It is a curious fact that, though _Romeo and Juliet_ contains more
exquisite lyrical passages than almost any other play of Shakespeare,
there is no song or lyric in it.
Anyone except Romeo would have hired a quartet, or anyway, one singer,
to serenade Juliet under her balcony; but she remains unserenaded.
Even the four lines beginning "When griping grief" (sung by Peter in
Act iv., Scene 4) are not Shakespeare's, but quoted by him from Richard
Edwards's _Paradise of Daintee Devices_, and sung to a so-called
traditional tune. But if there is no song like "Sigh no more, ladies,"
or "Who is Sylvia?", there is little doubt that a greater number of
composers have been inspired (more or less) by this tragedy than by any
other of Shakespeare's subjects if we except _Hamlet_. A mere list of
the names is imposing. The most popular work is, no doubt, Gounod's
opera _Romeo et Juliette_. The book, which adheres fairly closely to
the original play, is by Barbier and Carre, and the work was first
performed at the Lyrique, Paris, on April 27, 1867. The characters are
the same as those of Shakespeare's play, with the addition of Stephano,
page to Romeo (mez. sop.), and Gregorio, a watchman. The waltz in Act
i. is a very popular _coloratura_ soprano song, but is not in the least
the kind of thing the real Capulet would have allowed the real Juliet
to sing to his guests. Mercutio's Queen Mab scena is very effective,
as are the Balcony duet and the prelude to the fifth act. But the most
successful and to my mind the most Shakespearian character in the whole
opera is Friar Laurence, a conception full of dignity and pathos. Pol
Plancon was {119} magnificent in this part. Taken altogether, Gounod
has turned out a very successful French grand opera, which will hold
its place in opera repertories for many years to come.
The only other opera on this story that has had any great success is
+Bellini's+ work in three acts, _I Capuletti ed i Montecchi_, book by
Romani, produced at Venice, March 11, 1830. It is a real Bellini, full
of florid arias, word repetitions, bravura passages, cadenzas, and all
the vocal gymnastics so beloved of his period; but the music, as a
whole, would fit any story quite as badly as it does that of Romeo and
Juliet. The overture is rather curious. The first subject, second
subject, development, recapitulation, and coda are all in the same key,
that of D major. The effect is overwhelming. It is a perfect tonic
orgy. An amusing account of this opera is given by Berlioz in his
_Autobiography_. During the time he held the Prix de Rome, passing
through Florence, he heard some strangers at a _table d'hote_ talking
of Bellini's _Montecchi_, which was soon to be given. He writes: "Not
only did they praise the music, but also the libretto. Italians as a
rule care so little for the words of an opera that I was surprised, and
thought--at last I shall hear an opera worthy of that glorious play.
What a subject it is! Simply made for music. The ball at Capulet's
house, where young Romeo first sees his dearly loved one; the street
fight at which Tybalt presides, patron of anger and revenge; that
indescribable night-scene at Juliet's balcony; the witty sallies of
Mercutio; the prattle of the Nurse; the solemnity of the Friar trying
to soothe the conflicting elements; the awful catastrophe; and the
reconciliation of the rival families over the bodies of the ill-fated
lovers. I hurried to the Pergola Theatre. What a disappointment! No
ball, no Mercutio, no babbling Nurse, no balcony scene, no Shakespeare!
And Romeo sung by a small _thin_ woman, Juliet by a tall stout one.
Why, in the name of all things musical--why?"
{120}
I will just enumerate the remainder of the operatic settings, giving
date and place of production and names of composer and librettist. It
is rather a formidable list, but one never hears any of the works
mentioned, save those of Steibelt and Vaccaj, at the outside; and as
for Bellini's version, it would scarcely be possible to hear it
anywhere out of Italy.
_Romeo e Giulietta_, a serious opera in three acts, by +Zingarelli+,
was composed in Milan and first performed in that city (1796). It was
produced in Paris in 1812, and had some success. Nicolo Antonio
Zingarelli was born in Naples, 1752. He was celebrated in his
lifetime, and was thought much of by Haydn, who prophesied a great
career for him. According to Coppa, his librettist, he wrote the opera
in "forty hours less than ten days." He composed a cantata for the
Birmingham Festival of 1829, and, as he could not take it to England
himself, entrusted it to his pupil Costa. This was Michael Costa's
first introduction to the English public. Hence the Philharmonic pitch
and loud orchestral playing from which we suffered for so many years.
The two most celebrated numbers in the opera are the duet "Dunque mio
ben" for soprano and contralto, and the air "Ombra adorata aspetta."
The Emperor Napoleon I. was unable to hide his emotion when he heard
this song, especially when sung by Crescentini (Romeo); who achieved so
great a success with this melody that he persuaded himself that he was
the real composer. This fable obtained, very unjustly, some credence
from the general public. The last time the Emperor heard Crescentini
sing this song he was so affected that he sent him from his own breast
the Order of the Iron Crown, and gave the composer an order for a Mass
for the Imperial Chapel that should not last longer than twenty
minutes. He had it rehearsed in his presence, and was so pleased that
he gave the musician 6000 francs. Zingarelli was an enormously
productive composer, and wrote a great number of operas, as well as
quantities of church and chamber music, but one {121} seldom hears his
name now. His music is still sung in provincial Catholic churches.
_Romeo et Juliette_, an opera in three acts, book by M. de Segur, music
by +Daniel Steibelt+, was produced at the Theatre Feydeau, 1793, just
four months after the production of a work on the same subject by
Monnel and Dalayrac, _All for Love_, or _Romeo et Juliette_. In spite
of this clashing, the opera was a success. It had been refused by the
Academy of Music, so the authors cut the recitatives, put in prose
dialogue, and produced the piece as an _opera comique_. The _Moniteur_
of September 23 describes the music as "learned, but laboured and
ugly." However, the public loved it, and other critics say it had
power and originality and distinguished voluptuous melody. Juliette's
song, "The calm of the night," and the quartet, "Graces, virtues," held
their own for a long time; as did the funeral chorus at the end of the
second act.
In 1825, at the Theatre Italien de Paris, in Milan, +Nicolo Vaccaj+
produced his opera on the same subject. It is one of the composer's
best efforts, the finest scene being that at the tomb. The air, "Ah,
se tu dormi svegliati," is pathetic and passionate. The last act of
this work is often substituted for the last act of the Bellini opera
already dealt with, as the latter composer's fourth act is very weak.
Nicolo Vaccaj was born at Tolentino in 1790. He spent some years in
London, where he was a very successful singing teacher. He wrote a
great amount of music, but none of it is very distinguished.
The +Marquis Richard d'Ivry+ composed an opera on this subject,
produced in Paris in 1878. He was a gifted amateur, born, February 4,
1829, at Beaune (Cote-d'Or), and composed several other operas. This
one was dedicated to Edward VII. when he was Prince of Wales, and was
called _Les Amants de Verone_, a lyric drama in five acts, words and
music by d'Ivry. The music, not at all {122} ambitious, is tuneful and
simple. The most important number is the farewell duet between Romeo
and Juliet in the second act. A critic, writing of this work, says:
"It is a pity that the author has not corrected in his poem those
vulgar expressions that disfigure it, and in his music those
old-fashioned formulas (_peu nouvelles_)." As I have only the piano
solo copy before me, I cannot speak on the first complaint; but on the
second I agree with the critic. The work is amateurish and
old-fashioned, often in the abusive sense of the word, but it is
certainly melodious and generally unpretentious. Each act has quite a
pretty and effective prelude, and the occasional dances are graceful.
+Pietro Carlo Guglielmi's+ opera on this play, _Romeo e Giulietta_, was
produced in London in 1810. The composer was born at Naples in 1763.
There are several detached numbers in the British Museum Library. They
are just the ordinary Italian opera music of the time. The wonder of
the story does not seem to have made the slightest impression on the
composer, who proceeds calmly on his conventional way, after one
interesting burst of originality: he actually makes Romeo a bass
baritone! After this one is not so surprised to find Juliet a deep
mezzo, nearly a contralto. To make up for the lack of tenor interest,
the part of Paris is made quite important, and among other numbers he
is given a very effective duet with Juliet. One of Juliet's songs is
described as "The Favourite Prayer," and is quite a good example of the
conventional operatic music of the period; as is Romeo's song with
chorus, in which he strives to quiet the street-quarrel between the
rival houses. The love duets with Juliet are thoroughly vocal; and the
trios, called "Favourite" again, for the lovers and the Friar, and for
Bianca and the lovers, are pretty melodious stuff, but utterly lacking
any sense of drama.
Of the non-operatic works on this subject, +Berlioz's+ symphony _Romeo
and Juliet_ is by far the greatest. {123} During the six years that
Hector Berlioz was a student at the Paris Conservatoire, the two
influences that affected him and his work most, according to his own
memoirs, were those of William Shakespeare and Ludwig van Beethoven.
It is interesting and strange that perhaps the greatest of all French
musicians should have been so profoundly moved by the plays of an
English poet and the music of a Dutch musician. I speak of Beethoven
here intentionally as Dutch, because his father was Dutch, and had only
lived in Germany two years when Beethoven was born; and I consider that
a man takes his nationality from his father and not from his actual
birthplace. Beethoven could certainly have played cricket for the
Rhineland on a strict birth qualification; but he was distinctly of
Dutch blood, and took the precaution of leaving Germany for Austria as
soon as he could. Finally came another influence to drive Berlioz
further into the arms of Shakespeare but not of Beethoven--also a
foreign one, that of Henrietta Smithson, the Irish actress. She was
playing Shakespeare heroines at the Odeon early in 1833. He fell madly
in love with her and went to see her whenever she played, just as our
modern gilded youths haunt the stalls every night to see their
favourite musical-comedy actress; the only difference being that
Berlioz saw his dear one in many different and exquisite characters,
while our youths hear their favourites say the same few lines or sing
the same little song every night of the year. Berlioz composed music
for her and gave concerts of his own compositions in her honour (the
latter must have bored her very much, judging from the attitude of the
average actress towards serious music--and Miss Smithson, from all
accounts, was not a great actress); and finally he married her. They
lived together as unhappily as possible for several years, and then
parted; but at least one great art work was the result of their union:
I mean the Fifth Symphony. "Romeo et Juliette, symphonic dramatique
avec choeurs, solos de chant, et prologue en recitatif choral, op. 17,"
to give it its full title, was finished in 1838, produced in 1839 at
the Conservatoire, and {124} repeated three times within a short
period. The work had a very mixed reception. Berlioz was never
popular in Paris or among his own countrymen; but all admitted that the
general conception was colossal. It is now regarded as a classic
throughout the world, but it is a big undertaking to produce. Little
bits of it "would never please" as _entr'actes_ or incidental music to
a production of the play in London. The words are by Berlioz, inspired
by Shakespeare, and versified by Emil Deschamps; and the work is
dedicated to Paganini, who a little earlier had presented Berlioz with
twenty thousand francs to show his admiration for the earlier Symphonie
Fantastique. Berlioz says in his autobiography: "I remember in one of
my Campagna rides with Mendelssohn (this was during his tenure of the
Prix de Rome) expressing my surprise that no one had ever written a
scherzo on Shakespeare's sparkling little poem, _Queen Mab_. He, too,
was surprised, and I was very sorry I had put the idea into his head.
For years I lived in dread that he had used it: for he would have made
it impossible, or at any rate very risky, for anyone to attempt to do
it after him. Luckily he forgot." This was a very generous tribute to
Mendelssohn's power as a fairy-music composer, coming from a musician
in no very great sympathy with his style.
This symphony is scored for a very large orchestra. The first movement
consists of a fine musical imitation of a street fight, culminating in
the entrance of the Prince (on the full bass), who stops the fight.
Then comes a choral prologue for contraltos and basses, giving a rough
idea of the plot. Then a Queen Mab scene for tenor and chorus, and a
great concert and ball given at the Capulets'. This finishes the
second part. The third part is the love scene (Balcony scene as we
call it) in Capulet's garden. There is some very exquisite love-music
here; and the whole movement, which is really the so-called "slow
movement" of the conventional symphony, is very beautiful. The fourth
section (Scherzo) is called "Queen Mab," and is one of those delicate,
gossamer, fairylike works in which Berlioz {125} so excels. Then come
choral music for the funeral cortege of Juliet, and Romeo's invocation
at the tomb of the Capulets. The finale takes place in the graveyard:
Montagues and Capulets are both there, Friar Laurence explains
everything, and there is reconciliation between the rival houses,
ending in their swearing over the graves to be friends for ever. I
know this is a very bald account. The work should be heard to be
understood fairly; but a very interesting couple of hours can be spent
by a musician on the full score of this work in the British Museum
reading-room. The text is given in both French and German. Wagner, in
his letters from Paris, 1841, says of Berlioz: "He has no friend deemed
worthy to be asked for counsel, none he would permit to draw his notice
to this or that sin against form in his works. In regard to this, I
was filled with regret by a hearing of his symphony, _Romeo et
Juliette_. Amid the most brilliant inventions, this work is heaped
with such a mass of trash and solecisms that I could not repress the
wish that Berlioz had shown this composition before performance to some
such man as Cherubini, who, without doing its originality the slightest
harm, would certainly have had the wit to rid it of a quantity of
disfigurements.... Wherefore Berlioz will always remain imperfect,
and, maybe, shine as nothing but a transient marvel." There is some
sound though exaggerated criticism in these sentences; but Wagner could
not have known on what sort of terms Cherubini and Berlioz were. That
the latter could submit a work for correction to the former is
impossible for anyone knowing anything about their personal and
artistic relations to consider for a moment. Still, the personal
criticism of one great composer by another is always interesting and
informing.
Tschaikowsky's Overture-Fantaisie, _Romeo et Juliette_, is scored for
an ordinary symphony orchestra with horn and harp. It is very modern
and very emotional, and at times almost hysterical. The work begins in
a quasi-organ manner, but the first subject is very bold. Whether
{126} it is to express Montague or Capulet I don't know. It seems too
robust to express my idea of Romeo, but it may be Tschaikowsky's. The
second subject is obviously Juliet, and the two themes are developed to
the end, which, curiously enough, for the last few bars is quite
lively. The work makes a very interesting contrast to Berlioz, but I
suspect that the great Frenchman had a deeper insight into
Shakespeare's poem than the Russian. Tschaikowsky's work could be done
without any mention of Romeo and Juliet or Shakespeare; Berlioz's could
not.
+Joseph Joachim Raff+, a composer whose name is unfortunately mostly
associated with the well-known or notorious Cavatina, is a much
underrated man. He was an indefatigable worker and an outstanding
example of the fatuity of Carlyle's definition of genius. Undoubtedly
Raff was no genius, but he was a composer of far from common ability.
His four Shakespearian overtures, of which the one to _Romeo and
Juliet_ is the first, are all most interesting. They are not absolute
programme music. They give the idea more than the story, but are none
the worse for that. The Romeo overture opens with a fine broad theme
for the horns, swiftly followed by a somewhat suave melody for the
strings, the other instruments gradually joining in. The middle part
is quite tragic, and the whole is carried out to a well-constructed
finish. Without achieving great music, Raff rises to certain heights
in this overture.
+Hugo Pierson's+ concert overture _Romeo and Juliet_, op. 86, is very
interesting, but not so much so as his symphonic poem _Macbeth_, which
I described at some length in an earlier section. Composed for a large
orchestra, it opens with a short _allegro appassionato_ introduction;
but this soon changes to a graceful theme typical of the luxurious life
of Verona, broken in upon occasionally by suggestion of the hate
between the rival houses of Montague and Capulet. This is followed by
an amorous subject typical of Romeo, and by a gay theme for the great
dance. The {127} Balcony scene is beautifully portrayed. The
remainder of the music becomes high tragedy, and it remains so till the
very end. The overture is quite short and not so difficult as most of
Pierson's work, and it is full of melody and broad orchestral effects.
The themes are all original, as is their treatment, and the tonality is
interesting though difficult to follow.
+Edward German+ composed the whole of the music for Forbes-Robertson's
production of _Romeo and Juliet_ at the Lyceum, September 1895, and
also dedicated it to him. It is a complete piece of work, admirably
carried out and suited for the occasion. It opens with a fine sombre
prelude, showing the atmosphere of hate which was brooding over the
otherwise pleasant town of Verona. This feeling of hate and the
love-music are the two most important themes in the prelude, which
finishes up with six bars, _religioso_, to suggest the tomb. For the
remainder of the music Mr German has himself made a selection of themes
containing all that is of the most importance. The curtain music for
the first act is a broad theme in common time, which serves to open the
scene and is otherwise harmless. Then comes the Peter _motif_--a good
Old English comedy theme with an excellent descending bass. The March
which follows is a thoroughly good Old English march of the kind to
which Mr German has accustomed us. The Capulets' Reception music and
Juliet's theme (I am quoting Mr German) are graceful six-eight numbers,
and if taken a little faster than marked would make excellent Old
English country dances. Even at the proper time one expects to see
shepherds, not great ladies and gentlemen. The Love _motif_ is sombre
enough--Mr German never seems to give his lovers time to be happy; but
the Nurse theme is a real bit of German at his best, and is very
welcome. The music for Paris at the tomb of Juliet is necessarily sad,
and the Death theme, the last number, is quite in keeping with the end
of Shakespeare's tragedy. There is a charming nocturne which makes a
very effective {128} _entr'acte_, delicately scored and very original.
The Pastoral, again, is a delightful composition. But the best number,
to my mind, is the Pavane. Here Mr German has got the real
Romeo-Juliet-Shakespeare atmosphere, and in this simple dance has done
more to express in music what Shakespeare was showing to us than in his
complicated prelude or in the rest of the incidental music. This
Pavane is a real gem.
+Joseph Holbrooke's+ poem for chorus and orchestra, _Queen Mab_, was
first performed at the Leeds Festival in 1904. The chorus part is _ad
lib._, but if properly performed makes a very effective addition to the
fairly large orchestra that Mr Holbrooke has scored for. The opening
is in the guise of a scherzo, very brilliant and difficult; then comes
a long slow episode; then much development; and finally the entrance of
the chorus. The time is _adagio_, and the words begin, "Arise, fair
sun, and kill the envious moon," ending six lines afterwards. These
lines are repeated again and again, quite in the so-called
old-fashioned style; the chorus dies away; and the orchestra finishes
the work with a coda _fortissimo_. Queen Mab has long since
disappeared.
+Johann Severin Svendsen+, born 1840, Christiania, wrote a _Romeo and
Juliet_ overture, but there is no copy of it in the British Museum.
The following operas are mentioned in Mr Barclay Squire's interesting
article on Shakespearian operas, from the book _Homage to Shakespeare_,
1916. As they more or less complete the list, I mention them; but I
cannot find copies of them or any reference as to their comparative
merits, or otherwise:--Dramma per Musica, in 2 acts, pub. Berlin in
1773, with no composer's name; opera by Benda, Gotha, 1776; T. G.
Schwanenberg, Leipzig, 1776; L. Marescalchi, Rome, 1789; Von Rumling,
Munich, 1790; Porta, Paris, 1806; Schuster, Vienna, {129} 1809. This
article gives a fairly complete list of the music inspired by our play.
It seems curious that with so magnificent a theme only one
composer--Berlioz, of course--should have risen to absolutely supreme
heights. I suppose his work is performed very occasionally; whereas
Gounod's is in every operatic repertory in the world.
{130}