, And thus the efforts end of human pride. What yesterday could hold the world in chains, To-day, transform’d to dust, an urn contains: Such is the fate of all, from cot to throne; Our origin is earth, our end a stone! Ah! wretched life! how frail and short thy joys! A breath creates thee, and a breath destroys.

It now appears for the first time with a piano-forte accompaniment. The story of this opera is from the third and fourth books of Cæsar’s Commentaries, Dion. Cassius, book xiii., and Plutarch’s Lives.

* * * * *

The gentle and sweet aria, ‘Piangero,’ though from the same opera, is not connected with the recitative, but was generally sung after it in the concerts. There is a second movement to this, which, however suited to the character to whom it is given in the drama, is not in unison with the music of the first part, nor does it follow well such a recitative, therefore was seldom performed, except on the stage; and we have omitted it altogether.

* * * * *

The arietta of ~Keiser~ is from a German opera, (which, however, has also an Italian title, La forza della Virtù,) published at Hamburg in 1701. This work, now lying before us, is uncommonly rare; we never saw or heard of another copy, in England at least. A treble and base only are printed, the latter sometimes figured, the former in the soprano clef, and being in the old German type, is not very easily decyphered. The merit of this air hardly admits of dispute, and, like all that is really good in art, has suffered nothing from the lapse of time. A remarkable circumstance connected with it is, that Handel, past all doubt, either intentionally or inadvertently,--most likely the former,--imitated it in his minuet in the overture to Samson. Whoever compares the two must see that the resemblance could not have arisen from one of those coincidences which are sometimes accidental.

Keiser, born at Weissenfels, in Saxony, about the year 1673, was the most distinguished composer of opera of his day; but how few, even of musicians, have ever heard his name pronounced! Burney says of him[24], ‘His compositions are more voluminous than those of old Scarlatti (Alessandro), and his melodies, though more than fifty years old, [i.e. in 1772] are such as would now be thought modern and graceful.’ Hasse assured Dr. Burney that Keiser was, ‘according to his conceptions, one of the greatest musicians the world ever saw[25].’

The words we have adapted to this air are from Ellis’s Specimens of the early English Poets. The accompaniment is given as faithfully as two bare lines of treble and base would allow, the latter being furnished by two figures (sixths) only.

* * * * *

The lovely song by Dr. Arne was composed in 1769, for Shakspeare’s Jubilee at Stratford-on-Avon. Garrick wrote the words, which, it must be confessed, are not so perfect as the music set to them. Lovely as is this air, we suspect that but few in the present day know of its existence. It has never before, we believe, appeared with a distinct accompaniment; and our copy of the song carries signs of having been published more than half a century ago.

* * * * *

Of Mr. Horncastle’s glee, composed purposely for this work, we will only say, that we have deemed it worthy of being associated with the music of this Number; and that if it had not been set in a light and simple manner, the composer would not have expressed the words in their true spirit.

[Sidenote: ~March~, 1833.]

MEMOIR OF C. F. ZELTER.

The name of the subject of the present memoir, though celebrated in Germany, particularly in Prussia and the Northern States, is almost wholly unknown in this country. It was first heard of in England, in consequence of the visits of M. Mendelssohn Bartholdy, whose brilliant genius and rapidly rising fame, naturally led to an inquiry respecting the school in which he was brought up; when it appeared that he owed his musical knowledge to M. Zelter. The renown of the disciple was reflected on the master, and we became anxious to obtain a sight of some of his compositions; when, after a long and diligent search, we were fortunate enough to meet with a MS. (unpublished) scena by him, which at once announced the great ability of the author, the aria whereof, adapted from the original score, will be found in our present number.

Gerber, in his biographical lexicon, gives a lengthened memoir of M. Zelter, to which we are indebted for the following account; though we have discarded much which, if not savouring of prolixity, would at least prove uninteresting to English readers. M. Zelter was what here is frequently denominated an architect, though he modestly called himself a master-builder. He was during the greater part of his life a dilettante; but when he accepted an office, he certainly became a professor.

* * * * *

~Carl Friedrich Zelter~ was born at Berlin, in 1758. His father, a Saxon, had him instructed during his childhood and youth in various elegant, as well as useful, acquirements. Engaged in the cultivation of his mind, for which purpose he attended the Joachimsthal College, he had already attained his seventeenth year, when he was articled to his father’s business, that of a builder. Hitherto he had not shown much inclination for music, and had manifested but little attention to the instruction he received on the piano-forte and organ, from a Berlin organist.

After a tedious and painful illness by which he was attacked in his eighteenth year, an extraordinary passion for music all at once sprung up in him. But as at this period nearly the whole of his time was devoted to his professional pursuits, the evening alone was left to him to satisfy his thirst for harmony. Thus whole nights were frequently spent in copying music, and in practising the violin and piano-forte. This enjoyment, however, was but of short duration, for his instructor in the latter instrument could no longer attend him; and, fearing that such constant and unwearied application might injure his health, his father endeavoured to check his voluntary studies. But this did not stop his progress, for as he was now deprived of his instruments, he began to compose, for which purpose only pen, ink and paper were necessary. He had no rules, and being governed only by his fancy, his deficiency in the knowledge of composition was constantly manifesting itself, and having no acquaintance with scientific musicians, he had no means of gaining information through the medium of conversation; he, therefore, procured some scores of Emanuel Bach and Hasse, the study of which showed him the importance of order and unity in composition, and taught him how to preserve a constant flow of melody in the middle parts.

Now, however, his health actually began to sink under his exertions, and the many privations to which his earnest application subjected him. His thoughts were exclusively devoted to the art by which he was enamoured, and all else was neglected. His business was neglected for it, and his health ruined. His father again remonstrated, and the young enthusiast renewed his promises of obedience; he for some days took more sleep, and paid more attention to his affairs; but in less than a month relapsed into his former habits, though he did also attend to his drawing, his geometry, and other business; but at the same time prosecuted his musical studies with all the ardour which his little remaining strength would permit.

In the year, 1783, having completed his probationary architectural drawing, he was admitted among the number of master builders. And now, for the first time, he received lessons, in counterpoint, from M. Fasch. ‘I have,’ he himself states, ‘made as much use of this excellent instruction as I possibly could, in the midst of my other occupations. To this worthy M. Fasch I am entirely indebted for whatever merit many of my compositions may possess.’

After alluding to three themas with variations of his composition, published at Berlin, and many songs, scattered in various publications, he adds, ‘I have besides composed several pieces of music for particular occasions. The best among these are a cantata upon the death of the emperor Friedrich II. in the year 1787, and another cantata upon the birthday of a beloved mother, in the year 1793. A variety of single arias and scenas, many of which I scarcely even can recollect, are not to be taken into account. The concerto for the tenor which I composed, in the year 1780, if it has merit, has on the other hand many faults, and is not theoretically correct. All the rest of my musical works are studies, consisting of fugued choral pieces and fugues, which I have never considered worthy of preservation. If I should hereafter be enabled to devote more time to my beloved art, I hope to indemnify the Friends of my Muse, if any such there be, for those works which from precipitance, or without any blame attaching to me, have already been brought before the public.’

Thus far only, M. Gerber states, ‘extend the particulars which M. Zelter had the kindness to furnish me with in 1793. But it is necessary to add a few explanatory observations. For the benefit of such of my readers as have no other idea of a master-builder, than that he must be begirt with a leathern apron, and armed with a trowel, I must remind them, in the first place, that M. Zelter’s tools consisted solely in a case of drawing instruments and a pen; and that no one can have any conception of his great, his important occupations, who has not had an opportunity of witnessing the solid taste, the grandeur and splendour, of the architecture of Berlin.’ How many an artist might, with a feeling of shame, look upon this pattern of activity, who, day after day, superintended the building of various great edifices; yet, nevertheless, ever bore in mind, with reference to music, the words of Horace, nulla dies sine linea. In order also to be as useful as possible when his fatiguing professional duties of the day were completed, he in his hours of relaxation, joined the singing academy of M. Fasch, and became one of its most active members; indeed, it may be said that he was M. Fasch’s right hand.

And when, in the year 1797, M. Gerber revisited Berlin M. Zelter singly, at the piano-forte, directed the whole, while M. Fasch, then become aged and infirm, was most commonly a silent listener in one corner of the room. And this school, or society, performed before MM. Naumann, Himmel, and other distinguished composers, one of Naumann’s learned compositions written for them, (a Latin psalm,) and a part of Fasch’s masterpiece for four choirs. In the same year, too, M. Zelter conducted Graun’s Tod Jesu at the Opera House, in which the choruses were sung by the united members of Fasch’s society; the orchestra having consisted of the members of the Royal Chapel, and the best amateurs in Berlin.

The following are the titles of M. Zelter’s detached papers and compositions. On the representation of Gluck’s opera, Alceste, at the Berlin Opera House, from the letters of an artist, published in the fifth Number of the Journal, entitled Deutschland. Berlin, 1796. After many interesting observations upon the dramatic treatment of the story by Calsabigi, he remarks, ‘the conductor of the opera should always have the right to wield the helm of the vessel, because he is more likely to enter into the beauties of an excellent poem, than a poet is to understand anything of music, even what is meant by a dissonance.’ Analysis of a scene from Benda’s Romeo und Julie, in the first volume of the Lyceum of the Fine Arts. Berlin, 1797-8. Dance and aria from the opera Axur, with variations for the piano-forte.--La Malade, pièce caracteristique pour le Clavecin.--Schiller’s Ode an die Freude, (Ode to joy,) for the piano-forte. Seize chorales composées par M. M. Reichardt, Gürrlich, Zelter, &c. Trinklied (Drinking Song) of K. Müchler. Twelve songs with piano-forte accompaniment. The following greater vocal productions also are quoted in Rellstab’s catalogue. Aria di Bravura: Grato Flauto, &c., p. Soprano con Flauto concertato. Rondo a 6; Dove sei, mia bella nice, &c., p. Soprano con Flauto concertato. Fragment from Wieland’s Serafine in score; all of which were already written about the year 1790; and another of the same description from his celebrated cantata, already alluded to, on the death of the emperor Friedrich II.

The following works of his also have appeared in print:--Memoir of Carl Friedrich Christian Fasch, by C. F. Zelter, with a portrait; Berlin, 1801. Another set of twelve songs with piano-forte accompaniment. Der Taucher, (the Diver,) by Schiller, for the piano-forte. Collection of ballads and songs; books 1, 2, 3, 4. Johanna Sebus, for several voices, with piano-forte. He subsequently collected his gems of songs and arias of every description, and published them in numbers. There is also a Te Deum of his composition.

In 1809, Zelter was appointed, by the King, professor of music at the Berlin academy of arts and sciences; and as a proof that it was not a mere empty title conferred upon him, the King called him the very same year to Königsberg, to attempt the revival of a taste for church music, which had sunk to a very low ebb; a task for which he was eminently qualified. At the commencement of this year, too, a new society had been formed at Berlin, consisting of about twenty-four male members of the singing academy, under the name of The Liedertafel, (the Vocal Club,) of which Zelter was president. The members were divided into two bodies of tenors, and two of bases; they assembled once a month, and sang their songs, the poetry and music being of their own production, their president making his remarks on them. In fact, it was a revival, in a much improved form, of the guild of the old German ‘meister-sänger,’ and did no little credit to the state of cultivation, and the attainments of the dilettanti of Berlin.

M. Zelter died, at a rather advanced age, in 1832.

* * * * *

ON BEETHOVEN’S OPINION OF CONTEMPORARY COMPOSERS.

To the ~Editor~ of the ~Harmonicon~.

~Sir~,

Your last number contains some anecdotes of Beethoven, which must be interesting to every true lover of music. The opinions, however, of artists in regard to the works of others, are, from one cause or another, but too often tinctured by prejudice, and ought, therefore, to be received cautiously.--And I am induced to trouble you with these remarks in consequence of having read the opinions said to have been passed by that great master on the genius of Rossini and Weber. He is stated to have pronounced that ‘Rossini is a good scene painter, and nothing more.’ If the art of moving the mind by dramatic effect, either in music or poetry, rank no higher than that of a dauber of scenes, then is the observation applicable to Rossini, and equally so to Shakspeare.

To every unprejudiced person the motive of Beethoven’s comparison will be sufficiently obvious, and be easily pardoned on the score of disappointed feelings, and the comparative indifference to which it is to be feared he was unjustly doomed. But it is not to such that I would direct my observations. There is a numerous body of soi-disant amateurs and professional composers, who will receive as Gospel the casual remark of a mind enfeebled and irritated by misfortune and infirmity. The silly cry, once (in this country) so prevalent against Rossini, is not, among the ignorant and bigoted, yet wholly silent. And it is surely a grateful duty on the part of all admirers of his almost unparalleled genius to vindicate him against the cur-like assaults of his detractors. Let us not forget that in advocating the cause of Rossini, we are maintaining that of every young composer of talent--for the same spirit which prompts the pack to raise their ‘most sweet voices’ against him, would doubtless actuate them to cry down Beethoven himself, were he now beginning his career, and its blighting effects may, but too often, be noticed in the case of our native composers.

It may be asked, how Beethoven and Spohr escape? The answer is obvious. Beethoven is dead, and his reputation is securely established; while Spohr has much learning and a moderate portion of genius, and is not likely, therefore, to interfere with the solemn stupidity of our musical magnificos. I can remember, a few years back, hearing Beethoven’s symphony in C minor pronounced ‘an absurd piece of nonsense’ by one of the ignoramuses who now exalt it to the skies.[26]

~Justus.~

ON CANON, BY L. VAN BEETHOVEN[27].

In Canon, when written in the unison,--namely for like voices, or in the octave--the strictest imitation must be observed, from the first note to the last. But it may also be composed in all the other intervals, the second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, and ninth, in which, however, exceptions and deviations necessarily occur sometimes. Here is the true arena for the tricks of art, and for plodding subtilty.

The different kinds of Canon are--

1. The terminating (or finite) canon, when the melody closes with a perfect cadence.

2. The endless canon, (or infinite) which always begins over again, and in which the parts leave off arbitrarily, at a half or a whole cæsure.

3. The Canon by augmentation.

4. The Canon by diminution.

5. The Close Canon, when the coming in of the parts is only marked by signs, and the whole movement is written on in one staff, without rests.

6. The Open Canon, in which the parts are written one above the other, with the necessary rests before the appearance of each, therefore in the manner of a score.

7. The Retrogade Canon, or Canon Cancrizans.

8. The Double Canon, in four parts; the thrice-double, in six; and the four-times double, in eight.

9. The Canon Climax, (Polymorphus) the Circular Canon, the construction of which is explained by the name.

10. The Numerical and Enigmatic Canons, which, like everything that partakes of the nature of a riddle, are more easy to invent than to solve, and seldom yield the smallest compensation for the time and trouble bestowed on them. In former times people took a pride in racking their brains with such contrivances; the world is however grown wiser![28]

The Canon in the unison, for similar voices, is, properly speaking, nothing else than a complete duet, trio, quartet, &c., in which the parts come in one after the other, each commencing when the preceding one has finished the melody. The voice, or part, beginning second, is usually that which forms the base, and, conjoined with one or two parts, completes the whole. Example. [To which we have applied a stanza from Otway’s Enchantment.]

Plan of a terminating Canon in unison, for Three Treble Voices.

In the following manner it becomes a Close Canon, and the third part is written next after the first.

In such alternation of the voices, the whole may be repeated as often as the singers please, or till the hearers are tired. As each must sing the whole quite through, the compass of the notes is to be well considered, so that no one lies too high or too low. As an Open Canon, this composition presents itself in the following form.

From the double bars, where the voices are united, they proceed in continued alternation.

Canon for Three Male Voices.

[To which, the composer having set no words to it, we have added a Grace, once in much use.]

N.B. It is better and more pleasing if the voices do not commence all at the same time. [This remark was unnecessary, as the voices in such canons never begin together.]

[The Author then gives the same Canon as a close and open one, but as these are similar in form to the first, it is not necessary to insert them.]

The same mode of treatment is adopted in writing canons of four or more parts, in unison.

[The Author has followed this observation by an example, but as it is not of an interesting kind, and exactly resembles in rule and order the preceding, we omit it.]

Canons in other intervals are more difficult of invention. In these it is usual to place the clefs of the several parts before the mark of time, in the order of their gradual succession; or to point out such order by means of figures, denoting the distance of the interval, placed above or below the note where it is intended that each part should commence[31]. See, for instance, the following four-part Canon, constructed on the lower fifth and lower octave.

[The Author gives this in score: we have reduced it to two staves to save space, and for the convenience of many who are not accustomed to music in parts. Beethoven leaves it without any termination: by means of the repeat the effect intended is produced, and thus a close is obtained. This will be found in score, with a Hallelujah, Amen, adapted to it, among the music of the present number.]

This, in the first way mentioned, would be written as a close Canon in the following manner--

By which those who understand the matter, will discover that the soprano commences; that at the second bar the alto follows in the lower fifth; at the fourth bar the tenor begins in the lower octave of the soprano; and finally that, at the fifth bar, the base comes in as lower fifth of the preceding part, or as lower octave of the alto. In the second way spoken of above, the same composition would have the following appearance--

The figures underneath indicate--5, the commencement of the alto in the lower fifth; 8, that of the tenor in the lower octave; and 12, that of the base voice in the Duodecima gravi.

The Chromatic Canon.

[We have also reduced the above to two staves, for the reasons before assigned.]

More mystical still appears the Enigmatic Canon. In such, generally, are found neither signs, figures, nor letters, and frequently even no clef. The problem is a matter of mere keen guess work, and pondering and poring over it, till, with the subtilty of an Œdipus, one arrives at the truth, and the correct solution presents itself in harmonic purity. In such cases it is necessary to try the subject by transposing it into every higher and lower interval; by inverting it and casting it into contrary motion; by interpolating longer or shorter rests; by trying it backwards; by augmenting or diminishing the value of the notes; and even by applying the obsolete clefs, the mezzo-soprano, and baritone or tenor-base, in order to undo the Gordian knot; a task, however, which is, unfortunately, not to be accomplished in the easy manner resorted to by the son of the Macedonian Philip. And what good can result from all this? Multum clamoris, parum lanæ! Possibly I may try my hand at it one of these days, when I have nothing of a more reasonable nature to occupy my time. At present, thank Heaven! I am not in that predicament, and it will be a tolerably long while, I suspect, before I am.

* * * * *

THE ECCLESIASTICAL CHOIRS OF GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND.

No. VI.--ARMAGH, IRELAND.

The city of Armagh is the ecclesiastical metropolis of Ireland, and owes its origin and pre-eminence to St. Patrick, the acknowledged apostle of Ireland, who built its cathedral and other religious edifices in the year 445. St. Patrick constituted Armagh the mistress and metropolis of Ireland, fixing there the Primatial See, of which he is generally supposed to have been the first bishop. But further information on the subject may be found in Stuart’s Historical Memoirs of Armagh.

The cathedral establishment of Armagh was incorporated in the tenth year of Charles I. by a charter drawn up by Archbishop Laud, granting certain lands (called Ballyboes) and impropriations for the continual performance of divine service. The most curious, or rather flagitious, part of this charter is, the power it gives to the Primate of Armagh to act as his own visitor; or, in other words, to be judge in all cases whenever the inferior members of the church may appeal against his authority, however unjustly exercised by himself, his agent, or commissioner; and he has the power to suspend, or even expel, any member of the choir at his pleasure,--the injured individual having no legal means whatever of seeking redress! After searching the records of many other establishments of this kind, nowhere do we find such an instance of clerical assumption; but it is worthy of Laud, and of the reign in which he was allowed to exercise other tyrannies of the most insulting, and grossest kind.

The establishment consists of a Dean and four Prebendaries, four Rural Deans, seven Vicars-Choral, an Organist, and eight Choristers, who perform divine service twice on Sundays, and once on Wednesdays and Fridays. In the cathedral are two organs; one by Father Smith, seldom used,--the other, a very superior instrument, by Snetzler. Formerly the organist and vicars-choral managed their own revenue, which, arising from town lands adjacent to the city, and from the renewal of leases, is often considerable; but latterly this, their own business, has been taken out of their hands. A commissioner, appointed by the primate, together with the agent, who is also an officer of the archbishop, manage this between them, irresponsible to the vicars-choral, and under no control but that of their diocesan, who has the power of suspending or expelling any complainant by his own authority; and, let it be recollected, without the unfortunate sufferer having the power of appeal!

The salary of the organist and master of the boys is 160_l._, to which are added a large house and garden. The salary of the vicars is 90_l._ a year, with house and garden. This sum cannot increase, but may diminish. And now, when any vicar dies, it is the scandalous practice to appoint a deputy, or assistant, in his stead, who receives about half the salary: it is, therefore, unnecessary to say that the duty is performed in a manner correspondent to the abridged emoluments of the office. The choristers are boarded and educated in the house of the organist; and, when their voices change, they are apprenticed out to some trade, or retained as assistants, if capable. Some attempt to obtain a livelihood by teaching singing, &c.

Not the least remarkable feature in this establishment is the set of orders and statutes drawn up for the government of the vicars-choral. The two following will show the spirit in which they are conceived:--

14th.--All the vicars shall be liable to the archbishop’s visitation, and shall appear in the chapter-room before the archbishop, or his visitor, when they are thereunto called, upon all occasions; and if the archbishop or his visitor, in some special causes that concern the good of the church, urge any vicar to declare his knowledge, and the said vicar refuse to declare the same, he shall be urged thereto by all lawful means, and if he shall then refuse, he shall, after three admonitions, be expelled.

‘It is further ordered and enacted, that the vicars-choral shall not at any time presume to grant away, alien, demise, let, or dispose of any parcel of the lands, tenements, or hereditaments, which they do now possess and enjoy, in right of their being vicars-choral of the cathedral church of St. Patrick, Armagh, to any person or persons, bodies politic or corporate, for any greater or longer estate or term than the term of one year, without the consent, allowance, and direction of the archbishop, under pain of immediate expulsion and deprivation for the same, to every such of the aforesaid vicars who shall transgress therein.’

The foregoing proves beyond contradiction the justice and policy of abolishing such an ecclesiastical tyranny as that of Armagh; and, doubtless, the bill proposed by Lord Grey will get rid of other nuisances as great, though not so notorious, as those which are so glaring in the church of the primate of Ireland.

CANTERBURY.

The Choral School of Canterbury cathedral is coeval with the establishment of the national church, St. Augustine having introduced the chanted service still retained in our cathedrals. The science of music was universally cultivated by the clergy, and so completely identified with religious offices, that, in the language of our ancestors, to sing and to pray were used as synonymous terms.

At the reformation Henry VIII. new-modelled and regulated the cathedral, and gave to the church a code of statutes, which were afterwards modified by Archbishop Laud, and confirmed by Charles I. The fifth chapter of this code determines the number of persons to be maintained out of the revenues granted to the cathedral for this purpose;--they are,

1 Dean. 12 Canons or Prebendaries. 1 Lecturer in Theology. 6 Preachers. 24 Minor Canons, Clerical and Lay. 1 Master of the Choristers. 10 Choristers, &c. &c.

The choristers are to be appointed by the dean (or, in his absence, the sub-dean and chapter); they are to be ‘of tender age, with clear voices and musical talent.’

‘To instruct these boys,’ says the statute, ‘and especially to train them in decorum of manners, and to teach them the art of singing, and to play skilfully upon musical instruments, one clerk shall be chosen, of good conduct and character, and a proficient in music, who shall carefully employ his time in the performance of divine service, and in playing upon the organ, and who shall also be occupied in the care and education of the choristers.

‘And because it may happen that one of the minor-canons or clerks may be better qualified than the organist to instruct the choristers, the dean, &c. shall have the power to elect either the organist or such of the minor clerks as may appear most worthy to perform this duty; which if he neglect, let him, after a third admonition, be deposed from his office, by the authority of those by whom he was elected.’

It also appears that the children of the Chapel Royal, when their voices had changed, were frequently sent to the Grammar School belonging to the cathedral to complete their education; for Laud had been dean of the King’s Chapel, and as such had the superintendence of the choristers belonging to the royal household, and retained an interest in their welfare when no longer officially connected with them. The statute runs thus:--

‘And so often as the dean of our Chapel Royal shall signify to the Dean and Chapter of our church of Canterbury that he will send from our chapel a chorister, who has served there till the breaking of his voice, to study grammar in our church, we will that the Dean and Chapter elect and admit, without fraud or collusion [the king or the archbishop could have had no very favourable opinion of the integrity of the dignitaries of his church], the chorister so nominated.’

The musical establishment of this cathedral at present consists of 6 minor-canons, at about 100_l._ per annum, with a good house, and a living soon after their election; an organist at 100_l._ per annum, with a house; 12 lay-vicars at from 40_l._ to 50_l._ per annum; and 10 choristers, or boys, at 6_l._ per annum.

The service is daily. The choristers are taught (or ought to be) singing three times a week in the church, where there is a musical school-room; and learn reading, writing, and arithmetic, at private schools, at the expense of the church; the latter being a regulation lately introduced by the Dean and Chapter, who, probably, having a foresight of what seems now near at hand, thought it prudent to do something out of their large revenues for the active and useful members of the church. With this view they have also, we are told, augmented the salaries of the lay-clerks, by the liberal addition of 10_l._ The time, however, is fast approaching when the real labourers in the service of religion will be paid according to their work; then will our church be better served and more respected.

MEMOIRS OF DR. BURNEY,

Arranged from his own Manuscripts, from Family Papers, and from Personal Recollections. By his Daughter, Madame ~D’Arblay~. Moxon, Bond-street, 9 vols. 8vo.

Had we supposed, after so long a delay, that Madame D’Arblay really meant to publish a life of her father, we certainly should have delayed our memoir of Dr. Burney till enabled to profit by so authentic an account as the present, which was written under advantages that only one of his family could have possessed, and which give an interest to it that could not have been imparted by any other pen.

In the year 1782, while yet in his prime, and possessing in full vigour his intellectual faculties, Dr. Burney contemplated and even commenced writing memoirs of his own life. An introduction which he began to draw up for his intended work, says, ‘Perhaps few have been better enabled to describe, from an actual survey, the manners and customs of the age in which he lived, than myself; ascending from those of the most humble cottagers, and lowest mechanics, to the first nobility, and most elevated personages with whom circumstances, situation, and accident, at different periods of my life, have rendered me familiar. Oppressed and laborious husbandmen; insolent and illiberal yeomanry; overgrown farmers; generous and hospitable merchants; men of business and men of pleasure; men of letters; men of science; artists; sportsmen and country squires; dissipated and extravagant voluptuaries; gamesters; ambassadors; statesmen; and even sovereign princes, I have had opportunities of examining in almost every point of view: all these it is my intention to display in their respective situations; and to delineate their virtues, vices, and apparent degrees of happiness and misery.’

It must be acknowledged that this bill of fare is marked by self-confidence, and that it would have required no common observation and talent to fulfil the promises held out. Unfortunately we are left in the dark how far Dr. Burney could have kept his word, for the plan appears to have been abandoned as rapidly as it was conceived, and never returned to till the year 1807, when the doctor was already an octogenarian, and a paralytic attack had perhaps acted on his mind as it certainly had on his body. From this time, however, he is said to have composed many manuscript volumes of various sizes, containing the history of his life, from his cradle nearly to his grave.--Whether in these memoirs the doctor displayed the characters, and entered into the concerns of the cottagers, mechanics, husbandmen, yeomanry, farmers, or even artists (of the same profession) according to the promises of his own prospectus, the present work affords us no means of judging: it is essentially, and from title-page to colophon, a book of the drawing-room and the boudoir; it is conversant alone with the Corinthian order of society, the porcelain clay of humanity; not an individual undistinguished either by rank, title, fashion, or literary fame, is judged worthy the honours of the sitting, and although the enumeration of dinner and evening parties, visitings and conversazioni, is far from scanty, yet, for all that appears in these three volumes, the historian of music may never have formed an acquaintance with, or received at his table, a brother musician in the course of his long life; except, indeed, some foreign singers, of whose private performances at his house we shall presently have to extract an account.

A list of some dozen celebrated names is given, indeed, as always happy to accept Dr. Burney’s invitations, and assist at his musical parties; but of the private familiar intercourse which must have taken place between him and his fellow-professors, we have not a trace. If this is his own omission, we must say it is in bad taste; he may have wished towards the close of his life to be considered rather as a literary man and a wit than as a musician; but, if so, he forgot that it was the union of the two characters which rendered his case remarkable, and called so much of public attention to him.

The memoirs, however, form a very amusing book, full of anecdotes, which if sometimes a little too long, and at others scarcely of importance enough to have merited recording at this distance of time, are always lively and well told, and are the more interesting, as they introduce the reader to the familiar society of Dr. Johnson, Garrick, Burke, Bruce the traveller, Sir Joshua Reynolds, and the whole constellation of wits and literary characters both male and female, which shone with such lustre from fifty to sixty years ago. The picture of parental and family attachment, too, which these volumes display, is in the highest degree charming in itself, and honorable to the parties concerned, who must all have been highly amiable to have been thus, without exception, beloved and loving.

Our readers are aware that Dr. Burney’s first introduction to London was as an articled scholar to Dr. Arne, who appears to have given him very little instruction, but to have, on the other hand, worked him very hard in the monotonous drudgery of music copying; nevertheless, the young apprentice, drawing upon his own resources, both of genius and industry, contrived to compose anonymously a part of the music for a revival of Thomson’s Masque of Alfred, and two other small pieces, a burletta of Robin Hood, and a pantomime called Queen Mab. From this unworthy servitude the doctor was at length rescued before the expiration of his articles, by an event so odd in itself, so creditable to the good sense and manly feeling of two, at least, of the parties concerned in it, and so well told by the authoress, that we extract her account at length.

A Mr. Fulke Greville, a near relation of Lord Warwick, and a man of large fortune and high fashion,--

One morning while trying a new instrument at the house of Kirkman, the first harpsichord-maker of the times, expressed a wish to receive musical instruction from some one who had mind and cultivation, as well as finger and ear; lamenting, with strong contempt, that, in the musical tribe, the two latter were generally dislocated from the two former; and gravely asking Kirkman whether he knew any young musician who was fit company for a gentleman.

Kirkman, with honest zeal to stand up for the credit of the art by which he prospered, and which he held to be insulted by this question, warmly answered that he knew many; but, very particularly, one member of the harmonic corps, who had as much music in his tongue as in his hands, and who was as fit company for a prince as for an orchestra.

Mr. Greville, with much surprise, made sundry and formal inquiries into the existence, situation, and character of what he called so great a phenomenon; protesting there was nothing he so much desired as the extraordinary circumstance of finding any union of sense with sound.

The replies of the good German were so exciting, as well as satisfactory, that Mr. Greville became eager to see the youth thus extolled; but charged Mr. Kirkman not to betray a word of what had passed, that the interview might be free from restraint, and seem to be arranged merely for showing off the several instruments that were ready for sale, to a gentleman who was disposed to purchase one of the most costly.

To this injunction Mr. Kirkman agreed, and conscientiously adhered.

* * * * *

A day was appointed, and the meeting took place.

Young Burney, with no other idea than that of serving Kirkman, immediately seated himself at an instrument, and played various pieces of Geminiani, Corelli, and Tartini, whose compositions were then most in fashion. But Mr. Greville, secretly suspicious of some connivance, coldly and proudly walked about the room; took snuff from a finely enamelled snuff box, and looked at some prints, as if wholly without noticing the performance.

He had, however, too much penetration not to perceive his mistake, when he remarked the incautious carelessness with which his inattention was returned; for soon, conceiving himself to be playing to very obtuse ears, young Burney left off all attempt at soliciting their favour; and only sought his own amusement by trying favourite passages, or practising difficult ones, with a vivacity which showed that his passion for his art rewarded him in itself for his exertions. But coming, at length, to keys of which the touch, light and springing, invited his stay, he fired away in a sonata of Scarlatti’s with an alternate excellence of execution and expression, so perfectly in accord with the fanciful flights of that wild but masterly composer, that Mr. Greville, satisfied no scheme was at work to surprise or to win him; but, on the contrary, that the energy of genius was let loose upon itself, and enjoying, without premeditation, its own lively sports and vagaries, softly drew a chair to the harpsichord, and listened, with unaffected earnestness, to every note.

Nor were his ears alone curiously awakened; his eyes were equally occupied to mark the peculiar performance of intricate difficulties; for the young musician had invented a mode of adding neatness to brilliancy, by curving the fingers, and rounding the hand, in a manner that gave them a grace upon the keys quite new at that time, and entirely of his own devising.

To be easily pleased, however, or to make acknowledgment of being pleased at all, seems derogatory to strong self-importance; Mr. Greville, therefore, merely said, “You are fond, Sir, it seems, of Italian music?”

The reply to this was striking up, with all the varying undulations of the crescendo, the diminuendo, the pealing swell, and the “dying, dying fall” belonging to the powers of the pedal, that most popular masterpiece of Handel’s, the Coronation Anthem.

This quickness of comprehension, in turning from Italian to German, joined to the grandeur of the composition, and the talents of the performer, now irresistibly vanquished Mr. Greville; who, convinced of Kirkman’s truth with regard to the harmonic powers of this son of Apollo, desired next to sift it with regard to the wit.

Casting off, therefore, his high reserve, with his jealous surmises, he ceased to listen to the music, and started some theme that was meant to lead to conversation.

But as this essay, from not knowing to what the youth might be equal, consisted of such inquiries as, “Have you been in town long, Sir?” or, “Does your taste call you back to the country, Sir?” &c. &c., his young hearer, by no means preferring this inquisitorial style, to the fancy of Scarlatti, or the skill and depth of Handel, slightly answered, “Yes, Sir,” or “No, Sir;” and, perceiving an instrument not yet tried, darted to it precipitately, and seated himself to play a voluntary.

The charm of genuine simplicity is nowhere more powerful than with the practised and hackneyed man of the world; for it induces what, of all things, he most rarely experiences, a belief in sincerity.

Mr. Greville, therefore, though thwarted, was not displeased; for in a votary of the art he was pursuing, he saw a character full of talents, yet without guile; and conceived, from that moment, an idea that it was one he might personally attach. He remitted, therefore, to some other opportunity, a further internal investigation.

Mr. Kirkman now came forward to announce, that in the following week he should have a new harpsichord, with double keys, and a deepened base, ready for examination.

They then parted, without any explanation on the side of Mr. Greville; or any idea on that of the subject of these memoirs, that he and his acquirements were objects of so peculiar a speculation.

At the second interview young Burney innocently and eagerly flew at once to the harpsichord, and tried it with various recollections from his favourite composers.

Mr. Greville listened complacently and approvingly; but, at the end of every strain, made a speech that he intended should lead to some discussion.

Young Burney, however, more alive to the graces of melody than to the subtleties of argument, gave answers that always finished with full-toned chords, which as constantly modulated into another movement; till Mr. Greville, tired and impatient, suddenly proposed changing places, and trying the instrument himself.

He could not have devised a more infallible expedient to provoke conversation; for he thrummed his own chosen bits by memory with so little skill or taste, yet with a pertinacity so wearisome, that young Burney, who could neither hearken to such playing, nor turn aside from such a player, caught with alacrity at every opening to discourse, as an acquittal from the fatigue of mock attention.

This eagerness gave a piquancy to what he said, that stole from him the diffidence that might otherwise have hung upon his inexperience; and endued him with a courage for uttering his opinions, that might else have faded away under the trammels of distant respect.

This meeting concluded the investigation; music, singing her gay triumph, took her stand at the helm; and a similar victory for capacity and information awaited but a few intellectual skirmishes, on poetry, politics, morals, and literature,--in the midst of which Mr. Greville, suddenly and gracefully holding out his hand, fairly acknowledged his scheme, proclaimed its success, and invited the unconscious victor to accompany him to Wilbury House.

Of Mr. Greville, young Burney soon became a confidential companion; he accompanied his patron into all companies; was introduced to all his friends and associates; and, of course, made many connexions that were highly valuable in after life. After Mr. Greville’s marriage, Burney still continued to reside in the family, and was to have accompanied it on a foreign tour, but love had by this time taken possession of his heart, and instead of travelling on the continent, he, while still in his minority, married his first wife, Miss Esther Sleepe, a lady, whose personal charms and genuine worth are beautifully enshrined by the eloquence and affection of her daughter.

The account given of Dr. Burney’s first settlement in London after his marriage, and of his migration to Lynn, affords us no opportunity of altering or adding, in any material point, to the biographical article in our number for last October. His residence in Norfolk was fruitful in new and valuable connexions, and contributed to the full restoration of his health. It was while thus an exile from the capital and its circles, however, that Mr. Burney laid the foundation of his intimacy with Dr. Johnson; an intimacy which never suffered interruption or diminution, and ended but with the life of the latter. Burney had always been an enthusiastic admirer of Johnson’s writings, and when his dictionary was announced, exerted himself so strenuously in its favour throughout his Norfolk circuit, that he soon collected a little list of subscribers, which afforded him an opportunity of expressing his admiration to the object of it; and the following letter made the opening to a connexion he always considered as one of the greatest honours of his life.

~Mr. Burney to Mr. Johnson.~

Sir,--Though I have never had the happiness of a personal knowledge of you, I cannot think myself wholly a stranger to a man with whose sentiments I have so long been acquainted; for it seems to me as if the writer, who was sincere, had effected the plan of that philosopher who wished men had windows at their breasts, through which the affections of their hearts might be viewed.

It is with great self-denial that I refrain from giving way to panegyric in speaking of the pleasure and instruction I have received from your admirable writings; but knowing that transcendent merit shrinks more at praise, than either vice or dulness at censure, I shall compress my encomiums into a short compass, and only tell you that I revere your principles and integrity, in not prostituting your genius, learning, and knowledge of the human heart, in ornamenting vice or folly with those beautiful flowers of language due only to wisdom and virtue. I must add, that your periodical productions seem to me models of true genius, useful learning, and elegant diction, employed in the service of the purest precepts of religion, and the most inviting morality.

I shall waive any further gratification of my wish to tell you, Sir, how much I have been delighted by your productions, and proceed to the business of this letter; which is no other than to beg the favour of you to inform me, by the way that will give you the least trouble, when, and in what manner, your admirably planned, and long wished-for Dictionary will be published? If it should be by subscription, or you should have any books at your own disposal, I shall beg of you to favour me with six copies for myself and friends, for which I will send you a draft.

I ought to beg pardon of the public as well as yourself, Sir, for detaining you thus long from your useful labours; but it is the fate of men of eminence to be persecuted by insignificant friends as well as enemies; and the simple cur who barks through fondness and affection, is no less troublesome than if stimulated by anger and aversion.

I hope, however, that your philosophy will incline you to forgive the intemperance of my zeal and impatience in making these inquiries; as well as my ambition to subscribe myself, with very great regard,

Sir, your sincere admirer, and most humble servant,

~Charles Burney.~

Lynn Regis, 16th Feb., 1755.

In 1760, Mr. Burney returned to London, and fixed his residence in Poland-street, soon collecting round him a circle of pupils, in the highest degree encouraging to his prospects. The anxiety displayed in this part of the Memoir to satisfy the reader that Poland-street was not then the vulgar despised thoroughfare that it is now, but that even dukes and right honourable ladies shared it with Dr. Burney and his family, is rather amusing; but we are too speedily called to a much more serious subject, the death of the first Mrs. Burney, who appears to have been most tenderly loved, and most deeply regretted by her husband. After a widowhood of six years’ duration, however, Mr. Burney entered a second time into the pale of matrimony with a Mrs. Stephen Allen, a lady who was at the head of society in Lynn, while the Burneys resided there, and had been the intimate friend of the first Mrs. Burney.

The next musical record of the doctor’s life, while it obliges us to correct a passage in our own Memoir, awakens something like a painful feeling. We have stated what has hitherto been the received account, that the idea of the General History of Music suggested itself to Dr. Burney, and that the foundation of his collections for that task were laid, during his residence at Lynn. From these Memoirs it appears that it was not till 1769 that Dr. Burney had any idea of undertaking such a work. Now this revives, and seems to give some countenance to the complaint of Sir John Hawkins’s friends, that it was undertaken in direct rivalry to the learned knight’s work, which, though not published till some years after, the literary world well knew that he had long been employed on it. The immediate result of this plan was the two Musical Tours to Italy and Germany. And here we must express our regret and disappointment at not finding one word in the Memoirs relative to these journies, except a story, in which we own we can see no joke, that on his return from one of them the Doctor was so exhausted with sea-sickness, that when the packet reached Dover, instead of going ashore, he went to sleep, and awoke just in time to find himself half way over to Calais again. The reason given for this omission; viz. that the Doctor published detailed accounts of them during his lifetime, we venture to submit, is no reason at all; to say nothing of the books referred to being out of print, and consequently out of the reach of a majority of readers, these tours form important eras in his literary and professional life, and an abstract of them at least should surely have found a place in his Memoirs, except the work now before as is intended only as a contribution towards the labours of some person who shall hereafter compile a complete life of Dr. Burney.

He had been so pleased with the Conservatorios or Musical Schools of the Continent, that very soon after his return he made strenuous efforts to establish a similar foundation in London. He proposed to the directors of the Foundling Hospital to engraft his plan on their institution and select the pupils from the objects of that charity; but notwithstanding the friendly assistance of Sir Charles Whitworth, the president, it was eventually negatived by the general body, and the Doctor gave up the attempt.

The History of Music procured Dr. Burney also the acquaintance of Bruce, the celebrated Abyssinian traveller, who had brought home with him a drawing, made on the spot, of the Theban harp, as beautiful in its execution as in its form, though copied from a model at least 3000 years old. This led to two or three interviews, first at the house of a musical friend, then at the Doctor’s own residence. These are described in letters from the authoress, then very young, to a Mr. Crisp, her father’s oldest friend. The letters do infinite credit to the young lady’s quick observation of manners, and her power of graphic and lively description, and prove her command of her pen. They are, however, too long for quotation; and the parts really relating to Mr. Bruce are so interspersed with the complete details of long tea-table and after-supper conversations, that it is no easy task to pick them out. The following description, however, of the great traveller’s personal appearance, will give our readers some idea of the powers of the writer:--

~Meeting the first~

took place at the tea-table, of Mrs. Strange, to which my mother, by appointment, had introduced her Lynn friends, Mr. and Mrs. Turner, who were extremely curious to see Mr. Bruce. My dear father was to have escorted us; but that provoking Marplot, commonly called Business, came, as usual, in the way, and he could only join us afterwards.

The Man-Mountain, and Mr. and Mrs. Turner, were already arrived; and no one else was invited, or, at least, permitted to enter.

Mr. Bruce, as we found, when he arose--which he was too stately to do at once--was placed on the largest easy chair; but which his vast person covered so completely, back and arms, as well as seat, that he seemed to have been merely placed on a stool; and one was tempted to wonder who had ventured to accommodate him so slightly. He is the tallest man you ever saw in your life--at least, gratis. However, he has a very good figure, and is rather handsome; so that there is nothing alarming, or uncomely, or I was going to say, ungenial--but I don’t think that is the word I mean--in his immense and authoritative form.

My mother was introduced to him, and placed by his side; but, having made her a cold though civilish bow, he took no further notice even of her being in the room. I, as usual, glided out of the way, and got next to Miss Strange, who is agreeable and sensible: and who, seeing me, I suppose, very curious upon the subject, gave me a good deal of information about Man-Mountain.

As he is warmly attached to Mrs. Strange and her family, he spends all his disengaged evenings at their house, where, when they are alone, he is not only chatty and easy, but full of comic and dry humour; though, if any company enters, he sternly, or gloutingly, Miss Strange says, shuts up his mouth, and utters not a word--except, perhaps, to her parrot, which, I believe, is a present from himself. Certainly, he does not appear more elevated above the common race in his size, than in his ideas of his own consequence. Indeed, I strongly surmise, that he is not always without some idea how easy it would be to him--and perhaps how pleasant--in case any one should dare to offend him, to toss a whole company of such pigmies as the rest of mankind must seem to him, pell-mell down stairs,--if not out of the window.

There is some excuse, nevertheless, for this proud shyness, because he is persuaded that nobody comes near him but either to stare at him as a curiosity, or to pick his brains for their own purposes: for, when he has deigned to behave to people as if he considered himself as their fellow-creature, every word that has been drawn from him has been printed in some newspaper or magazine, which, as he intends to publish his travels himself, is abominably provoking, and seems to have made him suspicious of some dark design, or some invidious trick, when anybody says to him “How do you do, Sir?” or “Pray, Sir, what’s o’clock?”

And, after all, if his nature in itself is as imperious as his person and air are domineering, it is hardly fair to expect that having lived so long among savages should have softened his manners.

There was, however, no conversation. Mr. Bruce’s grand air, gigantic height, and forbidding brow, awed everybody into silence except Mrs. Strange, who, with all her wit and powers, found it heavy work to talk without reply.

[To be continued.]

VOCAL SOCIETY.

THIRD VOCAL CONCERT, Monday, February 4, 1833.

Leader, Mr. T. COOKE.--Organ and Piano-forte, Messrs. TURLE and GOSS.

~Part I.~

1. Chorus, ‘Kyrie Eleison! Christe Eleison!’ ~Leo.~

2. Glee, ‘O snatch me swift.’ (Miss Masson, ~Dr. Terrail, Vaughan, Bellamy, and Atkins) Callcott.~

3. Quartett and Chorus, ‘Vergin’ Madre sconsolata.’ ~Haydn.~ (Miss C. Novello, Spencer, Vaughan, and Bellamy)

4. Song, ‘Oppress’d with grief.’ (Mr Vaughan) ~Beethoven.~

5. Madrigal, ‘Die not, fond man.’ (1608) ~J. Ward.~

6. Solo and Quartett, ‘Mater amabilis!’ (Miss ~Mozart.~ C. Novello, King, Vaughan, and Atkins)

7. Song, ‘Despair.’ (Mr. E. Taylor.) MS. ~E. Taylor.~

8. Glee, ‘A blossom wreath.’ (Master Howe, ~Clifton.~ Terrail, Hobbs, and Chapman)

9. Chorus, the Vintagers’ chorus from The Seasons ~Haydn.~

10. Concertante, Clarinet. (Mr. Willman) ~C. M. von Weber.~

~Part II.~

11. Mass, No. 1, ‘Gloria in excelsis Deo!’ ~Hummel.~

12. Cantata, ‘Ch’io mi scordi.’ (Miss Masson) ~Mozart.~

13. Glee, ‘I wish to tune.’ (Messrs. Hawkins, ~Walmisley.~ Horncastle, Bennett, and Chapman)

14. Duetto, ‘Fra gli Amplessi.’ Così fan Tutti, ~Mozart.~ (Miss Masson and Mr. Bennett)

15. Quartett, ‘What phrase, sad and soft.’ _The ~Bishop.~ Noble Outlaw._ (Mrs. G. Wood, Miss George, Broadhurst, and Hobbs)

16. Song, ‘The Sea Rover.’ (Mr. Bennett) ~Chev. Neukomm.~

17. Madrigal, ‘In pride of May.’ (1608) ~Weelkes.~

18. Terzetto, ‘Lei faccio.’ Il Matrimonio Segreto. ~Cimarosa.~ (Misses Celia and Clara Novello, and Miss Masson)

19. Chorus, ‘Now tramp.’ Knight of Snowdon. ~Bishop.~

The general effect of this evening’s performance was not equal to the last: in regard to variety no fault can be found, for in a concert of nineteen pieces, we find the compositions of fifteen different authors, indicating a strong desire to suit the inclinations, and meet the wishes of the subscribers. The concerted pieces were by far the most effective, and, generally speaking, much the best done. The noble Kyrie of Leo is a magnificent specimen of that style of writing; it was, perhaps, too long to repeat, but we are persuaded it would have been done much better a second time; such music absolutely requires well rehearsing in order to go smooth, which is the necessary consequence of the performers being thoroughly conversant in what they have to do. The Madrigals were admirably sung, and encored as before, par acclamation. No. 5, by Ward, we consider as without an equal; it is, indeed, a matchless production. We hope, another season, to see a more convenient plan adopted in the mode of giving the time; it could not possibly be intrusted to abler hands than Mr. Turle; but owing to the position in which he stands, he can be seen only by a small part of the orchestra, and is of necessity driven to make himself heard, by those who cannot observe his motions. This materially interferes with the pleasure of the audience. The Maestro should be seen by every performer, but not heard. We can with propriety extend this observation to the instrumental part of the orchestra, beseeching both leader and conductor to abstain from such merciless stamping of feet as occurred during the performance of most of the full pieces. We notice in the present, as well as in the preceding concert, two compositions of Mr. Bishop, during the evening: this, we think, more than falls to his share; for however good his music may be, we cannot help recollecting many great and mighty names of antiquity, whose productions the musical public stand no chance of hearing, except at such concerts as these--need we mention Stradella, Steffani, Lotti, Luca Marenzio, cum multis aliis?

FOURTH VOCAL CONCERT, Monday, February 18th, 1833.

~Part I.~

1. Quartetto e Coro. ‘Quando o Rè.’ Salmo 19. ~Marcello.~ (Goulden, Vaughan, Blackbourn, and E. Taylor,) with a Solo by Mrs. George Wood

2. Glee, ‘Come, bounteous May.’ (Messrs. Goulden, ~Spofforth.~ King, C. Taylor, Parry, jun., and Chapman)

3. Scena, ‘Lasciate!’ (Miss Masson.) Teseo. ~Handel.~

4. Madrigal, ‘Stay, Corydon.’ (1609.) ~Wilbye.~

5. Trio, ‘Speak, I command thee.’ Katherine. ~Ld. (Miss Masson, Bennett, and Parry, jun.) Burghersh.~

6. Cantata, ‘Adelaida.’ (Mr. Horncastle) ~Beethoven.~

7. Trio, ‘Surgamus, eamus.’ (Hawkins, Horncastle, ~Carissimi.~ and E. Taylor)

8. Glee, ‘When winds breathe soft.’ (Master ~Webbe.~ Howe, Hawkins, Vaughan, Hobbs and Sale)

9. Ottetto for Wind Instruments. ~Mozart.~

~Part II.~

10. Chorus, ‘Glory to God.’ ~Beethoven.~.

11. Glee from Oberon. (Miss C. Novello, Spencer, ~Stevens.~. Hobbs, and Atkins)

12. Aria, ‘Parto, ma tu ben mio.’ (Miss C. Novello) ~Mozart.~

13. Madrigal, ‘Lady, when I behold.’ (1598) ~Wilbye.~

14. Song, ‘Forget me not.’ (Mr. Hobbs) ~Mozart.~

15. Glee, ‘Where the bee sucks.’ (Masters ~Arne & Howe and Hopkins, Vaughan, and Sale) Jackson.~

16. Quartetto from Il Matrimonio Segreto. ~Cimarosa.~ (Misses C. Novello and George; Miss Masson and E. Taylor)

17. Scena from The Seasons. (Mr. Horncastle, ~Haydn.~ Mrs. G. Wood, and Chorus)

18. Glee, ‘A cup of wine.’ (Goulden, Bennett, ~Bishop.~ C. Taylor, Parry, jun., and Chorus.)

We learn from the papers distributed to the subscribers in the room this evening, a fact of which we were before ignorant; that the affairs of the society are managed by a committee of members, consisting of the following gentlemen:--Mr. Bellamy, Mr. T. Cooke, Mr. Horncastle, Mr. Hawkins, Mr. C. Taylor, Mr. E. Taylor, and Mr. Turle. We presume these gentlemen have the selection of the music brought forward for the evening’s performance; and they have executed their task, hitherto, with great and deserved credit to themselves. Called upon, however, in our critical capacity, to record our sentiments with impartiality and even-handed justice, we are bound to observe, that, unless the members cordially co-operate to give effect to the exertions of the committee, much injury may arise to the reputation of the society. The opening piece of the evening will explain our meaning; it is a fine specimen of Marcello’s very peculiar style of writing, for producing which the committee merit our thanks; but it was very imperfectly done, impressing us with a belief that many of the singers had never been present at a rehearsal of it; without which, and repeated rehearsals too, such music will never go well. We confess for ourselves, that we should have preferred Dr. Garth’s adaptation to Mrs. Ord’s words, “May the Lord Jehovah hear thee,” &c.; the performers would have better understood what they were about, and the general effect would have been improved. The glee-singing this evening was all that could be wished; not a note of the piano-forte jarred upon our ear, and we have great pleasure in stating that the glees Nos. 2, 8, 11, and 15, were as admirably performed as the nicest ear could possibly desire. No. 8 was encored, and most deservedly so. The madrigals Nos. 4 and 13 were both by the same composer: this we think scarcely judicious; for though both are first rate-productions, yet with such ample stores from which to select, it ought to have been avoided; it is partly owing to this circumstance, doubtless, that No. 13 was suffered to pass without an encore, which the first (No. 4.) received. Neither on the present nor last evening did we observe Mr. Braham or Mr. Phillips in the orchestra; owing probably to their theatrical engagements; their absence was certainly a great loss. We hope to hear more of Henry Purcell’s music at these concerts. There is a divine trio or rather dialogue between Saul, the Witch of Endor, and Samuel, which, if properly rehearsed, would indeed be a rich treat to those who understand that admirable composer’s writings.

LORD HENLEY AND THE CATHEDRAL SERVICE.

To the ~Editor~ of the ~Harmonicon~.

February 20th, 1833.

~Sir~,

Since the days of the good bishop of Lichfield, who adopted as his motto the truly Christian sentiment, ‘Serve God, and be cheerful,’ it may be questioned whether the musical parts of our church service, ‘chanting and all anthems,’ have ever had a more effectual supporter than the noble Master in Chancery, whose report on the subject called forth the pleasant jeu d’esprit, which was copied into your last number from the Times of the 26th ult. A few years ago, the deans and dignitaries, the canons and prebendaries, the fellows and chaplains, of our cathedral and collegiate churches, were among the first to set the example of depreciating the service in which they were engaged. Lord Henley, and those who echo his opinion, have happily aroused the spirit of the church-dormant; these duties, lately so unimportant, are suddenly invested with an awful and hallowed character, and a few extracts from some of the numerous pamphlets which have lately appeared in defence of these venerable establishments may be interesting to such of your readers as are friends to church discipline, church architecture, and church music[32].

Upon the question, as to the right of abolishing Cathedral institutions, (observes Mr. Pusey, p. 102,) as far as this is a question of law, I would wish to speak with especial diffidence, since the laws do not belong to my profession; except thus far, that it is the concern of all ministers of Christ to urge, that the immutable laws of justice should be observed.... About the origin of the property of Cathedral bodies there is no question; nor, indeed, can there be. One need only turn to any authentic accounts of the institution of Cathedrals, to see (what is, indeed, true of all Church property) that it was uniformly given, not by public, but by private piety.... The question becomes not a legal, but an historical one: the legal principle is granted, that the property can only be disposed of in accordance with the ‘clear will of the donor.’[33] It only remains to inquire what that will was. This, unquestionably, was not the direct religious instruction of the people, but the formation of establishments wherein ministers might be trained to their duties, and Christian studies encouraged. These foundations were originally given for the promotion of pious learning, schools being on this account, in every case, annexed to these establishments.... It would appear then, that neither at the original institution, nor at time of the Reformation, was it intended that the Cathedral clergy should be what they have now mostly become, a parochial, or as this class has been over-narrowly called, the ‘working clergy;’ as if the labours of a literary clergy were less continuous or less exhausting, or as if the annals of our Church did not present as many cases of those who had fallen martyrs to her service in this way, as in her more direct ministrations. The reform, in truth, which is needed to restore these institutions, ‘according to the will of the donor,’ is exactly the contrary to what is now on different sides proposed. The members of our chapters have too little of the leisure which it was intended they should have. They have mostly important, some very extensive, and ill endowed cures. They have no more repose than is allowed to every civil officer; they have none for such works as our ancestors produced. In truth the clergy are already too exclusively of one class: we have not sufficient labourers for a field, which becomes day by day more important, and whose importance they well know, who are so anxious to destroy these institutions. Fas est et ab hoste doceri. When those who have no religion in themselves are so eager, under pretence of furthering religion, to destroy those bulwarks, it may to us, if we will not blind ourselves, be an evidence of their value. This, however, is certain, that estates or the tithes which were bestowed upon these bodies, were not given for the purposes of providing a parochial ministry, otherwise they would have been given to the places themselves, not to these corporations. Under whatever plea then it may be attempted to apply the property of any ecclesiastical corporation to this purpose, and divert it from those to which its donors destined it, it must be on some other ground than that of the ‘clear will of the donor.’

‘Remarks on the prospective and past Benefits of Cathedral Institutions[34],’ p. 102-113. This excellent pamphlet, and one by the Rev. George Townsend, prebendary of Durham, on lay impropriations, will be read with much pleasure by all the loyal and true-hearted members of the Church of England as by law established. Mr. Perceval thus concludes his ‘~Letter to Lord Henley~:’

I will not attempt to follow the maze of happy thoughts which have crowded upon your lordship’s brain, and been committed to paper, apparently as rapidly as they occurred to you, the thought of one moment overturning that which went before; but I cannot forbear saying one word of defence on a subject which, like many others, has met your merciless condemnation: I mean our Cathedral music. At page 35, you speak of the ‘coldness and formality of Cathedral service,’ and in a note, style ‘chanting and all anthems, solos, duets, &c., relics of popery. Have a care, my Lord, or you will establish the truth of a claim put forth by the church of Rome, which sounds most grating and offensive in the ears of the English Christians, to be considered the mother, and, therefore, mistress of all other churches. For these modes of singing the praises of our great Creator, which move your pious indignation, are, indeed, relics; but, if I mistake not, relics of ‘Jerusalem which is above,’ and which we have the warrant of the Holy Ghost for styling the mother of us all[35].

The Mosaic church was, as your lordship knows, founded upon the model of the heavenly one; ‘for see,’ said he, ‘that thou make all things according to the pattern showed thee on the Mount.’[36] In this church we find solos, duets, and choruses, introduced into the service of the Almighty, of which the solo of Miriam[37], and the chorus of the women whom she answered, and the duet of Deborah and Barak[38], are sufficient instances; while the whole frame and composition of the Psalms, in their parallelisms and alternations, leave no doubt of the correctness of the conclusions to which Lowth and Cleaver, and Horsley and Jebb, and others, have been led, that they were composed for alternate recitations, like our cathedral chanting; but we may go somewhat higher. It has pleased Almighty God occasionally to encourage his servants in this life by partially withdrawing the clouds which conceal the inhabitants of heaven from our view, and permitting us to catch a glimpse of their employment. We find the Holy Seraphim engaged in an occupation, the feeble imitation of which, by mortal man upon earth, has called forth your severe reprobation. Yes, my lord, they are actually described as ‘chanting’ the praises of Jehovah by alternate movements. So Isaiah teaches us: ‘I saw the Lord sitting upon his throne, high and lifted up. Above it stood the Seraphim; and one cried unto another and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of Hosts! the whole earth is full of his glory.’

But our cathedral service is so cold!

Oh! my Lord! if your own heart does not glow at the hearing of those heavenly melodies, do not envy those, who are formed of happier temperament, the enjoyment and benefit which they draw from them. Many a weary soul, I doubt not, has been refreshed and awakened by them, which else might have remained drowsy and indolent. Many a chord, by means of them, has been struck in a sinner’s breast, which will vibrate to all eternity with the praises of the Lamb. The great and good departed have recorded their sense of the value of them. It is related of the pious George Herbert, that he went usually twice every week to the cathedral church in Salisbury; and at his return would say, that his time spent in prayer and cathedral music elevated his soul, and was his heaven upon earth. But, alas! all these things, which have cheered and solaced God’s servants in their weary pilgrimage, are about to be removed. That fatal and deadly storm, which sour puritanism and envious schism combined to raise against the fairest portion of God’s heritage, is about once more to spread its desolating force on our land; the church of England once more to be overthrown and trampled upon by those whom she admitted into her fold and nourished with her fruits; our pleasant places to be laid waste, ‘the carved work thereof to be broken down with axes and hammers.’ Already are the traitors within and the foes without, arranging their watchwords, and the self-same notes resounded, which were echoed at the former onslaught. Again is our cathedral service, which we copy from the Seraphim, cried down as a relic of popery; and the book of Common Prayer, whose almost every petition has been used by Christian Saints for upwards of twelve hundred years, denounced as an abomination. These are signs of the times which there is no mistaking. There is one ground of comfort, my lord, in all this, which you will rejoice to hear. The desolation cannot last for ever. When the whirlwind has swept by, and they who thought to ride upon it are blown into oblivion, then shall we again lift up our own heads. Either we shall witness the restoration and hear the voice of joy and gladness once more in our dwellings, see the waste places rebuilt, again hear the pealing organ swell its note of praise, and the merry bells ring out their jocund sound, or our pilgrimage will be over, and we shall have exchanged, through the Redeemer’s blood, our earthly choirs for celestial. For your lordship’s sake, I trust that, ere that time arrives, a sounder judgment will possess you in these matters, lest, haply, when the heavenly portals are flung open to receive you, and the sound of the celestial concert strikes your ear, ‘the harpers harping with their harps’, the clang of the archangel’s trumpet, some clear-voiced angel leading the hymns, the Seraphim responding to each other with the Trisagion, and the full chorus of the ‘hundred and forty-four thousand’[39] pouring forth that song, which none but they can learn; your heart be chilled within you; and you show the superior soundness and purity of your piety by turning away in disgust from such ‘papal’ abominations. There is a sentence of the son of Sirach,--‘Blame not before thou hast examined the truth; understand first, and then rebuke.’ Perhaps, if that sentence had been present to your lordship’s recollection, your ill-considered publication would never have seen the light.--p. 26-31.

Having shown you, ex cathedrâ, the prospective and past benefits of these institutions, originally designed ‘for the promotion of pious learning,’ I am tempted to add a few words on their actual state, and to inquire how far the intentions of the founders have been carried into effect. I will, for the present, confine myself to a single foundation.

The C---- church of----, like most of our great ecclesiastical corporations, is of Anglo-Saxon origin; but the latest statutes were given by Queen Elizabeth towards the close of her reign. They are, consequently, free from any mixture of superstitious ceremonies, and every member of the chapter, on his election, takes an oath to obey them. These statutes, after setting forth among the principal objects of the foundation, the instruction of youth, and the relief of the poor, ‘juventutis in veritate, in virtute, ac bonis literis institutionem, et pauperum perpetuam sustentationem,’ provide for the maintenance and liberal education of six choristers ‘ad minus.’ And the royal legislator does not appoint a fixed annual payment for this purpose, which, in so many instances, from the diminished value of money, has brought ruin upon similar establishments; but, with a prescient regard to the possibility of such a deterioration, it is expressly ordained, that a proper allowance shall be made to the master[40]. Their maintenance has been discontinued.

The music school, within living memory, was a large and lofty room, adjoining the church, and in a corresponding style of architecture. The chapter, in a recent alteration, having determined to fit up a handsome library, took possession, without scruple, of the school-room belonging to the choristers, and the boys have lately received their singing lessons in the church, the chapter giving themselves no concern about any other instructions.

The statutes require that the choristers shall be supplied with a consistent dress. This is no longer provided; and the gentlemen forming the chapter would think themselves disgraced by such a set of raggamuffins about their stables or their dog-kennels, as they allow to officiate in the church; while their very rags are held to be a sufficient reason for excluding them from their own well-endowed grammar school.

Several valuable scholarships and fellowships, in the university of----, are tenable by such persons only as have served as choristers in the C---- church at----. Of this endowment the bona fide choristers are deprived. The members of the chapter, and the neighbouring gentlemen, enter their sons as choristers; they appear for a few Sundays in surplices, and are thus enabled to claim the exhibition.

The cemetery is disfigured with posts and lines, and serves as a drying-ground for the inhabitants of the claustral precincts; while the nave of the church is the favourite resort of their children and nursery-maids, who are permitted to disturb the congregation, should there be one, by their noisy sports.

The patronage of the chapter is very extensive; the tithes of the whole district, for many miles in circuit, belong almost exclusively to them; they unite in their own persons the fullest legislative, executive, and visitatorial powers; and the impoverished churches, and vicars, and parishes, within their jurisdiction, afford the same indisputable evidence of apathy and neglect.

I am prepared to fill up the outline by instances of individual meanness. But I forbear. The parties more immediately concerned cannot fail to recognize the picture; for I hope and trust there is no second example in England, where the wills and charters and statutes of founders and benefactors are so utterly disregarded.

A. T.

THE SONG OF ‘MAD TOM OF BEDLAM.’

To the ~Editor~ of the ~Harmonicon~.

~Sir~,

In the extracts from the ‘Diary of a Dilettante’ in your Harmonicon for February, the song of ‘Mad Tom,’ sung by Braham, is mentioned, both there and in the bills of the Vocal Concert, as the composition of Purcell, but I think I shall make it appear that he has no claim to be considered the author of that composition.

In a manuscript collection of Airs for the Virginals, once in my possession, which bears the date of 1638, there is one called ‘The Man in the Moon,’ a copy of which I have subjoined; and in a work entitled ‘Choice Ayres, Songs, and Dialogues to the Theorbo Lute and Base Viol, 1675,’ it is to be found ascribed to Henry Lawes, and I have no doubt, correctly. The latter part of it as now sung, from the words ‘In my triumphant chariot’ to the end, is the composition of Thomas Hayden, composer of the well known duet, ‘As I saw fair Clora.’ The words, we learn from Walton’s Angler, are by Mr. William Basse, one that made the choice songs of ‘~The Hunter in his career~,’ and ‘~Tom of Bedlam~.’

I am, Sir, Yours, &c. An old ~Member~ of the Pump-room Band, Bath.

We give admission with pleasure to our correspondent’s letter, because it may lead to further inquiry, and ultimately enable us to assign the song of ‘Tom of Bedlam’ to the right owner. If his memory does not deceive him--for it will be observed that the writer speaks of a collection formerly in his possession--the air he has sent us from the Virginal Book must have been the foundation of the song in question; indeed the two differ but little in melody: but the original is so incorrect, or the copyist has transcribed it in so inaccurate a manner, that we cannot venture to insert it, till it has been carefully collated; a task which, perhaps, our correspondent may yet have the means of performing.

The air, we must say, bears no marks whatever of being the composition of Henry Lawes: his style is essentially different in every respect. It has always been given to Purcell, and in a volume published by Walsh more than a century ago, under the title of ~Mr. Henry Purcell~’s Favourite Songs, out of his most celebrated ~Orpheus Britannicus~, and the rest of his works, this very air, called ‘Tom a’ Bedlam,’ is included. We never before heard that the added part is by Hayden,--whose name, by the way, was George, not Thomas--but very probably our correspondent is right.

As to the words, there can be little doubt on the subject, though some have, most erroneously, supposed them to be Tom D’Urfey’s. But honest Izaak Walton is an authority, who makes ~Piscator~ (i. e. himself) say, ‘I’ll promise you I’ll sing a song that was made at my request, by Mr. William Basse, one that made the choice songs of the Hunter in his cariere, and of Tom of Bedlam, and many others of note.’ (5th edit. 1676) Dr. Percy, in his Reliques of Ancient English Poetry, inserts the entire song, under the name of ~Old Tom of Bedlam~, and thinks that it was written about the beginning of the 17th century. ‘It is worth attention,’ he observes, ‘that the English have more songs and ballads on the subject of madness, than any of their neighbours. Whether it is that we are more liable to this calamity than other nations, or whether our native gloominess hath peculiarly recommended subjects of this cast to our writers, the fact is incontestable, as any one may be satisfied, who will compare the printed collections of French, Italian songs, &c., with those in our language.’ (ii. 348.)

Ritson likewise, in his collection, gives the whole song, and also the melody, down to the line, ‘To bring me my senses again,’ and, without naming the author of the words, ascribes the music to Purcell. (ii. 162, and iii. 290, 2nd Edit. 1813.)

We shall be very grateful for any additional information on this subject.

REVIEW OF NEW MUSIC.

~Evenings in Greece~, the Poetry by ~Thomas Moore~, Esq., _the Music composed and selected by_ ~Henry R. Bishop~ and Mr. ~Moore~. 2 vols. large 4to. (Power.)

The design of the present work is as praiseworthy as new: it is to connect together, Mr. Moore tells us, ‘a series of songs by a thread of poetical narrative,’ the object being ‘to combine recitation with music, so as to enable a greater number of persons to take a share in the performance, by enlisting, as readers, those who may not feel themselves competent as singers.’

We have often reflected with some surprise on the little effort made to vary the pleasures of domestic society. In a great, wealthy metropolis, where so many thousands congregate daily, who have only to enjoy themselves,--whose sole occupation is to devise means for passing time agreeably,--it might be imagined that some ingenuity would be exerted to so diversify the character of social amusement as to prevent that ennui which is less frequently complained of than felt. Music, no doubt, is a great resource; but those not actually engaged in it, who are not either singing or playing, who are mere listeners, feel a long evening rather heavy when filled up by a constant succession of song, or even an alternation of song and sonata, more especially if such pieces are, as too commonly happens, of the fashionable kind. Dancing is exclusively for the young; though really the quadrille, solemnly as it is walked--the countenances of the promenaders denoting the votaries of Melpomene rather than of Terpsichore--is quite as well calculated to exercise the aged as to divert the youthful. Cards almost universally shut out the young, females particularly, and are inimical to conversation. What then remains? we shall be asked. Why, among other things, that sort of mixture which is to be found in the volumes under notice--reading and music, in which every one in a small party may assist; and we are now only speaking of such parties, not of what till lately were called ‘at homes’--not of crowded assemblies. A couple of dozen persons might occasionally pass two or three hours very agreeably,--nay, advantageously,--over a poem, partly read, partly sung, every one present taking a share, a pause now and then being afforded for a critical or explanatory remark, or some little sally of wit or humour.

But possibly we shall be called visionaries; we therefore quit our speculations for the improvement of society, and proceed to inquire how far the work before us is likely to answer its proposed end. And first we will briefly describe it.

~Zia~, where the scene of these evenings is laid, ‘was called by the ancients ~Ceos~, and was the birth-place of Simonides, and other eminent persons.’ The poem opens with the embarkation of the young men of the island, who are proceeding to fight for the liberties of Greece. They sing a farewell hymn to the Zian nymphs, who, after the departure of their lovers, their relatives, and friends, resolve to meet every evening--

‘And try if sound of lute and song, If wandering mid the moonlight[41] flowers In various talk, could charm along, With lighter step, the lingering hours. Till tidings of that bark should come, Or victory waft their lovers home.’

They accordingly assemble; various modes of beguiling the time are proposed and adopted,--all, of course, of a somewhat romantic kind, but singing is predominant, thus affording a fit opportunity of blending music with narrative. Hopes and fears are, as may be supposed, the themes most employed, and a slight episode now and then varies the subject. But what is yet published does not appear to proceed very far with the plan, or enable the reader to form any conjecture of the denouement: the story, in fact, admits of being protracted, and, doubtless, is intended to be proportioned in length to the demand for the volumes as they shall from time to time make their appearance.

The Farewell, beginning ‘The sky is bright,’ a trio for two trebles and a base, by Mr. Bishop, is easy and simple, and flows on agreeably in the key of ~F~, which never changes.

One of the nymphs, who ‘to Leucadia late had been,’ now relates some of the griefs of the hapless Lesbian maid, in a song, also by Bishop, entitled ‘Sappho at her loom,’ in ~E~ major, which is set with care and ability. The air, which is gentle and sweet, reminds us of the popular melody, ‘Home.’ But our limited space hints the necessity of noticing these songs without stopping to show their connexion with the poem, suffice it therefore to say, that they are part and parcel of it, though each is complete, musically considered, in itself. And the words of every song are also printed with the rest of the letter-press, so that the poetry forms a perfect whole, even without any vocal aid.

‘Weeping for thee, my love;’ a slow air by Massamino, a name more new to us than the music, is rather to be admired for its introductory symphony than for its melody. The accentuation in this is sometimes faulty--‘--no rest in darkness’--‘whose--dreary tread’--and ‘this--ruined heart,’ evidently are all contrary to the intention of the poet. Immediately after the song we meet with a moral truth, which many can verify, enunciated by Mr. Moore in the following very poetical language:--

When thus the heart is in a vein Of tender thought, the simplest strain Can touch it with peculiar power;-- As when the air is warm, the scent Of the most wild and rustic flower Can fill the whole rich element;-- And, in such moods, the homeliest tune That’s linked with feelings, once our own,-- With friends or joys gone by--will be Worth choirs of loftiest harmony!

‘The Romaika,’ composed by Mr. Moore, is a lively air, supposed to be sung to the accompaniment of the balalaika, a rude Russian instrument, a kind of guitar with only two strings. This is pretty, and, if sung characteristically, will be more generally effective than better music.

Now the Zian maids grow playful, and putting themselves in martial array, sing ‘The War Dance,’ a trio by Mr. Bishop; though we are not told where they found a Grecian lady with a base voice to take the lowest part. This, however, does not matter: the composition is animating, is good, and not difficult. But why does Mr. Bishop so frequently treat the rules of prosody with such apparent contempt?--He must be aware that making the last syllable in the word ‘victory’ long, is not to be vindicated; yet he thus sets it:-- now if he had only repeated a third time--(he has done so twice)--the words ‘to war,’ the evil might have been avoided. e. g.

‘Oh! memory,’ is the graceful well known air of Carafa, beginning:--

But composers now and then are too proud

‘----meanly to borrow aid from sense,’

they too often agree with the goddess of the Stygian lake.

‘As on the shore,’ meant as a martial air, is common. No composer’s name is given.

‘The two fountains,’ by Mr. Bishop, is a sweet, quiet melody in E, six-eight time. The contrast expressed in the following notes is a happy thought:-- but in character certainly not suited to sentiments so far removed from gaiety.

‘They are gone,’ said to be a Greek air, is expressive, though the musical rhythm is of a kind that will distress an ear which only delights in regular measure. Nevertheless there is something remarkably touching in the conclusion of each stanza, and as a whole this song will infallibly please.

‘Maidens of Zia,’ a trio for soprano, tenor, and base, by Mr. Moore, sets up no pretensions as a composition, lays no claim to science, and consists of nothing but the plainest counterpoint--but will operate as a charm on nine out of every ten who listen to its simple strains.

* * * * *

We now commence the ~Second Evening~.

Rumours have reached the isle of Zea, that the youthful warriors are on their return home, and every female bosom beats high with hope, not unmixed with anxiety. The maidens sing a hymn to the Virgin,--to ‘Mary, star of the sea[42],’ a trio, beginning, ‘When evening shades are falling,’ the music by Mozart, but from which of his works we are not able to say, or even to guess; we should certainly not have ascribed it to him, had it been printed anonymously. The air is in a pleasing, familiar style, and the parts run smoothly and agreeably together, which is all the praise we can afford, notwithstanding the illustrious name it bears.

‘Blest be Love!’ is a short, good, frequently repeated chorus for the same voices, with an intervening solo for each, by Mr. Bishop.

‘The Caravan Song,’ is a Bohemian melody, and never yet was brought about a more forced, a more unhappy union of poetry and music. The verse plainly favoured some kind of common time, but is reluctantly wedded to three-four, and, like all ill-matched couples, these are very disagreeable when together, however pleasant when separated.

The nymphs then are joined by a band of mountaineers, one of whom, a minstrel youth,

‘Tells of the loves, the joys, the ills, Of these wild children of the hills,’

in a ‘German air,’ lively, long, and rather deficient in novelty.

But ‘sad minstrelsy’ now breaks on the ears of the lovely party. It proceeds from a bark, bearing some who

‘----from an isle of mournful name, From Missolonghi, last they came,’

and their dirge. ‘Thou art not dead,’ (the composer not named,) has at least simplicity to recommend it. Such sad sounds awaken sympathy in a ‘pensive maid,’ who sings, ‘Calm, as beneath its mother’s eyes,’ to an air possessing no little elegance, by Fiorillo, some phrases in which, however, are decidedly à la Mozart. This is also harmonized for two sopranos and base, and makes a terzetto that will invite attention to it.

Sadness soon yields to mirth, and in fancy’s eye a vision appears of two personages, who it is said are seldom found together. A song, ‘Love and Wisdom,’ tells their story; and we shall beg leave to repeat it in the poet’s own words, as a specimen of his verse and wit. The tale itself, we need hardly say, is of ancient date.

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