_Hart Street, Bloomsbury Square._ ~H. Phillips.~
REVIEW OF NEW MUSIC.
1. ~Novello’s Masses~ _for Four Voices, with an Accompaniment for
the Organ or Piano-forte_. No. 1. (J. A. Novello.)
2. ~A Collection of Sacred Music~, _adapted to the Hymns of_
~Burder~ _and_ ~Dr. Watts~, _with an Accompaniment for the Organ or
Piano-forte, composed by_ ~William Atter~. (Goulding and D’Almaine.)
Mr. Novello, it appears, is republishing his Masses, of which the above
is the first number of a second edition. Not being a new work, we must
be governed by our rule, and speak of it generally only, though it
would have been very agreeable to us to enter particularly into its
merits; for it does not very often fall to our lot to be called upon to
notice a composition, the examination of which is attended with so much
satisfaction as the present has afforded.
We have always been of opinion, and see no reason to depart from it
now, that in the Masses of the last hundred years--we might have
extended the term--there is far too much levity, the solemnity of the
subject being fairly considered; no small part whereof arises out of
the accompaniments, which are frequently those of as opera air, and
excite nothing but secular, not to say ludicrous ideas. Nay, to the
very singers, who are pronouncing the sacred words, melodies are often
given which would be well received in the ball-room as dance-tunes;
and passages in them, strictly the same both in air and movement,
may readily be found in quadrilles and gallopades. If Erasmus, more
than three hundred years ago, complained of the lightness of the
church-music of his time,--if Salvator Rosa, himself a composer, could
not restrain his indignation at the profane melodies to which sacred
words were set in the middle of the seventeenth century--in what
language would these have uttered their invectives could they have
heard some of the compositions of the last age,--some of Haydn’s Masses?
Mr. Novello carefully avoids such errors: there is a fitting soberness
in his mass, a judicious avoidance of extremes, that prove his good
sense; while the smoothness, the elegance of his airs, the richness
of his harmony, and the able manner in which he has worked some of
his subjects, are no less decisive proofs of his taste and skill as a
musician. He certainly is not very energetic, nor does he evince much
boldness of enterprise, but he is always correct; and, as a composer,
gracefulness is one of his chief attributes.
* * * * *
Mr. Atter’s collection is of about seventy--hymns, we suppose they may
be called; some few of which we have closely looked into, but must
confess that we were deterred from going very far into the volume by
what we met with in the early pages. The composer seems to possess a
commendable share of industry, and a taste for melody, but we cannot
say much in favour of his success as a harmonist; and, occasionally,
his manner of setting words is not quite judicious. In the latter,
however, he fails much less often than in the former; and upon the
whole, so far as we have examined, Mr. A. appears to have entered into
the intentions of the poets, and has expressed their sentiments with as
much fidelity as musical effect will allow. Exceptions, nevertheless,
occur, two of which we point out, lest the author should accuse us of
being too general. At page 9, the emphasis is laid on ‘from’ instead of
‘caves:’ the preposition should have been set to the last quaver in the
preceding bar. And at page 14, by means of rests after ‘we bless,’ the
verb is made to act on the previous noun instead of the succeeding one.
The repetition, too, of the words ‘flow down,’ and the bar of symphony
between, will hardly fail to excite a smile.
Against the harmony we have to remonstrate before quitting even the
second page. At the ninth bar of this is a chord of the sixth and
fourth, which will displease most ears. But at page 11 is a chord of
7/4, which we should have set down as an error of the engraver, but
that the voice part and accompaniment agree; and to ‘make the charm
grow madder,’ the seventh rises to its resolution! But we persevered,
and got on to the fifteenth page, when the following opening of a
hymn convinced us that it would be needless to pursue our inquiry any
further.
[Illustration: The Lord my shep-herd is]
One word, however, as to originality, for which the composer, in his
Preface, takes some credit to himself. Surely he is aware that his
very first page holds forth to view an imitation of what is called
_The Evening Hymn_; and the succeeding page will immediately call to
recollection Haydn’s celebrated movement in ~A~--that in his
favourite old symphony in ~D~.
* * * * *
1. ~Lays of the German Minstrels~, ~T. Otto~, ~F. Busse~, ~A.
Schneider~, _and_ ~F. Otto~, _with the original German Words, and a
Translation, by_ ~W. Ball~. _Book I._ (Ewer.)
2. ~Songs for Leisure Hours~, _composed by_ ~Robert E. Brewer~.
(Luff.)
From the title of the Lays, many may be led, and naturally enough, to
suppose that the ‘Minstrels’ therein named are the poets and composers,
as well as the performers, of them; but the executive part alone
belongs to them, with the exception of one melody, the second, which
claims Herr F. Otto as its author: the third is by Eisenhofer; the
remaining four are anonymous.
The first, ‘The Sabbath Call’ (we give the English words only,) is
a quartet for two tenors and two bases, entirely in the manner of
our English glee, but with a piano-forte accompaniment. This is a
pleasing piece of almost simple counterpoint, and would be effective,
even if sung by voices only. The crotchet rest in the fifth bar of
page 3 should have been omitted, and the two last quavers written
as crotchets; the sense of the English words would then have been
unbroken, and that of the German not affected.
The second is a pretty, but not very new ballad, in ~E~. For the
commencing bars of the third, a song, M. Eisenhofer has undisguisedly
borrowed the beginning of the Sicilian Mariner’s Hymn. This is in two
movements; the first an andantino; the second, allegretto, in the Swiss
style, and very common: the fourth boasts one novel feature, in the
shape of what the composer calls a trio. The principal movement is in
~F~ major; the second (the _trio_, though for a single voice) in ~F~
minor, and the first is repeated. The fifth of the set, the time of
which changes frequently, is overflowing with gaiety, both melody and
accompaniment, and is the cleverest of the whole, though too long,
the author seeming to think that certain passages--his favourites, no
doubt--could not be too often repeated. The last in the book is a duet
for two sopranos, very simple, easy, flowing, and the most popularly
written of any in the collection. Thus the set begins and ends well;
and when we have stated that the English words are correctly adapted,
taking the difficulty of the task into consideration, we shall have
said as much in favour of the present work as honest criticism will
justify.
* * * * *
Mr. Brewer’s Songs, six in number, afford strong presumptive evidence
that he understands music better than language,--that his knowledge
of composition exceeds his skill in reading. And this, we lament
to say, is a case of very common occurrence in the musical world,
arising from an obvious cause, which we are unwilling to name; one
that will not cease to operate till an _efficient_ academy of music be
established--an academy, or something of the kind, which shall make the
_general_ improvement of the intellect of students an object of equal
importance to that of the art they are intended to practise. When this
is brought about, (if it ever can be accomplished,) false emphasis,
erroneous accentuation, and puerile conceits, will be as rare as
undisguised consecutive fifths and unresolved discords; and composers
will be looked upon in a far different light from that in which they
are now viewed by the well-educated portion of society.
The first of these songs is an undeniable proof of what we advance:
the music, with an exception which we shall presently mention, is
clever--the emphasis abominable. ‘_I_ watch for thee, _when_ parting
Day,’ is the composer’s manner of treating this line, thus throwing
the emphasis on exactly the wrong words. Then after the word ‘day’ is
a rest, though the author (Mrs. Cornwell Baron Wilson) has made it
perfectly clear that no pause can be at all intended. And so throughout
the whole song. In the sixth and two following bars of page 3 are
octaves between the accompaniment and base, which are equally opposed
to rule and good taste. If the composer intended to strengthen his
base, he should have written these notes below, not above: as they
stand, they form part of the accompaniment to the base, and are not
allowable. But for such drawbacks, the song would have been entitled to
great praise[78].
The second is extremely well set, the melody animated and pleasing, and
there are points in the accompaniment (bars 5 to 8, page 7) which show
more vigour than is usual in compositions of this kind. The third is
very full of feeling, and charming altogether, musically considered;
but here, unhappily, the words--their emphasis and connexion--have not
been understood. In the fourth much is attempted, and little achieved.
It is a very long song written to very few words,--to the following
lines:--
The lark has her gay song begun,
She leaves her grassy nest--
which Kirke White assuredly never intended to end here, for he could
not have thought it worth his while to record a bare fact of so
exceedingly unimportant a kind. But the composer has given no less
than five pages to the brief narrative, which include a brilliant
accompaniment for the flute; this part, we surmise, being intended as
an imitation of one of the lark’s best bravuras. The fifth affords a
compensation for the preceding; it is melodious, expressive, and free
from fault. The last, ‘a Fairy Song,’ is well imagined, lively, and
agreeable; but here we find long notes given to short syllables, to
connecting words, and lines joined that ought to be separated by some
kind of pause,--errors which, though they are, as we well know, thought
trivial by many composers, very forcibly strike the most sensible
people, and often lead them to doubt whether music is worth the time
and trouble which its cultivation costs.
PIANO-FORTE.
~First Concerto~, _with Orchestral Accompaniments, as performed by
the Author at the Public Concert of the_ Royal Academy of Music,
1833; _composed by_ ~W. Sterndale Bennet~. (Cramer, Addison, and
Beale.)
The concerto now before us is by a young musician, who has only just
completed his seventeenth year, a pupil of the Royal Academy of Music,
and is published ‘by the express direction of the committee’ of that
institution. We were present when it was performed by the author, in
the Hanover Square Rooms, and in our Number for May last have spoken
of it in terms dictated by the impression it then made on us. We have
now considered it deliberately, and unconditionally state, that, as
the work of so youthful a composer, it is a surprising production.
Even viewed without reference to his age, it is entitled to a very
considerable share of praise, especially if compared with the current
compositions of the day, most of which, including several by masters
of some name, are inferior to it, both in design and in the manner of
treating the subjects.
This concerto is in three movements of reasonable length: the first, an
allegro--moderato in ~D~ minor; the second, an andante in ~F~; and the
finale, a presto, ending the piece in the key in which it began.
The principal subject of the first movement is resolute, and commands
attention; the subordinate one, in ~F~, is gentle and expressive, and
contrasts well with the other. The motivo of the andante is a melody
in which is much elegance, but less of decided originality; it is,
however, a promising specimen of the author’s taste; though, had he
adhered more to the subject, and spared some of the not very congenial
runs of half-demisemiquavers, we should better have liked the movement.
The finale is bold and energetic, and, in our opinion, the most
effective part of the concerto. The spirit of this is kept up to the
last note, and it has a unity which leads us to prefer it to the other
movements.
The success of this work ought to operate on the youthful composer as
an incitement to study and write much; but let us advise him to publish
little at present, however flattering the temptations thrown in his
way. What he may produce and think worth preserving, he should lay
aside, and at the end of about half the period recommended by Horace to
poets, examine and retouch it: then, having first consulted a judicious
friend, he may venture into print without endangering that fame of
which his present publication will have laid a very good foundation.
* * * * *
1. ~The Beauties of Neukomm~, _a characteristic_ ~Fantasia~, _in
which are introduced_ The Stormy Petrel, Count Balthazar, _and_ The
Sea Rover, _arranged by_ ~J. B. Cramer~. (Cramer and Co.)
2. ~Beauties of Neukomm~, _a_ ~Fantasia~, _in which are introduced_
The Bloodhound _and_ The Roaming Mariners, _arranged by_ ~J. N.
Hummel~. (Cramer and Co.)
Our readers have by this time made up their minds on the merit of the
above airs of M. Neükomm, for there are few by whom they have not been
heard: we have therefore no occasion to speak of them but as applicable
to the purposes to which they are now applied by these eminent
composers; and such is the charm of good melody--a very distinguishing
feature in the ingenious Chevalier’s compositions--that it pleases,
whatever the form it may assume.
These fantasias are calculated for a rather superior, though numerous,
class of performers. Both have, as indeed a matter of course, an
introductory movement, and are nearly equal in length. But the
particular style of each master is obvious in his respective work. In
the one, great refinement and expression, not devoid of spirit, are the
leading traits; in the other, freshness of fancy, energy, and depth of
harmony, mark the more vigorous composer. The introduction to the first
is brilliant, and familiarly written: that to the second inclines to
the grand, and is rather studiously composed; the syncopated passage
towards the end is a charming bit of classical harmony, and the author
is apparently aware of its attractive qualities, for he repeats it in
the body of the fantasia. These will prove valuable additions, in every
sense, to any musical catalogue.
* * * * *
1. ~Second Rondino~, _on_ ‘Questa e la Dea,’ _the Quintet in_
~Rossini’s~ _Opera_ Corradino, _by_ ~Charles Czerny~.
2. ~Souvenir de Bellini, Variations~ _sur un Motif de l’Opéra_ La
Sonnambula, _par_ ~Antonio Fauna~. (Goulding and D’Almaine.)
No. 1 is to be counted among the least perplexed and extravagant of M.
Czerny’s labours. There are two or three whimsical, but short passages
in it, that serve to show his propensities, but, upon the whole, we can
speak of this as an agreeable arrangement; the connecting parts and
the additions to the original materials are in character, and a good
player--for it is beyond the means of mediocre performers--will find it
worthy of some notice.[79]
* * * * *
No. 2 presents us with six variations on one of the many common airs in
an opera which good singing and some good acting have kept for a time
on our _denaturalized_ national stage. About half of these, the last,
_alla Polacca_, especially, really take a form somewhat new,--a fact
which argues favourably of the composer’s talent; for the writer of
variations, above all others, must have learnt by experience how very
little novelty there is under the sun. Altogether this publication has
afforded us pleasure.
* * * * *
1. Hommage à Handel, ~Divertimento~ _on the air_, The Harmonious
Blacksmith, _composed by_ ~Pio Cianchettini~. Op. 27. (Chappell.)
2. ~The Gipsies’ March~, _being No. 4 of Recreations for the
Piano-Forte, arranged by_ ~E. C. Vernet~. (Cramer and Co.)
To his Divertimento Mr. Cianchettini has prefixed a prelude, consisting
of nothing but arpeggios in demisemiquavers, to the almost incredible
extent of seven pages! We have been present when pianists have begun
to indulge themselves in such long-winded extemporaneous effusions,
but never had self-devotion enough to wait the conclusion; and we
shrewdly suspect that if any one shall have the courage to play through
the black forest of notes which has grown up under Mr. C.’s hand, the
auditors, however numerous at the beginning, will glide away, till
the performer is ‘left alone with his glory.’ After the prelude comes
(mercy on us!) an _Introduzione_, in which the subject is, _à la mode_,
anticipated. Then we at length arrive at Handel’s air; but how altered!
how wo-begone!--transposed into ~B~ flat, and treated as a theme for
modern descant! Had Handel added no variations to it himself, this
would have been allowable; but as he has written many, and most fitting
and beautiful ones, it was really a bold thing to render _homage_ to
the great composer in language which, however well meant, his spirit
must view in the light of a very _gauche_ compliment.
* * * * *
We know not the arranger, as he modestly terms himself, of No. 2, but
whoever or wherever he may be, we feel indebted to him for a pleasant
divertimento, formed on the original and beautiful march of Weber;
the latter very advantageously adapted, and well set off, by what
Mr. Vernet has added. The Introduction to this, _à la militaire_, is
spirited and brilliant, and the whole is showy, without being difficult.
* * * * *
~Select Airs~ _from_ ~Auber’s~ _Ballet-Opera_, La Bayadère, _or_,
The Maid of Cashmere, _arranged with a Flute accompaniment_, ad
lib., _by_ ~J. F. Burrowes~. Books 1 and 2. (Chappell.)
These books contain nearly the whole of the opera, but not the
overture, arranged in Mr. Burrowes’s matter-of-fact manner. We have
always approved his plan, because he places within reach of most
players what many would so adapt as to become useful to only a
comparative few. He has given ten pieces, but as we know nothing of the
score of _La Bayadère_, we are enabled merely to say, that he appears
to have embodied all the essential parts of the accompaniments in his
arrangement, so far as a pair of hands can take them in with that ease
which is a main object with publishers who calculate on a large sale.
Of the opera we have had occasion to speak before; it is, intentionally
we suppose, the lightest that the modern theatre ever produced, and
prettiness is the only quality to which it can make any pretence. In
fact _La Bayadère_ is of mongrel breed, half ballet, half opera; the
music, therefore, is fitted to it accordingly. The overture to this
will be found noticed in our next article.
* * * * *
DUETS, PIANO-FORTE.
1. _The_ ~Overture~ _to_ La Bayadère, _composed by_ ~Auber~.
(Chappell.)
2. Recollections of Nieborg, _composed by_ ~Fred. Kuhlau~. (Wessel
and Co.)
3. Recollections of Bogensee, _composed and published as the
preceding_.
4. Souvenir à Schönbrunn, ~Second Grande Marche~, _composée par_
~Charles Czerny~. Op. 250. (Wessel and Co.)
No. 1 is certainly not likely to gain admission into the Philharmonic
Concerts; it will never be put forward as the companion or rival to
the _Zauberflöte_, _Prometheus_, or _Freischütz_ overture, but is
well suited to the Ballet Opera of which it is the gentleman-usher.
Opening with a pastoral gaiety, then changing into a movement of bolder
liveliness, but free from all those combinations, that modulation,
so necessary to the connoisseur of northern climes, it is in good
keeping with the music that follows, and with the temperament of those
oddly-mixed tropical personages who appear in that strange, nondescript
theatrical representation, called _La Bayadère_.
* * * * *
Nos. 2 and 3 have Danish melodies, or airs so called, for their
foundation, worked up with considerable ingenuity by the late M.
Kuhlau. No. 2, consisting of three short movements, is graceful,
airy, and easy. No. 3 is also divided into three parts, but they are
longer than those in the preceding, have cost the composer rather more
thought, and require a quicker finger in the performer. Though there is
nothing strikingly original in either of these duets, they have nothing
vulgar, and little that is common, in them; and there is enough fancy
and good taste in their composition to enable us to mention both in
favourable terms.
* * * * *
No. 4 was, it appears, composed for her Majesty Maria Anna Carolina,
queen of what state we are not told; and it certainly was not likely
to puzzle her royal brains, for not a bar is there in it that had not,
in some shape or other, been played by her Majesty during the progress
of her musical studies. To compose anything new in the form of a march
is undoubtedly a difficult task, and M. Czerny seems to have been
determined that his two hundred and fiftieth opera should not be a work
of labour.
* * * * *
VOCAL.
La Bayadère, _or_ The Maid of Cashmere, _a Ballet-Opera, composed
by_ ~Auber~; _adapted to the English stage by_ ~Henry R. Bishop~.
(Chappell.)
1. ~Air~, ‘Why discontent?’ (‘Je suis content.’)
2. ~Air~, ‘Ah! ne’er for me.’ (‘Ainsi pour me.’)
3. Trio, ‘Oh! this heart palpitating.’ (‘Tu ne peux t’en défendre.’)
No. 1 is meant as a comic song, but we were unable to perceive the
drollery of it on the stage, and are equally at a loss to discover any
in it while lying before us. Certainly there is no joke in its great
length. The air is quite à la Auber. It begins thus:--
[Illustration:
Why dis-con-tent? All hap-py be!
Eat then, and drink: Laugh then like me.
]
No. 2 is a tender address from _Brahma_ (the unknown) to the
_Bayadère_, a delicate, pleasing air, though without stage action it
will be thought somewhat long.
* * * * *
No. 3, a short trio for soprano, tenor, and base, in ~A~ flat, an
andante, is one of those _morceaux d’ensemble_ (all of them imitated
from ‘Protegga, il giusto cielo,’ in _Don Giovanni_) which rarely fail
of success; and this will be as welcome in the drawing-room, in a
domestic party, as on the stage, where it always meets with the warmest
applause.
* * * * *
1. ~Duetto~, ‘Non ridir non potro mai,’ _composed by the_ ~Hon.
Emma and Catherine Maynard~. (Willis.)
2. ~Ballad~, ‘Thy form was fair,’ _the words by_ ~Miss Costello~;
_the Music_ by ~Lady Augusta Kennedy Erskine~. (Willis.)
3. ~Ballad~, ‘The sally of the students,’ _by the_ ~Hon. Mrs.
Bertie Percy~. (Willis.)
4. ~Arietta~, ‘Se più felice oggetto,’ _the words by_ ~Metastasio~;
_the Music composed by_ ~Miss Blaydes~. (Willis.)
5. Hajji Baba’s song in the Harem, _the words by_ ~J. Morier~,
Esq.; _composed by the_ ~Baron Seymour de Constant~. (Willis.)
6. ~Duet~, ‘Never forget me!’ (the words from the Spanish, by Mrs.
Lawrence) _composed by_ ~John Lodge~, Esq. (Lonsdale and Mills.)
7. ~Ballad~, ‘Good-nature,’ _written and composed by_ ~J. Augustine
Wade~, Esq. (Hawes.)
Many a professional composer would be too happy to call himself author
of so pleasing and clever a duet as No. 1, which, in whatever way it
is considered, proves the musical knowledge and elegant taste of the
joint composers. Its style is Italian, but there are notes in the
accompaniment which show that the writers are well read in the German
school. Young as the ladies are who have produced this, yet there is
a method and consistency in it that indicate considerable experience.
They must have entered on the study of music with hearty good will,
and pursued it with an earnestness which is rarely found in those who
have no other object in view but amusement. We regret, however, to
inform these very ingenious dilettanti, that the engraver has left so
many errors--for _his_ errors they clearly are--that it was with some
difficulty we ascertained the intention of the composers in numerous
instances; insomuch that we strongly recommend them to make a sacrifice
of all the copies printed off, to have the plates corrected, and then
publish another edition. They may rest assured that the duet is well
worth the trouble and expense. This is dedicated to one of the wonders
of the present age, certainly the greatest musical phenomenon that ever
existed[80], and is a well-timed tribute to such genius.
* * * * *
No. 2 is very simple, but set with great feeling and taste to
well-chosen words. It is now in ~G~, and was, it seems, originally in
~A~ flat. Why not have remained in that key? It would not have been at
all too high for any soprano voice; and as it is, the ~B~ below the
clef, to which it extends, may be too low for many singers.
* * * * *
No. 3 is a spirited melodious _song_, not a ‘ballad,’ as the authoress
calls it, for it consists of three movements. The second of these, in
~A~ flat, the former ending in ~G~, is much too sudden a transition
from a key so entirely irrelative. There are two or three slight
oversights in this, which may easily be corrected: and the title of the
song at first view is not a little ambiguous. We really read ‘Sally’ as
a prænomen, as a Christian name. Would not _sortie_ answer the purpose?
* * * * *
There is much sweetness and grace in No. 4, and the words are most
correctly set. It is remarkably easy, and, except a single ~A~ above
the staff, is within the compass of almost every female voice.
* * * * *
No. 5 is pleasing and elegant, though it does not lead us to suppose
that the noble composer has made much effort in search of new effects.
The Baron, however, has set the words--a mild anacreontic--with a
correctness that many an English composer may take pattern from.
* * * * *
No. 6, written for two young ladies well known in the fashionable
circles for their charming manner of singing, is one of those
compositions which never fail to please in the drawing-room, for
which the author has exclusively calculated his duet. It runs much in
smoothly-flowing thirds and sixths, but Mr. Lodge’s natural tendency
to something beyond these, occasionally peeps out, with good effect,
though without calling on the performers for any additional exertion.
* * * * *
No. 7 sings very agreeably of the most valuable quality to be found
among the _petites morales_, good-nature. There is an ease and suavity
in his ballad that well agree with the theme his muse has furnished.
* * * * *
1. ~Ballad~, ‘Pretty Love-birds,’ _in_ The Yeoman’s Daughter, _the
words by_ Mr. ~Serle~, _composed by_ ~J. Augustine Wade~, Esq.
(Hawes.)
2. ~Ballad~, ‘Is Love a thing of Joy?’ _in the same, composed by_
~W. Hawes~. (Hawes.)
These ballads are sung by Mrs. Waylett at the Adelphi Theatre, to whom
they are not a little indebted, for she gives a character to whatever
of the kind she undertakes, that scarcely ever fails to draw ‘thunders
of applause,’ in the theatrical phrase. But they have also inherent
merit. The first is playful and winning, and free from all vulgarity
of cadence. The second is in a very popular style, with a _pizzicato_
accompaniment, strongly marked in rhythm, though possessing little of
that originality which is so difficult to find.
1. ~Air~, ‘Friendship,’ _composed by_ ~Henry R. Bishop~. (Chappell.)
2. ~Ballad~, ‘I’ve been a Wanderer on the Seas,’ _composed by_
~John Barnett~. (Chappell.)
3. ~Song~, ‘Above doth stand the ~Digger of Graves~,’ _translated
by_ ~W. M. M’Gregor Logan~, _from the German of_ Der Todtengräber,
_composed by_ ~Fred. Kuhlau~. (Wessel and Co.)
4. ~Ballad~, ‘The two Ravens,’ _composed by_ ~G. Hargreaves~.
(Hawes.)
5. ~Song~, ‘They bade me sing,’ _the words by_ ~J. Roby~. Esq.;
_the Music by_ ~Charles Smith~. (Cramer and Co.)
6. ~Nautical Song~, ‘The Sailor’s Notion,’ _composed by_ ~W. A.
Wordsworth~. (Monro and May.)
7. ~Ballad~, ‘O’er the green Waters,’ _the words by_ ~W. Ball~;
_the Music by_ ~William Orde~. (Cocks and Co.)
8. ~Ballad~, ‘The Chain,’ _composed by_ ~W. Neuland~. (Chappell.)
The first of these is one of those correct and gracious airs which
always, to a certain extent, please when heard, but, for want of
distinctness of character, are forgotten the moment the last note is
sounded.
* * * * *
No. 2 meets our longing ears with something in the shape of
originality, something which informs us that the composer has taken
the trouble to think. Of the latter, the notes at the words, ‘whose
voices came,’ is a proof, and the whole is indicative of reflection and
knowledge of effect.
* * * * *
No. 3 is true German, both words and music. A giant ‘in sable armour’
goes to a grave-digger, (_der Todtengräber_)--and insists on being
buried. The man of the mournful spade tremblingly complies. The
grave-wooer lies down, his head resting on his shield, and is covered
up. The sexton crosses himself, and the story ends; but what it means,
beyond what is stated, we know not, and suspect that the grave-digger
never was better informed on the subject than are we and our readers.
The music has a grand simplicity in it that proves of what the composer
was capable, and how much we lost by his early death. He was, most
probably, impressed with an idea of something mysteriously awful in
the words, and admirably adapted his harmony to his conception of the
poet’s meaning, into which he penetrated further than we are capable of
doing. This is for a base voice, and the English translation is adapted
to it with an accuracy seldom attained.
* * * * *
No 4 is also very Germanic, and quite as full of horrors as the former,
but of another kind. The poet here sings of two birds, who ask, ‘Where
shall we dine?’ The one is in favour of the remains of some shipwrecked
mariners, whose corpses look inviting: the other recommends the cold
remains of ‘a new-slain knight.’ How the hungry ravens determine, the
song saith not, though the arguments of the latter, who seems to have
been strongly tempted by the jelly of the knight’s eye, most likely
prevail. This really does not seem a lyrical subject, but the composer
(an amateur) has made much of it. Indeed, we have here a work of
considerable genius, pleasing in spite of the not very inviting story,
and superior to most of the songs that come before us.
No. 5 is a clever and very pleasing song, with many beauties, and never
a fault.
* * * * *
No 6 possesses the best characteristics of a good sea-song, without any
of those vulgarisms in cadence which are often met with in music of
this description. The melody is free, the accompaniment unaffected, and
the effect of the whole agreeable.
* * * * *
No. 7 is also a sailor’s song, but of the gentlest kind,--of a mariner
who sings of ‘The chime of the vesper, the music of prayer;’ so that
nothing at all approaching to nautical _slang_ is to be found here. The
air is very pretty, and a short chorus, for three sopranos, at the end
of each stanza, adds such to effect.
* * * * *
No. 8 is more elegant than new. The composer, a foreigner, may be
excused some errors in emphasis that appear in this ballad, which may
be corrected without much trouble.
* * * * *
DOUBLE-BASS.
~Method~ _for the_ ~Double-Bass~, _according to the English system
of tuning and fingering, compiled from the treatises of_ ~Miné,
Frohlich~, &c., _and illustrated by numerous extracts from the
Orchestral Compositions of_ ~Haydn~ and ~Mozart~; _together with an
explanation of the mode of simplifying_ ordinary Bass-parts, _so as
to adapt them to this instrument, by_ ~J. Hamilton~. (Cocks and Co.)
The reader perhaps will start at seeing a treatise on such an
instrument announced, but the double-base has risen to great importance
in the orchestra, and requires a much more regular course of study than
in days gone by, when all sorts of people undertook to perform on it.
The title-page of this publication so fully sets forth its contents,
that it is unnecessary to add a word on that subject. The precepts
are few and clearly expressed, but the examples are many and very
judiciously selected.
We learn from the present work, that in Germany this instrument is
mounted with four strings, which are tuned by fourths descending,
beginning with ~C~, the second space in the base; or more frequently
with ~G~, the first base line. In Italy, England, and France, only
three strings are used, which in the two former countries are tuned to
~G~, ~D~, and ~G~; in the latter, to ~G~, ~D~, and ~A~. The double-base
plays from the violoncello part, but generally an octave below that
instrument.
* * * * *
It appears that the fault we complained of in our last, page 149,
in mentioning a Fantasia by M. Chaulieu, is imputable to the London
engraver, who mistook a new mark endeavoured to be brought into use
by the composer, for the contratenor clef. See Acknowledgments to
Correspondents.
EXTRACTS FROM THE DIARY OF A DILETTANTE.
[Resumed from page 135.]
_June 8th._ The following facts, which appear in the _Court Journal_
of this day, are so correct, as far as they relate to Sig. Paganini’s
recently advertised concerts, and the remarks are so just, that I shall
beg leave to transfer them to my Diary:--
‘An extraordinary change seems to have taken place in the public mind
with respect to Paganini: his concerts, on his first visit to this
country, were so well attended that frequently his receipts exceeded
1000_l._, and on one occasion 1400_l._ were received, of which he had
two thirds, leaving M. Laporte to pay the whole expenses out of the
remaining third. On his arriving here, about two months ago, he was
advised to defer giving any concert until the anger, caused by his
refusal to play for the distressed English actors in Paris, should have
blown over. It being supposed, however, last week, that this affair had
been forgotten, and that there was every prospect of obtaining full
houses, Paganini announced a concert for yesterday (Friday, the 7th
June) evening. On Thursday, so few boxes and stalls had been taken,
that Paganini, despairing of an attendance that would compensate him
for his trouble, and dreading, perhaps, that there would be some
disturbance arising out of the Paris affair, yesterday advertised that
there would be no performance! M. Laporte cannot, we imagine, regret
the disappointment, for if his agreement with Paganini be similar to
the former one, he would have had all the expenses to pay out of a
third, which would hardly have covered the charge of the musicians.’
* * * * *
_21st._ This evening Sig. Paganini had his first concert this season in
the King’s Theatre, when he performed nearly the same pieces that he
has so often repeated in London. The pit was not half full, the gallery
not one-third, and the boxes almost empty. He advertises _two concerts_
as the number he has determined to give. These will both be too many,
if his second is no better attended than his first.
* * * * *
_24th._ The _Globe_ of this evening has the honesty to point out the
discordance in the account given of Paganini’s concert, in two Sunday
papers of yesterday. Such things will happen so long as free tickets
are accepted by our journals, beyond the number necessary for the
actual use of the reporters. It is charitable to suppose, that the
writer of the article, who filled the house so _overflowingly full_,
was himself never for one moment within its walls. In this case he may
have _guessed_ wrong. But let us hear the _Globe_:--
‘~Paganini’s Concert.~ We find the following discrepancies as
to a mere matter of fact, in the account given by two of the Sunday
papers, in Paganini’s concert on Friday. We, not, however, having been
present, cannot decide between these two differing “doctors:”--
‘“Sig. Paganini had his first concert for the season on Friday
evening, at the King’s Theatre. The excitement--probably by the
delay in the Signor’s appearance, as well as in the novelty of the
performances--produced _an overflowing house._”--_Observer._ “The
Modern Orpheus was employed on Friday in enchanting the empty boxes and
trenches of the Opera House: never was there a greater appearance of
_desolation within its walls_.”--_Sunday Times._’
* * * * *
_29th._ A weekly paper of this date makes a great flourish in an
article most unluckily headed ‘critical blunders,’ in which the writer
himself commits a couple of choice and entertaining _étourderies_, much
resembling certain small paragraphs, served up for the public amusement
in a daily paper, on Monday mornings, and probably from the same goose
quill. The learned article runs thus:--
‘_Critical Blunders._ Certain journalists, our contemporaries, have
been somewhat severe upon the “extravagant trash” forming the original
_libretto_ of “The Magic Flute,” being, we conclude, unaware that the
opera of [the] _Zauberflöte_ is one of the early works of Goethe. The
character of _Papageno_ is, in fact, one of the most elegant of his
fantastic creations.’
Now it happens, that the drama in question--if such a farrago of
nonsense is to be dignified by such a title--was written by Emanuel
Schickaneder, proprietor of a suburb theatre at Vienna, who, pleading
his embarrassed circumstances, persuaded Mozart to set the opera,
and was saved from ruin by the success of the piece. But to saddle
the character of _Papageno_, the bird-catcher, on Goethe, would be
‘too bad,’ were it not so vastly comical. ‘One of his most elegant
creations,’ too! Who has now been hoaxing the unhappy victim of many a
joke?
* * * * *
--I think I trace the identical pen that wrote the above, in the
annexed, which appeared in the very some paper:--
‘_Titled Opera Singers._ It might be inferred that Louis XIV., in
founding the French opera, was gifted with second sight, or had
anticipated an era when Count de Rossys, Count Giustinianis, and other
high mightinesses, would bestow their titles upon the play bills. By
the letters patent of the foundation in 1672, it was enacted, that
“all gentlemen, and other distinguished persons, might sing at the
said opera, without forfeiting their _titles of nobility_, places,
rights, or immunities.” Louis XIV., and his successor, Louis XV., were
frequently performers in the court masques and _ballets_.’
Here are other blunders, by implication! Paul ought to have known,
because he knows every thing, that no Count _Rossi_ (not _Rossy_), no
Count Justiniani, ever appeared on any stage. Madame Camporese, the
actual wife of the latter, and Madlle. Sontag, who became the wife
of the former, were performers, no doubt; but the one suppressed her
title, and the other had none to suppress.
* * * * *
_July 1st._ Legitimate music, it is to be feared, is in danger of
suffering the fate of the legitimate drama; both are becoming the
victims of freshly-imported foreigners, who, whatever their other
knowledge may be, are well acquainted with the weak side of our
_West-Endians_. On Saturday last, at a concert for the benefit of
Madlle. Pixis, two instances of egregious folly were displayed: the
one a performance of the overture to the _Zauberflöte_, on three
piano-fortes, by twelve hands; the other, a _Quatuor Concertante_, for
four piano-fortes! The ‘confusion worse confounded,’ thus produced,
may be imagined, not described. Some such piece of foolery was
exhibited at Vienna last year, and justly reprobated by the good,
uninfluenced German critics; but as it would not do a second time,
even in the Austrian capital, the exploit was repeated in a country
which, having paid upwards of 20,000_l._ to hear an Italian play on one
fiddle-string, it was reasonably supposed would encourage any other
kind of musical nonsense.
* * * * *
_July 3d._ Sunday the 30th of June was a high festival day at
Tadcaster, says a Yorkshire paper, on ‘account of the opening of a
large organ, built by Elliott and Hill, of London, who erected the
stupendous instrument in York Cathedral. The fact having been publicly
announced, occasioned a great influx of visiters from York and the
surrounding country, and Tadcaster has not presented so lively a
scene for some time. Dr. Camidge performed on the instrument with the
greatest ability, and the numerous congregation, which crowded every
part of the church, were highly gratified by hearing the full harmony
of the organ, which possesses vast richness of tone, peal forth in that
grand melody, the Old Hundredth Psalm, with which the morning service
commenced.’
There is now hardly a church of any importance which does not boast an
organ, and generally one of large dimensions. This alone is a proof of
the advance of music in Great Britain; for of all instruments the organ
is the noblest, the most capable of producing great effects, in the
hands of a good harmonist, of a performer of sense, who feels that he
himself is appearing to advantage only when in solemn or in sober music
he is displaying the best qualities, exhibiting the real character, of
an instrument that is absolutely desecrated by any attempt at what is
called brilliancy of execution.
* * * * *
_4th._ This morning a concert was given at Willis’s Rooms, by Mr.
Osborne, a native of Ireland, I believe, but who has passed much of his
life on the Continent, in which he, for the first time, exhibited his
talents as a piano-forte player, before a London audience, and was very
favourably received. His sister, also, Miss Saunders Osborne, made her
débût, and appears to have studied in a good vocal school.
* * * * *
_12th._ In a work very lately published (_The Infirmities of Genius
Illustrated, &c. by R. R. Madden, Esq._) the author has given lists of
twenty persons of different professions, with the ages at which they
died, for the purpose of showing the influence of various intellectual
pursuits on longevity. In his selection of musical composers he might
have been more successful as regards the eminence of the individuals,
though the result would not have differed very widely. The following
are the names he has chosen, and the ages at which they died:--
Arne, Dr. 68
Seb. Bach 66
Beethoven 57
Burney, Dr. 88
Bull, Dr. 41
Cimarosa 41
Corelli 60
Gluck 75
Gretry 72
Handel 75
Haydn 77
Kalkbrenner 51
Keiser 62
Martini 78
Mozart 36
Paisiello 75
Piccini 71
Porpora 78
Scarlatti, A. 78
Weber, C. M. 40
----
Total 1289
Giving an average of 64 years.
But Dr. Burney cannot be classed as a great musical composer; and Mr.
Madden has omitted names of infinitely more celebrity, as well as
real merit, than some he has inserted; I would therefore propose the
following list.
Arne 68
S. Bach 66
Beethoven 57
_Boyce_ 69
_Cherubini_ 80[81]
Cimarosa 41
Corelli 60
_Clementi_ 82
Gluck 75
Gretry 72
Handel 75
Haydn 77
_Lully_ 53
_Marcello_ 53
Mozart 36
Paisiello 75
_Pergolesi_ 22
_Purcell_ 37
Scarlatti 78
Weber 40
----
Total 1116
Giving an average of 60⅘ years.
Mr. Madden gives the following as the general result of his inquiry:--
Aggregate Average
years. years.
Natural Philosophers 1504 75
Moral ditto 1417 70
Sculptors and Painters 1412 70
Authors on Law and Jurisprudence 1394 69
Medical Authors 1368 68
Authors on Revealed Religion 1350 67
Philologists 1323 66
Musical Composers 1284 64
Novelists and Miscellaneous Authors 1257 62-1/2
Dramatists 1249 62
Authors on Natural Religion 1245 62
Poets 1144 57
In relation to composers, he remarks,--‘musical composition demands
extraordinary sensibility, an enthusiastic imagination, an instinctive
taste, rather than deep thought. The same qualities differently
directed make the poet. Is it, then, to be wondered at, that we
should find the poets and the musical composers shorter lived than
the followers of all other learned and scientific pursuits, whose
sensibilities are not exercised by their studies, whose imaginations
are not wearied by excessive application and enthusiasm?’ But Mr.
Madden overlooks other causes quite as operative as those he enumerates.
COMMEMORATION OF SIR THOMAS GRESHAM.
This took place in Haberdashers’ Hall, on Thursday, July 4, when the
Gresham Prize Medal, for the best composition in sacred vocal music,
was presented to Mr. K. J. Pye, whose successful work is an Anthem
for five voices, ‘Turn thee again, O Lord!’ This was sung before a
respectable company assembled on the occasion, among whom were Lord
Burghersh, Sir John Rogers, Bart., Sir Robert Fitzwygram, Bart.,
Alderman Copeland, M.P., &c., who acted as directors. A small band,
led by Sig. Spagnoletti, was engaged, and the following appropriate
compositions were performed after the anthem:--
‘Blest are the departed’ ~Spohr.~
‘His body is buried in peace’ ~Handel.~
Selection from the Requiem ~Mozart.~
Then, after a short interval, the subjoined pieces were sung by
a professional party who attended for the purpose, Mr. Novello
officiating as conductor:--
Madrigal, ‘Now is the Month of Maying’ ~Morley.~
Spenser’s Epithalamium ~Horsley.~
Glee, ‘Whilst I listen to thy voice’ ~Sir J. L. Rogers, Bart.~
Glee, ‘It was a lover and his lass’ ~Stevens.~
Madrigal, ‘Cynthia, thy song and
chanting’ ~Giovanni Croce.~
And Mr. Distin performed on the trumpet the voice part of the ‘Soldier
tired of War’s alarms,’ from _Artaxerxes_, in which he displayed an
extraordinary command over this difficult instrument.
* * * * *
CATHEDRAL MUSIC.--GRESHAM PRIZE MEDAL.
A gold medal, of five guineas value, will be annually awarded by ~Dr.
Crotch~, Professor of Music in the University of Oxford; ~R. J. S.
Stevens~, Esq. Professor of Music in Gresham College; and ~William
Horsley~, Esq. Mus. Bac. Oxford; for the best original composition in
Sacred Vocal Music, either Hymn or Anthem.
The words to be selected from the Canonical Scriptures, Apocrypha, or
Liturgy of the church of England, and to be set for three, four, or
five voices, with a separate part for the organ.
The music to be entirely new; and one composition only to be sent in by
each candidate.
Each composition to be distinguished by a motto. A sealed paper,
inclosing the composer’s name and address, to be endorsed with the same
motto.
The successful composition will remain the property of the author.
The unsuccessful candidates may receive back their compositions, on
producing a written copy of the motto.
The candidates are to send their compositions, in score, fairly written
out, to the Gresham Lecture Room, at the Royal Exchange, before the end
of October, on any Wednesday in Term, between the hours of twelve and
two. Or they may be left in the care of Messrs. Smith, Elder, and Co.,
Booksellers, Cornhill; or of Mr. J. A. Novello, 67, Frith-street, Soho,
by whom they will be duly forwarded, and who will give any further
information that may be required.
It is intended to hold the next Commemoration on Saturday, June 7,
1834, being the Anniversary of the Day on which Sir Thomas Gresham laid
the First Stone of the Royal Exchange.
FOREIGN MUSICAL REPORT.
Rossini’s _Italienerinn_ (Italiana in Algeri) has been produced on
the _Josephstädter Theater_, but the admirers of his music were
less satisfied with this composition than with the former operas of
the maestro. This may in some degree have been owing to the sudden
indisposition of one of the principal singers, whose part was but
indifferently filled by a substitute.
The fourth and last Concert of the Society of the Friends of Music in
the Austrian dominions took place on the 24th of March.
Mr. Klein, member of the _Hofoperntheater_, gave a concert on the 8th
of April. The musical world already recognizes him as one of the first
virtuosi of the present day on the clarinet, and his performance on
this occasion added if possible to his former fame.
Spring festivals have been given in all our public gardens, and
our most celebrated composers of dances have contributed thereto
their latest labours. Strauss’ and Lanner’s orchestras are certain
of attracting the public in crowds. The finest weather adds to the
popularity of these entertainments, and the influenza, with which we
are still visited, does not prevent the jovial Viennese from seizing
upon pleasure wherever it is to be met with.
The celebrated violinist, Lafont, performed before the Imperial
Court on the 18th of May. He executed the two compositions of his own
which he had previously given at a concert in the Hall of the Musical
Society. Of all the violinists that we have heard, he possesses most
true taste. He has the secret to touch the heart, and executes forcible
and rapid passages with neatness and certainty, without that capricious
violation of the rules of art, which ends in the surmounting of
difficulties only.
BERLIN.
~Graun’s~ _Passions_--_Cantata the Death of Jesus_ was given on Good
Friday in the Singing Academy, for the benefit of the treasury of
the institution. The room was overflowing, although the prevailing
influenza prevented two of our principal female singers from
co-operating on this occasion. Besides the above, we had two concerts
which demand notice. The first was given by a young musician, Herr
Otto Nicolai, from Königsberg, in Prussia, with a view of introducing
himself to the public as a composer, singer, and pianist; in each
of these capacities he displayed considerable talent and diligent
study. There are several good ideas in a symphony of his composition.
The allegro is well arranged, and the ideas properly connected. The
instrumentation is effective, and on the whole there is a praiseworthy
endeavour to follow Beethoven’s style, especially in the scherzo. The
symphony deserved and gained an encouraging reception. As a vocal
composer, Herr Nicolai proved, in a bass scena--_Tell auf der Strasse
nach Küssnacht_, that he was well versed in this department.
The second concert, given under the direction of the music director,
Mr. Möser, was one of the most attractive of the whole season. A new
concertino (the composer of which was not mentioned) was executed by
Mr. Möser with much youthful fire, and with a vigour and expression
that evinced a true and deep feeling for the art. The concert
terminated with a poem by Mosengeil, delivered in a most expressive
manner by Mad. Crelinger and M. Devrient, and interspersed by some of
Beethoven’s genial music to Goethe’s tragedy of _Egmont_, thus forming
a lyric scena, which recalled to the recollection of the public the
above neglected drama, while, on the other hand, the poem led to
the revival of the sublime and unrivalled work of Beethoven’s. This
melo-dramatic performance, exhibited for the first time in this form,
created a deep and universal sensation.
In consequence of the epidemic, which also affected many of the
individuals of the Royal Opera, the representations were frequently
weakened, or suspended; nevertheless Miss Grünbaum, as Pamina, and
Amazili in the opera of Jessonda, sang very fairly; and an equal share
of praise is due to Mr. Hoffman in the characters of Nadori and Otello.
In the _Königstadt Theater_, Mad. Schodel, from Vienna, appeared with
considerable success in several operas, more particularly as Julie in
Bellini’s _Capuletti e Montecchi_, as Isoletta in the _Unbekannte_
(Straniera), and as Henriette in Auber’s _Braut_ (La Fiancée). Mad.
Schodel’s voice is a somewhat thin soprano, and rather piercing in the
higher notes, but with a little moderation and increased cultivation
its force may render her a valuable acquisition to the stage. A
pleasing exterior, and the energy of youth, are favourable points in
this lady’s dramatic performances.
M. Kalkbrenner is arrived here. He left Paris towards the end of March,
and has successively visited Francfort, Carlsruhe, Stuttgard, Leipsig,
and Dresden, and everywhere has given concerts which have been as
successful as enthusiastically applauded. In Germany, especially, his
grand and pure style, his energy and brilliancy, have been universally
admired. He proposes to give in this, his native city, a series of
concerts, which, doubtless, will charm all our true connoisseurs.
DRESDEN.
~Baron Miltiz’s~ opera seria, _Saul_, the admirable text of which was
furnished by his Royal Highness Prince John, displays in its full force
the talent of the composer in the serious department of the operatic
drama; the overture and the choruses are excellent. _Wächter_ performed
the part of _Saul_, Mad. _Schröder Devrient_ Michal, and _Babnigg_
David. The opera was represented thrice in one week with the greatest
applause.
Madlle. _Maschinka Schneider_, daughter of the Prussian Capellmeister
Schneider, is engaged at our opera, and sang, for the first time, in
April, at a concert in the palace, and appeared afterwards in the
Barber of Seville. The nuptials of the Prince co-Regent with the
Princess Maria of Bavaria were celebrated by a drama written for
the occasion, by Theodor Hell, and composed by the Capellmeister
_Reissiger_; the title is, _Der Erde reinstes Glück_ (Earth’s Purest
Happiness), and the plot, which is founded on a contest between
_Titania_ and _Oberon_, as to the purest happiness to be enjoyed by
mortals, skilfully connects some of the most brilliant events of former
ages with remarkable occurrences of the present times. There is an
attractive troubadour-like sweetness in the music, which was deservedly
applauded, especially the sprightly and cheerful choruses.
MUNICH.
~Handel’s~ classical work, _Alexander’s Feast_, was performed here on
the 31st of March, by an orchestra (vocal and instrumental) of two
hundred individuals; its masterly execution drew bursts of applause
from the numerous audience which filled the great saloon of the Odeon.
Mr. Schinn of Pesth made his debût in the part of the Podestà in the
_Diebische Elster_ (La Gazza Ladra). He is reported to possess a fine
voice, and a cultivated musical taste. The first opera to be brought
out under the new direction of our establishment is stated to be
_William Tell_.
The Royal _Hofmusikus_ Böhm has, by his great mechanical talents, given
such perfection to the flute, that all the tones of the instrument are
rendered equally full, pure, and vibrating. Its pianos are uncommonly
sweet and delicate, and the fortes exceed by far the power of an
ordinary flute. In addition to these advantages, this new instrument
presents an equal facility in all the keys, the most difficult not
excepted. Although Mr. Böhm has only practised this new instrument
for about six months, his execution upon it is almost as great as on
the flute hitherto in use. He is on the point of setting out on a
professional journey to England.
PRAGUE.
The only real novelty upon our boards was _Udalrich_ and _Bozena_,
a romantic opera in three acts, by F. V. Ernst, the music by
Capellmeister Skraup. The various prior compositions of this author
scarcely justified an expectation of so good a work as the present
opera, the score of which furnishes evidence of meritorious exertions
and progress in the art. Like all new operas, however, it presents
reminiscences, but it is distinguished by a richness of melody not to
be found in Mr. Ernst’s prior labours. Among the best pieces in the
opera are the aria of _Bozena_ (Demlle. Lutzer), that of _Udalrich_
(Mr. Driska), and that of _Borowin_ (Mr. Podhorsky), as also the
romance of the above lady, and her duet with the duke, the spirited
allegro of which was every time encored. As further favourable
specimens, we might quote the trio between _Borowin_, _Udalrich_, and
_Ladka_ (Demlle. Pittner), a quartet, and all the three finales. The
overture is a weak composition.
The reception was enthusiastic, and the execution, while it gave proof
of careful rehearsal, did great honour to our vocal company.
FRANKFORT.
The opera of _Robert the Devil_ has been brought out here at an expense
of 8000 florins, and met with enthusiastic applause. Its performance
will be additionally impressed on our memory, for, during its
representation on the 3rd of April, our city was suddenly thrown into
confusion by riots and bloodshed, caused by a small band of political
fanatics.
_Valeria_, an opera by M. Aloys Schmidt, has been brought out here.
While this work certainly exhibits some original and agreeable traits,
it abounds in reminiscences of Beethoven, Cherubini, and Mozart.
However, it has succeeded.
LEIPZIG.
~Kalkbrenner~ gave a concert here on the 3rd of May. He is proceeding
to Petersburg, and intends being at Vienna in August.
A theoretical work has recently issued here, from the press of Messrs.
Breitkopf and Härtel, entitled _Aesthetisch-historische Einleitung
in die Wissenschaft der Tonkunst_ (Aesthetical and Historical
Introduction to the Science of Music), by Dr. William Christian Müller,
in two volumes. The first volume bears the separate title, Essay on
an Aesthetical Theory of Music, and treats in twenty chapters this
extensive branch of the art, in a very clear and satisfactory manner.
The second volume contains the chronology of music, the history of
its cultivation, divided into ten epochas, from the dark ages of
mythology to the present time. The industry and care of the author are
praiseworthy, and are sufficiently displayed in numerous references and
quotations.
WEIMAR.
In the Easter week a new opera was produced here, under the title
of _The Traitor in the Alps_. The text by _Seidel_ and the music by
_Genast_ are, according to the opinion of competent judges, of superior
merit.
KÖNIGSBERG.
On the 3rd and 10th of October, the music director, Mr. Saemen,
produced Handel’s _Alexander’s Feast_. On the 18th October, and 14th
November, the music director, Mr. Riel, gave, for charitable purposes,
Handel’s _Messiah_, in the Lobnicht Church. On the 25th, 27th, and
31st of October, three Tyrolese minstrels gave concerts of national
airs. They are jovial people, expert enough in musical tricks, such as
yodling, falsetto, &c., but are anything but artists.
On the 31st October, Mr. Louis Mauer, from Hanover, gave a concert;
among the pieces of which we have to notice a concertino for the
violin, fantasias on melodies of the _Dumb Girl of Portici_, executed
by Mr. L. Mauer, and variations of Mayseder, by Wsewolod Mauer. The
father and son played also a rondo à la polacca for two violins;
variations for two violins and violoncello, upon the _Cloak Song_, from
Leonora, the whole composed by L. Mauer.
The theatre has furnished little of marked interest; Mr. Rosicke of
the Berlin _Königstadt Theater_ appeared in various characters, with
success, more particularly as Wallheim in _Leonora_. Mr. Heckscher, a
new engagement from the Brunswick Court Theatre, made his appearance
as Don Juan, Count Wetter von Strahl, Caspar in the _Freyschutz_,
Lord Cockburn in _Fra Diavolo_, &c. The experienced actor is easily
recognised in this gentleman, who possesses a powerful bass voice, but
of which he does not always avail himself to the best advantage. On the
16th of October was performed, for the benefit of Miss Hulda Schaffner,
_Je toller, je besser_ (Une Folie), by Méhul.
The principal novelty on our boards was the production, on the 6th
December, of the opera of _Imogen_ (founded on Shakspeare’s Cymbeline),
a composition of our worthy music director, Mr. _Sobolewski_,
who, according to report, has also furnished the poem. Mr. S. has
raised himself from the ranks in music to his present situation of
commander-in-chief, and, by this opera, has furnished a new proof of
musical talent of a superior order.
STRASBURG.
Our German Opera, under the direction of Mr. Weinmüller, commenced the
season with the _Freyschutz_. The performance met with considerable
success, although the company is not as yet complete.
BRUSSELS.
The King of the Belgians has been pleased to accept the dedication
of the score of the opera _William of Nassau_, and, in proof of his
satisfaction, has transmitted to the music director, _Mezeray_, a very
flattering letter, accompanied with a diamond ring.
Monsieur Fétis is arrived, with the view of making the necessary
arrangements for his future residence in this city; he has been
nominated Maître de Chapelle of his Majesty, as well as Music Director
and Professor at the Conservatoire.
ST. PETERSBURG.
Barman, the clarionet player, who has spent last winter in the higher
northern latitudes, is at present here; wherever he appeared he was
received with the greatest applause.
MILAN.
_Il Contrabbandiere_, a melo-drame in two acts, the music by Cesare
Pugni, was produced here on the 12th of June. There are in this opera
some _motivi_ new and elegant, but the instrumental part is much too
noisy. The composer has too freely used his trombones and drums.
NAPLES.
Sig. Barbaja still retains the office of _Impresario_ of the Grand
Theatre Royal, the San Carlo. The company which he has formed for the
ensuing season comprises, among many others, Mesdames Malibran, Ronzi
di Begnis, and Lablache.
BOLOGNA.
Madlle. Blasis has been very favourably received by the public in this
city. _Matilde di Shabran_ would doubtless have proved more successful
had all the performers contributed equally to an opera which requires a
perfect company. The tenor, Duprez, has succeeded very well here; in
him are united the talents of a good actor and singer.
PARIS.
~Mad. Damoreau~ (Cinti), after an absence of three months, has
re-appeared at the opera. Many works, which have suffered for want of
her assistance, now feel the happy effect of her return.
TOULOUSE.
The concert of the celebrated M. Field has been a remarkable event for
this city. All the best society of the town assembled at the Saloon
of the Athenæum on this occasion, and, accustomed to hear only those
pianists who delight in noise and absurd tricks, were as much surprised
as charmed by the ease with which M. Field executed the most difficult
and the most delicate passages.
M. Field is a disciple of the true piano forte school; Clementi was his
master; and this is the school which must generally influence public
taste. The love of novelty will now and then recommend sleight-of-hand
tricks, but what is really good will always ultimately prevail, and
never can be wholly neglected.
THE DRAMA.
~King’s Theatre.~
The practice of giving fragments of operas has been continued during
the last month, and so far as such feeble stuff as _Anna Bolena_,
_Norma_, &c. is concerned, it is not worth while to complain: but when
a work like _Semiramide_ is exposed to the same treatment, it is time
to protest against such barbaric taste, such an insult to common sense.
This fine opera has actually been compressed into one act, and so
performed! But _La Cenerentola_, one of Rossini’s inferior operas, has
been given in an entire state, and strongly got up, Mad. ~Malibran~ in
the principal part.
On Saturday the 20th of July, ~Bellini’s~ promised serious opera, _I
Capuleti e Montecchi_, (which may be translated, _The Capulets and
Montagues_,--or, _Romeo and Juliet_,) was performed for the first time
here, and thus cast:--
_Romeo_ Mad. ~Pasta~.
_Julietta_ Mad. ~De Meric~.
_Tebaldo._ Sig. ~Donzelli~.
_Capuleto_ Sig. V. ~Galli~.
It was performed twice, then, it is said, finally withdrawn. Mad.
~Pasta’s~ acting could not save it! It had not even the negative
support of the proverbially tolerant audiences at this theatre:
none scarcely, except of the _orderly_ kind, attended the second
performance, and it died without a groan; for privileged visiters never
express their disapprobation, and only such were in at the death. Let
it rest in peace! We will only say of this wretched work, that it is
inferior even to _Norma_. Anything more would be superfluous, and a
wanton waste of ink more valuable than Bellini’s opera.
The musical product of the season, then, has been two operas, fit only
for the Milanese, for the Italian subjects of the Austrian government,
to hear! But the apologists for such management cry out, ‘where are
better to be procured?’ We will tell them--in Germany: nay, in the
library of the King’s Theatre are operas enough to be found that are
unknown, or forgotten, which, if properly prepared and brought out,
would suffice for ten years to come,--operas that would not merely
satisfy the public, but meet with their warmest approbation and most
effectual support.
A Sunday paper has talked again and again about the expenses of this
theatre considerably exceeding a thousand pounds a night. Doubtless
the writer believes what he asserts; but we will tell him, fearless of
contradiction, that they do not amount to anything like three-fourths
of a thousand pounds. We know upon what saving terms the performers
have all, except Pasta, been engaged; how their benefits have been
managed; we have looked attentively at the scenery, dresses, &c. and
challenge the lessee to produce any proof that our calculation is
incorrect. Moreover we will add, that, in spite of the terms which
performers, through the mismanagement of the three or four principal
_impresari_ of Europe, are enabled to demand,--the Italian opera in
London ought, if well conducted, to yield a certain profit of some
thousands every season.
* * * * *
~Covent Garden Theatre.~
On Saturday, June 29th, Weber’s opera, _Euryanthe_, was produced at
this theatre, by the German company, for the first time in England.
Owing to the abominable practice of advertising pieces ‘for the last
time,’--though it is almost always intended that they should continue
to be performed as often as the public will attend to hear them, and
that there should be two or three, or even more, ‘last times,’--we were
defrauded of an opportunity of hearing this able work of Weber, knowing
that it would be more correctly given on a third or fourth night, and
entirely disbelieving the manager’s announcements. Hence we are enabled
only to lay before our readers the _dramatis personæ_ and the story,
(for which we are indebted to the _Observer_,) and to state our general
opinion of the work, not as now performed, but from a pretty intimate
acquaintance with it from the _vocal score_, as published at Vienna,
by Steiner. Of this, it is true, we have heard portions in concerts
with the full orchestral accompaniments, but have had no means of
judging its complete effect as a whole, either as a musical or dramatic
composition.
The parts were thus cast--
_Ludwig_, King of France, ~Herr Uetz~.
_Adolar_, Count of Nevers, ~Herr Haitzinger~.
_Lysiart_, a Nobleman, ~Herr Dobler~.
_Euryanthe_, ~Madame Schroeder Devrient~.
_Ludwig_ has appointed a fête to be celebrated for the return of one
of his most gallant knights and accomplished troubadours, _Adolar_,
who arrives, and, in a beautiful romance, sings his adventures in the
war in which he has just been engaged for his royal master. He is
crowned with laurels by the fairest ladies of the court. His happiness
is almost complete, for he is on the point of seeing once more the
object of his love, _Euryanthe_, the beautiful and accomplished
_Châtelaine_ of a wide domain, near Nevers. In his absence, another
noble, _Lysiart_, has endeavoured to win the affections of _Euryanthe_;
but finding, after repeated trials, that his attempts are useless,
he resolves to blast her fame, and destroy the peace of mind of his
favoured rival. In the presence of the king and his court, he tells
_Adolar_ that his mistress is inconstant. _Adolar_ cannot believe it,
and offers to defend, in single combat with the accuser, the innocence
of _Euryanthe_. The challenge is accepted. In the mean time, _Lysiart_
is sent by the king to the castle of _Euryanthe_, to conduct her to
court, where, for the present, _Adolar_ is tarrying. The traitor,
in conjunction with _Eglantine_, an attendant of _Euryanthe_, gets
possession of a ring given to the latter by _Adolar_, and with this
proof, supported by the false evidence of _Eglantine_, convinces
_Adolar_, the king, and the court, of _Euryanthe’s_ infidelity. She
is stripped of her possessions, and abandoned by _Adolar_. She is
afterwards seen, in all the agony of wronged innocence, wandering alone
in the woods. In heart-rending accents she sings her woes, and falling
down exhausted, is found by a party of hunters, and conveyed to a place
of safety. The last act opens with a view of _Euryanthe’s_ castle,
from which is seen issuing a gorgeous procession, going to celebrate
_Lysiart’s_ marriage with the perfidious _Eglantine_. _Adolar_ having,
however, now become convinced of the innocence of his mistress,
and the treachery of _Lysiart_, breaks in on the pageant, accuses
_Lysiart_, and forces him to draw and defend himself. Their swords are
already crossed; when the king arrives and separates the combatants.
_Eglantine_ confesses her guilt, and accuses _Lysiart_ of his crime.
She is by him stabbed, and he then is dragged to meet his doom. At this
juncture _Euryanthe_ rushes in, _Adolar_ receives her in his arms--the
king proclaims her innocence--her possessions are restored to her--and
she becomes the bride of him whom she long has loved.
The overture to this opera has abundance of both beauty and science to
recommend it; its frequent performance at the Philharmonic Concerts has
made it known to most connoisseurs in London, and we have more than
once spoken of it. An extract from this was published in our work some
few years ago, and in our early numbers will be found two of the most
lovely airs in the opera, with English words adapted to them, as well
as other pieces from the same.
Though _Euryanthe_ is not so popularly formed as the _Freischütz_, it
does not less show the hand of a great musician. There is not so much,
by a great deal, in it that at once commands attention and admiration,
but a closer acquaintance with it developes beauties that are not so
obvious on a first or second trial. Neither the _Freischütz_ nor the
present work were produced without great labour, but this is more
apparent in the latter than in the former. In the one, genius and skill
are combined in nearly equal proportions; in the other, there is more
of skill than genius; though the invention displayed in _Euryanthe_
would be enough to confer a great name on any composer of any country.
Let us, however, repeat, that our judgment, in the case of the opera
now under notice, is formed from a knowledge of an adaptation--of what
is called the vocal score--only.
* * * * *
~English Opera, Adelphi.~
Mr. Arnold resumed the management of this company at the beginning
of last month, and brought out a new operetta, _The Convent Belle_,
the main support of which was Mrs. ~Waylett’s~ very charming ballad
singing; this kept it the piece till the 16th, when it was superseded
by _The Yeoman’s Daughter_, a clever, affecting drama, written by Mr.
~Serle~; the music by Mr. Wade, Mr. Hawes, and others. This has proved
very successful, and fills the house, notwithstanding the heat of the
weather, which is a sure friend to Vauxhall, an implacable foe to
theatres.
THE MUSIC OF THE PRESENT NUMBER.
The Overture to _Cosi fan tutte_ is the lightest of Mozart’s orchestral
compositions, and in the style of the Italian sinfonias of his day, but
as far superior as was to be expected from a genius which, even when
relaxing, was comparatively great.
* * * * *
The Madrigal, ‘When all alone,’ is one of the most beautiful
compositions of the kind known, and but for a single modulation which
marks its age, might be mistaken for a modern production, so free and
fresh is its melody. Of Conversi scarcely any record remains. Walther
bestows only two lines on him: Gerber merely states that he was born at
Correggio, and published a set of canzoni for five voices, at Venice,
in 1575, and a set of madrigals for six, at the same place, in 1584.
Of course, therefore, his present work was among the former, though
it has always in England borne the title now given to it. To the best
of our knowledge, the canzone for many voices only differs from the
madrigal in being less laboured; fugal points and imitations do not so
necessarily enter into its formation.
* * * * *
Of the Song, we can only say, that we think it worthy of a place in our
work.
The two movements of Clementi are now, alas! little known. After
playing both through, we recommend the performer to repeat and end with
the first.
* * * * *
The _Incarnatus_ is from the composer’s most esteemed mass. The
resemblance of this to Purcell’s song, ‘What power art thou,’ in _King
Arthur_, is so striking, that surely something more than accident must
have occasioned it. But if Caldara borrowed from Purcell, Handel was
indebted to the borrower; for his ‘Vouchsafe, O Lord,’ in the Dettingen
Te Deum, seems formed on the model of the Italian composer.
Antonio Caldara, born at Venice about the year 1680, was vice-master
of the Imperial Chapel at Vienna from 1714 to 1763. He was one of
the most distinguished composers of his age, both for sacred and
dramatic music; but his fame now rests on the former. As to his operas,
Metastasio, an excellent judge of the matter, did not think highly of
them, notwithstanding their reputation at the time, for, in a letter
to Eximeno, he mentions the composer as ‘an eminent contrapuntist, but
extremely deficient in expression and pleasing melody.’
[Sidenote: ~September~, 1833.]
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES OF S. WEBBE, J. S. SMITH, S. PAXTON, J. DANBY, R.
J. S. STEVENS, ~and~ R. SPOFFORTH.
Counterpoint is said, by Johannes Nucius[82], to have originated in
this country, an assertion which, well or ill founded, proves how very
soon the art was practised in England after being first discovered
and reduced to rule. Indeed our early ecclesiastical composers, as
well as madrigalists, who suffer nothing by comparison with their
contemporaries, the Flemings and Italians, shew the high degree of
perfection which music in parts speedily attained in this island; and
it may be consoling to our national pride--if as a nation we have any
musical pride at all--to reflect, that our composers lost no ground
till the encouragement bestowed by the court, and, consequently, by
the great generally, on foreigners, tended much to check and depress
British genius, by depriving it of that motive for exertion, without
which the imagination grows cold, and industry is unavailing.
Nevertheless, the appointments in our choirs, poorly as they now reward
talent, formerly kept the art of church composition from sinking, and
madrigals never entirely fell into neglect; the study of counterpoint,
therefore, was still pursued by a few, and led to the birth of the
glee, which is the lovely offspring of the madrigal, the not very
distant relation of our church music, and, undeniably, indebted to
England for its creation.
It is for the latter reason that we conclude our biographical notices
with some account of the most eminent of those glee-composers who
have not yet been included in this department of our work[83]; but
we feel it necessary to confine ourselves to such as ‘their worldly
tasks have done,’ or have long retired from active professional life.
Though we lament that, notwithstanding very diligent inquiries, our
materials are, except in one or two instances, extremely scanty,
furnishing little more than dates, and not always supplying even these.
Our musical biography, however, would have been incomplete in the
opinion of English readers, without names so well known as those now
introduced, and in communicating all that we have been able to learn,
we discharge a duty that we should with regret have left unfulfilled.
* * * * *
~Samuel Webbe~ was born in the year 1740. His father, a highly
respectable gentleman, died suddenly at Minorca, where he held an
office under the British Government, leaving the subject of this
sketch an infant,--his property in such a state that his family never
benefited by it, and his widow in circumstances which deprived her of
the means of bestowing a proper education on her son, who was, at the
early age of eleven, apprenticed to a cabinet-maker. When his term
was completed, he immediately quitted an employment so far beneath
his powers of mind, and commenced the study of the Latin language.
But his mother dying a year after he had abandoned his mechanical
pursuits, he was reduced to the necessity of copying music as a means
of subsistence, being then nearly ignorant of the art, though a great
admirer of it. This occupation led to an acquaintance with a German
named Barbandt, organist of the Bavarian chapel, who initiated him in
the rudiments of music. His almost unparalleled industry enabled him
not only to support himself by copying, but to acquire, in addition
to the Latin, a knowledge of French. At the age of twenty-three
he married, and the birth of a child, while it did not lessen his
difficulties, occasioned no interruption in his studies, for he now
engaged an Italian master. He must by this time have obtained a
considerable knowledge of music, for shortly after becoming a father,
he began to give lessons, as well as to compose, and such was his
progress, that at the age of twenty-six he gained a prize-medal from
the Catch-club for the best canon. In 1768, only two years after,
he received the medal for his glee, ‘A gen’rous friendship,’ which
immediately established his reputation, and has ever since been admired
as one of the most beautiful specimens of simple vocal harmony that the
art has to boast.
From the year that first crowned his efforts with success, to 1792,
Mr. Webbe had no less than twenty-seven medals awarded him, for
glees, catches, canons and odes. But here it may not be irrelevant
to remark, that four of his finest compositions, namely, ‘When winds
breathe soft,’ ‘Hence, all ye vain delights,’ ‘The mighty conqueror of
hearts,’ and ‘To me the wanton girls insulting say,’ were unsuccessful
candidates for the golden honours bestowed on works of inferior merit;
while of the many medals he obtained, not more than seven or eight were
given for compositions that are now known. Eight, indeed, were the
reward of useless mechanical labor, exhibited in the form of canons,
none of which have survived the composer; and seven were the meed of
catches, one of which, ‘To the old, long life and treasure,’ still
maintains its ground.
On the death of Mr. Warren Horne, in 1784, Mr. Webbe was appointed
Secretary to the Nobleman’s Catch-club, which office he held till his
decease.
On the establishment of the Glee club, in 1787, Mr. Webbe became a
professional member, and librarian. It was for this society he wrote
his glee of perennial popularity, ‘Glorious Apollo,’ both words and
music. During the time that he was actively pursuing his professional
occupations, he found leisure to acquire an extensive knowledge of
the German and Hebrew languages, and made himself conversant in many
branches of polite literature. He even wooed the Muses, and of several
of his works the poetry as well as music is believed to be from his
pen. He also excelled in fencing and dancing, and added to his various
accomplishments a simplicity of manners and benevolence of disposition,
that endeared him to a large circle of acquaintance, among whom were
some of the most distinguished persons of his day.
Mr. Webbe’s glees, &c., amount in number to one hundred and seven, and
have been published in three large volumes. Besides these, he was the
author of masses, (being a catholic) anthems, single songs, &c., many
of them well known, but too numerous to be specified here. He died in
1817.
* * * * *
~John Stafford Smith~, who is still living, though he has long since
retired to privacy, is a native of Gloucester, where he was born about
the year 1750. His father, who was organist of that cathedral, having
instructed him in the principles of music, sent him to London to
complete his musical education under Dr. Boyce. At an early age he was
appointed one of the gentlemen of the Chapels Royal, and on the death
of Dr. Arnold, in 1802, he became organist of the same. In 1805 he
succeeded Dr. Ayrton as master of the King’s choristers, which office
he resigned in 1817, and shortly after withdrew from all professional
employment.
When only twenty-three years of age, in 1773, Mr. Smith obtained the
prize for a catch, which had, in fact, nothing to recommend it but that
kind of grossness so much admired in those days; but the year following
produced his fine serious glee, ‘Let happy lovers fly where pleasures
call,’ to which the prize given by the Catch-club was most justly
allotted. The same honour was with equal discrimination conferred in
the three succeeding years, on his ‘Blest pair of syrens,’ ‘While
fools their time in stormy strife employ,’ and ‘Return, blest days.’
He obtained in the whole eight of them honourable distinctions; but
his very delightful, cheerful glees, ‘Let us, my Lesbia,’ and ‘As on a
summer’s day,’ missed the reward due to them. Mr. Smith also is author
of a madrigal, ‘Flora now calleth forth each flower,’ a work which, for
contrivance and effect, may compete with anything of the kind extant.
He likewise published a volume under the title of _Musica Antiqua_.
containing specimens of the earliest compositions; and another, a
collection of _Ancient Songs_; both of which bear testimony to his
industry and research, and now form a part of every valuable musical
library.
* * * * *
~Stephen Paxton.~--Of this sweet composer nothing whatever is recorded,
except the years when he obtained prizes for his glees. In 1779 he
gained a medal for ‘How sweet, how fresh, this vernal day!’ in 1781 for
‘Round the hapless Andre’s urn;’ and in 1783, 1784, and 1785, for a
catch, a glee, ‘Blest power!’ and an ode. He also composed ‘Go, Damon,
go!’ the answer to ‘Turn, Amaryllis,’ and ‘Upon the poplar bough,’ two
admirable glees. He had a brother, William, who wrote the delicious
three-voiced glee, ‘Breathe soft, ye winds,’ in ~E~; likewise a canon,
which gained a prize in 1780. One of the Paxtons, but we cannot
ascertain which, was a distinguished performer on the violoncello,
and alternately with Crosdill, afterwards with Cervetto, played first
violoncello at the Ancient Concerts.
* * * * *
~John Danby~--Still less is known of this composer than of the
preceding. He gained ten prizes from the Catch-club, for seven glees,
two canons, and an ode. Among the first are three which will secure
to him a niche in the temple of Fame, viz., ‘When Sappho tuned the
raptured strain,’ ‘Awake, Æolian lyre,’ and ‘The fairest flowers the
vale prefer.’ He was a member of the Catholic church, and died, either
at the end of the last or beginning of the present century, at the
moment a concert was performing for his benefit; for long-continued bad
health had much impaired his circumstances, and rendered the assistance
of his friends and the public essentially necessary.
* * * * *
~Richard James Samuel Stevens~ is still living, at an advanced age,
but has long retired from active life. His first appointment was as
organist to the Temple. In 1795 he succeeded Mr. John Jones in the
place of organist of the Charter House; and in 1801, on the death
of Dr. Aylward, was elected Professor of Music to Gresham College.
In 1782 he gained the prize-medal for a serious glee, ‘See, what
horrid tempests rise!’ and another in 1786, a cheerful glee, ‘It was
a lover and his lass.’ But his most popular works, those which will
transmit his name, are, ‘Ye spotted snakes,’ ‘Sigh no more, ladies,’
‘From Oberon,’ ‘Crabbed age and youth,’ and ‘Strike the harp in praise
of Bragela,’ compositions sparkling with genius, but which some who
delectate in canons affect to despise, unmindful of Æsop’s well-known
apologue. The most stubborn line-and-rule critics, however, are forced
to admit the merit of his five-voiced serious glee, from _Ossian_,
‘Some of my heroes are low,’ in which the poetry and science of music
are equally blended.
Mr. Stevens published two, if not three, sets of glees, and edited
a useful Collection of Anthems, &c., in three folio volumes. He has
one son, recently a gentleman-commoner at Oxford, who, it is to be
presumed, will inherit his very independent fortune.
* * * * *
~Reginald Spofforth~ was a native of Southwell in Nottinghamshire, a
place famed for its venerable collegiate church, of which his uncle,
Mr. Thomas Spofforth, was organist, who so ably instructed his nephew
in music, and by his example as well as precept fixed in him such
habits of industry, that at en unusually early age he became qualified
to officiate for his relation, and distinguished himself at the
concerts given in different parts of the county. Being much noticed by
Sir Richard Kaye, Bart., a prebendary of Southwell and Dean of Lincoln,
he accompanied his patron to the latter place, and for a short time
acted as deputy-organist of the cathedral[84], but soon quitted that
city, and proceeded to London, where he became a disciple of Dr. Cooke,
under whom he studied upwards of three years, with every advantage
that could be derived from so admirable an instructor, seconded by
the most unwearied assiduity. He also took lessons of Steibelt on
the piano-forte, and devoted some portion of his time to the Italian
language. But his knowledge and skill were not immediately productive,
and he had to encounter pecuniary difficulties, for his father was
unable to assist him, and his uncle--a miser, such as is rarely met
with but on the stage--was unwilling. His wants, however, were few, and
his talents in every branch of his profession at length forced him into
notice. In 1793, he offered to the Catch-club a serious and a cheerful
glee, as candidates for the prizes, and obtained both: ‘Where are those
hours?’ and ‘See, smiling from the rosy East,’ were the successful
compositions. He now formed an acquaintance with Mr. Shield, musical
manager of Covent Garden, and contributed many songs, duets, &c. to
various pieces produced at that theatre. When the latter set out on
his Italian tour, Mr. Harris offered the vacant appointment to Mr.
Spofforth, who, weighing the difficulties and vexations inseparable
from the office, with great prudence declined the proposal. He now
determined to divide his time between teaching and the composition of
glees, and was soon so much occupied by the former, while he devoted to
the latter hours that ought to have been surrendered to sleep, that his
health was gradually undermined, and he at length fell a victim to his
industry and application.
In 1797 he undertook the musical direction of a
_toxopholitico-musico-theatrical_ club, called the Bowman’s Lodge,
which was supported by some of the _beau monde_. He also accepted the
place of organist to Fitzroy Chapel, which he relinquished for that at
Eltham, where he passed much time, giving lessons at a great school in
the neighbourhood, and enjoying the society of his friend Mr. Laurence,
brother to the learned civilian, who was the intimate of Burke, and for
some years member for Peterborough.
In 1826 Mr. Spofforth lost his uncle, whose fortune fell to him: he,
however, enjoyed his independence but for a short period. The year
after, in the month of August, the nervousness of which he had so long
been the prey, and which for many years had prevented his attempting
any new work, appeared in a fatal form. On the 31st he was attacked by
paralysis, and lost the use of one side. In this state he continued
till the 8th of September, when he expired, in the fifty-eighth year of
his age.
Besides the two prize-glees above mentioned, Mr. Spofforth produced
several of at least equal excellence; among which, ‘Mark’d you her eye
of heavenly blue?’ ‘Health to my dear!’ ‘L’Ape e le Serpe,’ ‘Hail,
smiling morn,’ and ‘Come, bounteous May,’ have received the stamp
of public approbation that never will be effaced, and which their
intrinsic merit alone obtained; for the author was a man too modest
in his nature, too retiring in his habits, to have recourse to means
adopted by many composers, and perhaps fairly, for the purpose of
forcing their works into notice.
RULES FOR COMPOSING FASHIONABLE MUSIC.
[In a Letter from Milan.]
A composer of the present day stands in no need of that divine spark
which comes from above. All that is required now is, to place himself
within a musical circle, composed of some thirty of the operas of
Rossini, spread open for the facility of instant reference. It is
true that he will find in these works much genius, much that abounds
in beauty, grace, and vigour; but he will also meet with numerous
passages, not to say whole motivos, which this master has had the
address, by a thousand ingenious devices, such as embellishing,
altering the movement, &c. &c., to appropriate to himself from others.
The composer, therefore, who is thus seated in the midst of these
volumes, may go to work without much apprehension, as he will here
find brought into one focus all the scattered rays of beauty that
he would have to collect, with no small labour, from hundreds of
volumes. A ready artist need not trouble himself much with the deeper
studies of composition, as the public will give him sufficient credit
for talent, if he do but possess the happy art of combinations, and
can produce a piece of ingenious mosaic work. Let him but get a good
subject, no matter how, and it will not be difficult to conceal the
theft under a mass of noisy instrumentation. In the midst of this
clamour, too, the many errors in harmony will be equally hidden. It
may be observed, that the rules we have thus laid down are equally
applicable in the composition of a symphony, terzetto, aria, duet,
finale, &c., since in all our modern works the same form, the same
colouring, the same general process is considered indispensable: above
all, it must never be forgotten that, on every occasion, the orchestra
should be everything; song, sentiment, situation, &c., must give way to
this. To say the truth, such is the feature by which modern music is
distinguished from that of the old school, which was silly enough to
allow melody to take the lead, and paid it, on all occasions, the most
unaccountable respect.
The modern composer must not neglect to provide himself with a
ready-made store of showy piano and harp passages, with which he must
sprinkle pretty thickly the parts for the voice; and when he gets
hold of a soprano air, let him ornament the conclusion of it with a
flight of demi-semiquavers, the more unvocal the better. And even if
the singer should find it difficult to hit them off, never mind, the
public will not be a whit the wiser. But one of the principal rules
to be observed is this, that no rest of any kind, no pause, must be
allowed the wind-instruments; the trumpet, the trombone, the drum, and
the octave-flute most be kept incessantly at work, so as to deprive the
hearer of every means of following the singer, who, to say the truth,
has not in general much to do with the piece, and is only an object of
subordinate interest in the opera.
Now if an artist has wit enough to compose according to these rules,
let him begin every piece with an assortment of strong chords, with the
indication mark of the pause over the last. Upon this should follow
a _pizzicato_ movement of violins and basses, which is immediately
to be succeeded by the motivo, (taken, as before observed, from some
of the open books by which the composer is encircled,) performed by
the bassoon and clarionets. This motivo must soon make its appearance
again, and be given either by the octave-flute or the singer, just as
may suit; for it is quite a matter of indifference whether the singer
or that instrument performs it. And now a transition should be made
into some out-of-the-way key; a series of skipping passages should
follow, which should invite the feet to dance, and lead in, upon ‘light
fantastic toe,’ the never-failing _crescendo_. Again: a transition
should be made, by a series of modulations of the most extraneous
kind, into the original _pizzicato_ movement. At last a flight of
quadruple-tailed notes should wind up the singer to the very acme of
exertion, supposing breath enough left for the operation; the drum,
the trumpet, the trombone, and the octave-flute should be summoned to
display all their energies, and this concluding burst should not cease
till the moment when the public think the proper time is come to assist
with vehement applause.
Ye modern composers, forget not the debt of gratitude you will owe me,
for having thus liberally let you into the secret of the art! Hie ye to
London! first getting letters to the Duchesa di----, who will introduce
you to some English bookseller, or some third-rate French actor,
neither of whom, you will find will understand one note of music;
therefore you will have no cause to fear detection. You will be sure of
applause from persons kept in a kind of pay for the purpose; and there
are journalists enough to assist the fogs in mystifying the public,
and to make you a reputation for a year or two, during which time, if
you do not fill your pockets with English guineas, you will be proved
unworthy of the advice now given you by your friend
~Rossini, Junior~.
GLASGOW AMATEUR SOCIETY.
_To the_ ~Editor~ _of the_ ~Harmonicon~.
~Sir~, _Glasgow, Aug. 12, 1833._
As you have always taken an interest in the proceedings of provincial
societies for the cultivation of music, I have thought that it might be
interesting to you to hear of the existence of an association so far
north as Glasgow, the object of which is the performance of the choral
compositions of the great masters.
This Society has been now nearly two years established, and consists
entirely of amateurs; one of its fundamental laws being the
ineligibility of professional musicians as members. It is called the
~Glasgow Amateur Musical Society~. I beg leave to transmit a programme
of their Second Annual Concert, which took place on Wednesday evening,
the 7th August, in the nave of the venerable cathedral. The admission
was entirely gratuitous, by tickets issued by members of the Society,
and the audience, a most respectable one, amounted to upwards of 600 in
number. The orchestra, led by Mr. Andrew Thomson, was composed partly
of professional gentlemen of Glasgow, and partly of the band of the
7th Hussars, now stationed here. Mr. Thomas M’Farlane, organist of
St. Mary’s Episcopal Chapel, conducted, and Mrs. M’Millan, (late Miss
Thomson,) of Edinburgh, took the principal soprano parts.
~Programme.~
Overture.
Recit. ‘Comfort ye.’ Aria, ‘Every valley,’ (Mrs. }
M’Millan.) }
Chorus, ‘And the glory.’ } _Messiah_,
----, ‘For unto us.’ } ~Handel~.
----, ‘Hallelujah! for the Lord God.’ }
----, ‘Worthy is the Lamb.’ }
Solo and Chorus, ‘Luther’s Hymn.’ ~Luther.~
Recit. ‘In the beginning.’ Chorus, ‘And the }
spirit.’ Recit. ‘And God saw.’ }
Aria, ‘Now vanish.’ Chorus, ‘Despairing, cursing, }
raging.’ }
Solo, ‘The marvellous works.’ (Mrs. M’Millan.) }
Chorus, ‘And to the ethereal vaults.’ } _Creation_,
Recit. ‘And God said.’ Aria, ‘With verdure } ~Haydn~.
clad.’ (Mrs. M’Millan.) }
Recit. ‘And the heavenly hosts.’ Chorus, ‘Awake }
the harp.’ }
Recit. ‘In splendour bright.’ }
Chorus, ‘The heavens are telling.’ }
----, ‘Sing the Lord.’ }
Old Hundredth Psalm. ~Luther.~
Chorus, ‘Hallelujah to the Father.’ (_Mount ~Beethoven.~
of Olives._)
Chorus, ‘Let their celestial concerts.’ ~Handel.~
(_Samson._)
I do not presume to take up your space by a critique on the several
performances, but I cannot allow the opening recitative and aria of
_The Messiah_, and the recitative and aria, ‘With verdure clad,’ from
_The Creation_, as performed by Mrs. M’Millan, to pass unnoticed: the
first was given with a thrilling distinctness and precision which told
well in the spacious high-arched nave, while the manner in which the
latter was sung was well adapted to the flowery and polished style of
that most beautiful melody.
Among the choruses, ‘Hallelujah!’ from _The Messiah_, ‘Hallelujah to
the Father,’ the beautiful chorus from Samson, ‘Let their celestial
concerts,’ ‘The heavens are telling,’ ‘Worthy is the Lamb,’ and the
closing chorus of the Creation, ‘Sing the Lord,’ were done with great
precision, and received reiterated applause; and the whole performance
was deemed by adequate judges to be highly creditable to the amateur
taste of Glasgow.
~An Amateur.~
[We are happy to hear from all quarters of the increasing number of
Amateur Societies in Great Britain; but surely it is a misnomer to call
_this_ an ‘Amateur Society,’ seeing that the only performance which
its members think fit to notice publicly, depended for support almost
wholly, if not entirely, on professional performers.--_Editor._]
ON THOUGHTS OR IDEAS IN MUSIC.
(From the French of Gretry.)
As from instinct we love and admire all that is beautiful in nature, so
a feeling for, and love of the fine arts may exist without a knowledge
of their principles. One day, when a party of professors and myself
were discussing the question as to the ideas best adapted to express
our sensations in music, an amateur interrupted us by asking what an
idea in music could possibly be? As his question was abruptly put, we
all looked at him for some moments without answering; he prided himself
upon the idea that he had pozed us, and laughing, repeated several
times over, “An idea in music, how singular!” A musical idea, said I to
him, is nothing more than the sound, the inflexion of words employed
to communicate an idea, whether verse or prose. If you agree that,
with respect to accent, it is indifferent, however it may be placed,
I am ready to allow that music has no fixed principle.--No, replied
he, I will not agree to that; on the contrary, I think that improper
accents, or misplaced punctuations, may spoil the most elegant prose,
and disguise the finest poetry.--In the same manner, said I, sounds at
variance with the sentiment of the words make bad music.--But, added
he, there is such a thing as music without words; and when it is good
and well executed, I like it much. What say you of such music?--It
is, said I, a discourse of sounds, a song from which the words have
been withdrawn. Have you never seen a woman on the point of fainting?
she has only strength sufficient left to make herself understood by
the signs of those words which she is incapable of uttering.--Very
well.--Still you comprehend her?--Yes, I understand that she complains;
that she says to her children, her husband, the friends who surround
her, ‘I feel better now, do not be frightened.’--Well, in this
instance, and in a thousand others, we see exemplified the principle
of music without words.
The Italians, in public places, either from indolence, or from a fear
of openly declaring their opinions, speak little and much at the same
time; that is, by articulating some solitary words, preceded and
followed by one of the vowels _a_, _e_, _i_, _o_, _u_, all enforced by
an expressive pantomime, they make their thoughts understood without
the aid of speech. Go, for example, and tell a composer that such a
man spoke very freely in the coffee-houses against his work:--What did
he say?--_i_, _a_, _u_, _o_, of such an air, _e_, _i_, _a_, _u_, of
another, he will perfectly comprehend you: this is another instance of
the principle of instrumental music. Men of more northern latitudes
are but little acquainted with this species of dissimulation, but it
is natural to Italians. If therefore a musician is unable to discover
any meaning in a sonata, rest assured the reason is that the sonata has
no meaning; and if _Fontenelle_ could not understand a good sonata,
you may take it for granted that it was owing to his possessing more
wit than imagination and feeling. A fine piece of instrumental music
has always a reference to some sentiment or passion, which has its
characteristic accent, its peculiar movement: one is expressed in
acute sounds; another in grave; another, between the two, consists of
long-drawn tones.
Again, if it be said that a sound is not an idea, yet it must be
allowed that a tone is; at the very instant I utter _mi_, I argue that
_mi_ is the third of _ut_, _re_ precedes, and _fa_ succeeds it. To be
a good musician, an idea both can and ought to be attached to every
musical phrase of a different character: for example, such a phrase is
only composed of grave sounds, sustained and lengthened without any
rhythm or measure; immediately, and by analogy, I picture to myself
darkness, and the horrors which it inspires. But if the sound of a
_reed_ is heard breaking this gloomy harmony, I imagine the awakening
of a shepherd, I look in the sky for the morning star, and the phantoms
of night are dispersed.
Cùm durant noctis tenebræ,
Cuncta videntur horrida;
Ad nova profert gaudia,
Si cœlo surgat lux.
I was not eight years old when I went to the wise man of our
neighbourhood[85], and said to him, ‘Give me some words, I want to
compose music,’ and he gave me the above four Latin verses, first
translating them to me in the Liégois dialect.
With respect to moral ideas in music, they, like the accents
of oratory, depend on the declamation of the words; and if the
inexperienced musician declaims all in one tone, there will, as long as
he lives, be a sameness in his music: this fault is much more common
than is generally supposed. But to declaim is not all; the declamation
must be just: I prefer the music that is vague,--that says nothing,
or says every thing--to improper declamation. Let us then conclude
that in music, as in nature, a sensation is not an idea; but that
many sensations compared with each other constitute an idea. Again it
must be recollected that the undefined effect of instrumental music
acts differently upon individuals, according to their respective
organization: it is like a cloud floating in the air; the warrior sees
a battle; the peasant girl the flock conducted by her lover.
I have always thought that good music must produce more or less effect,
in proportion as its language is more or less familiar. I have been at
the side of _Voltaire_, and seen him grow irritable under the influence
of the most melodious strains; I have often thought of it since, and
I conclude that he experienced sensation without ideas, because he was
not sufficiently conversant with musical language, and the variety of
emotions which it produces. A more simple being would have said, ‘I
feel enjoyment, what else do I want?’ or he would have enjoyed without
any reflection; but _Voltaire_ became irritated with a pleasure of
which he did not comprehend the cause. Yet at last he was softened,
and I have seen the tears start into his eyes. Yes, music, contrary to
our nature, at first irritates, but if its seductions are listened to
for some considerable time, it calms, softens, and finally triumphs
over every resistance. Thus _Orpheus_, in the infernal regions, soothed
the anger of _Cerberus_, and softened the hearts of the divinities of
Tartarus. If you find a man who does not love music, be assured that it
is either because he has not yet heard any suited to his peculiar turn
of mind, or that his heart is for ever closed against pure pleasures.
I must however confess, that since speech, with its inflexions, is not
always sufficient to explain certain ideas, still less will accent
alone do so; yet still the gentle agitation caused by good instrumental
music, that undefined repetition of our feelings; that aërial flight
which suspends us midway between earth and heaven, without fatiguing
our organs; that mysterious language which captivates without
persuading, which speaks to our senses without the aid of reasoning,
and yet which is equivalent to reason, since it charms, gives to the
unsophisticated heart the most refined pleasure. Never will a wicked
man understand the language of sounds; such a faculty is the result of
the most harmonious organization, and the perfection of our being. The
virtuous man seems to hear a choir of angels, the echo of which is in
his own heart.
Enough has already been said as to what constitutes a good musician;
yet perhaps it has not been sufficiently enforced, that without genius,
without original ideas, the most scientific composition is nothing
else than a copy, more or less excellent. In looking at the origin of
the thoughts of a phlegmatic man, it will always be found that the
type is the same as in a man of impassioned soul. Second-rate talents
come after him, and criticise, distort, and misplace the same ideas.
Following this course, it is always seen that A. has taken from B. what
B. borrowed from C. and that the latter took all from D. the original
proprietor, who only copied from nature.
Again it may be said, that our ideas in music arise from the choice of
sounds and their measures. The time alone in sounds, only gives birth
to ideas emanating little or not at all from sentiment; in music, as
in poetry, great poetical effects may be produced without the charm of
poetry: such movements belong to harmony; melody possesses essentially
the beauty of sentiment. We know that in natural, and even in moral
philosophy, nothing can exist without motion; but this argument
does not prove that immoderate motion produces true feeling: on the
contrary, too vehement motion is a convulsion, and a moderate movement
causes agreeable sensations. Nature without doubt has her convulsions,
but happily they are rare, and only occur in their proper place. Let us
follow her example, and not be too lavish of violent effects.
When a young man of talent exhibits originality of thought, however
wild, however untutored, he ought to be encouraged, and have the path
smoothed for him: he is a choice plant, and should be cultivated. Such
a young man is, perhaps, at first devoid of any knowledge of harmony,
yet there is within him a genuine reservoir, whence the purest beauties
may flow. I would add, that the young artist born with original genius
may be looked on as one of the benefactors of the human race.
Why did the ancient philosophers recommend so strongly the practice
of sounds? Why consider music as the principle of all morality? Why
publicly reproach _Themistocles_ with not understanding music? Because
they knew that, in rendering a man sensible to the harmony of sounds,
it was establishing in him the principle of order, which tends to
general happiness. They seized the cause, to arrive at the effects.
They said, ‘If we preach wisdom to you, before your mind is disposed
towards it, we shall lose our time; but if by harmonious sounds we
establish harmony in your mind, you will yield without opposition.’ Let
us then, like these philosophers, make men more or less musicians, and
they will be disposed to every sort of harmony--for that of colours in
a picture, or the order that pervades an architectural pile.
In short, to be alive to the beauties of harmony is to love the
order which pervades the system of the Creator. When I behold a true
musician, I say to myself, ‘That man is a lover of peace; he is my
friend.’ When the philosopher tells us that he comprehends the language
of birds; that he hears the music of the stars as they roll above us,
it is the pure harmony of his nature that effects these prodigies. Let
us be _one_ with nature, and all her treasures will be our portion. In
short I will boldly say with _Shakspeare_:--
The man that hath no music in himself,
Nor is not mov’d with concord of sweet sounds,
Is fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils;
The motions of his spirit are dull as night,
And his affections dark as Erebus:
Let no such man be trusted.
_Merchant of Venice_, Act v. Scene iii.
THE OLD ENGLISH GENTLEMAN.
[Having given insertion to Mr. Phillips’s letter concerning the song
‘The Old English Gentleman,’ we feel bound to publish Mr. Charles H.
Purday’s answer, if that which replies to nothing can be said to be
an answer; and have only to regret being placed in a situation which
hardly allows us to decline becoming the medium through which direct
charges--whether true or false--are met, not by facts, not even by a
bare contradiction, but by calling the author of them ‘a fool.’
Let it be understood that we make ourselves no party in the dispute; we
know nothing of the merits of the case, and hope to hear no more of it.]
_To the_ ~Editor~ _of the_ ~Harmonicon~.
~Sir~, _9, Clarendon Square, August 7th, 1833._
In reply to Mr. H. Phillips’s erudite epistle, touching ‘The Old
English Gentleman’ controversy and ‘The Maid of Llanwellyn’ piracy,
I need only quote the words of Solomon, who says, ‘answer a fool
according to his folly.’
I am, Sir,
With the most profound respect,
Your very humble Servant,
~Charles H. Purday~.
* * * * *
The following was received just in time for insertion.
_To the_ ~Editor~ _of the_ ~Harmonicon~.
~Sir~, _45, High Holborn, August 19th, 1833._
As I am the ‘very man’ who, Mr. Phillips says, has been stopped from
publishing ‘The Old English Gentleman,’ and who issued the ‘bills and
circulars’ respecting ‘The Maid of Llanwellyn,’ I conceive I have a
right to be heard in my defence against that person’s false assertions,
which I doubt not he would have you and the public believe are true.
First, if the ‘low puff in the shape of an advertisement,’ which I
issued, was ‘false from beginning to end,’ how came Mr. Phillips to
_acknowledge its truth by causing the plates of his pirated copy of
‘The Old English Gentleman’ to be sent to me to be destroyed_?
Secondly: I do not envy Mr. Phillips’s object in stating as ‘a fact’
what _he knows to be untrue_, respecting the sale of my song being
suppressed!--and as to my ‘unjustifiable possession’ of the said song,
I know of neither courtesy nor law to prevent any man from re-arranging
an ‘old chaunt.’
Thirdly: Will Mr. Phillips oblige me by stating from what quarter my
brother pirated ‘The Maid of Llanwellyn?’ It certainly could not be
from Mr. Phillips; for although the song he alludes to does ‘bear his
name,’ yet it is _only as the singer_. It is rather unfortunate for
Mr. Phillips’s veracity on this charge, that the very song to which
he alludes is a piracy on the words of my brother’s! as the following
quotation from the last verse of each will clearly prove.
But of all our proud fellows, the proudest I’ll be,
While the Maid of _Llanwellyn_ smiles sweetly on me.
_Mrs. Joanna Baillie._
Yet prouder than even the proudest I’ll be,
While the Maid of _Llangollen_ smiles sweetly on me.
_Pirated, or ‘imitative version.’_
One word with reference to Mr. Phillips’s name to songs. I believe that
person does not allow songs to ‘bear his name,’ especially those not
‘entirely composed’ by himself, for nothing--which some of the poor
composers and publishers know and feel to their cost; and I should
presume that a _feeling_ of this kind induces him to _take so much
interest_ (I had almost said principal too) in their publications.
If, Sir, Mr. Phillips is not now satisfied with this ‘exposé of such
manœuvres,’ I have a little more at his service, and that of the
public, when occasion may require; but as I should presume that the
pages of your valuable Journal may be filled with far more interesting
matter to your musical readers, I conclude with an apology for being
once more dragged into your columns,
And subscribe myself
Yours, very obediently,
~Zenas T. Purday~.
NORWICH FESTIVAL.
_To the_ ~Editor~ _of the_ ~Harmonicon~.
~Sir~, _August 16th, 1833_.
In making their engagements for the ensuing Musical Festival at
Norwich, the Committee have, there can be no doubt, acted, as they
think, prudently, and no one has any right to question their fairness,
however their policy may be disputed: for the public will know
beforehand what performers they are to expect; and those who are
usually engaged at those meetings, but whose services are not called
for on the present occasion, had the option of accepting or rejecting
the reduced terms offered.
But, Sir, it must not be supposed that the performers who declined the
proposals made were influenced by avaricious motives; they only asked
the sum they had before received, and which was hardly enough to cover
their expenses, and indemnify them for what they lost by their absence
from their regular business in London. For travelling to Norwich
and back, living there at such a time, when of course the price of
everything is increased, and when half-a-guinea per night is demanded
for a bed, and that not of the best kind, the sum of twenty-five
guineas surely is not unreasonable; and one-fifth of this struck off,
as was proposed, would leave little indeed to the performer for his
labours at three long morning, and as many fatiguing evening, concerts,
and as some compensation for losses sustained by quitting his pursuits
in town, during a whole week.
Let the labours of a singer of the first class be compared with those
of an instrumental performer of the same rank, and it must be admitted
that they bear no proportion. The latter is called upon for ten times
the exertion, but his reward is sometimes less than one-tenth of that
bestowed on the more fortunate foreign vocalist. The singer, it will be
urged, is a commodity more rare than the instrumentalist, and like all
rarities bears a higher price. Granted; but is it reasonable that so
enormous a disparity should be suffered, as that existing between the
sums of _three hundred guineas_ and _twenty_? The best instrumentalists
in Europe are offered one-fifteenth of the amount bestowed on a single
singer, while the labour required is about in the inverse ratio.
My motive is not to complain, but to place the matter in a true light,
and to apologise for those who have declined to accept the terms
proposed by the Norwich Committee.
I am, Sir,
Very respectfully yours,
~An Orchestral Performer~.
ON THE ACTUAL STATE OF MUSIC IN BELGIUM, AND ITS PROSPECTS OF ADVANCE
IN THAT COUNTRY.
[In a letter from M. Fétis to his Son.]
~My dear Friend~, _Bruxelles, June 8, 1833_.