The Express.
London, England, 1853-08-22 00:00:00

CRICKET.

GENTLEMEN OF KENT v. GENTLEMEN OP ENG-
LAND.—CANTERBURY, 20.—This grand match was
finished yesterday, England winning by seven wickets. We
give the score :—llLent, lit innings, 107; 2nd innings, 119.
England, Ist inning, 209 ; 2od innings, 20—with three
wickets down.

DEATH OP MAJOR-GENERAL LORD SALTOUN.—
This gallant nobleman died on Thursday last, at his shoot-
ing seat, near Rothe', N. B. The noble lord had been
ailing for tome months, but until a few days prior to his
death no immediate danger was apprehended. His lord-
ship was in his 69th year, and was highly esteemed
by, ,the late Duke of Wellington for his gallant
defence of Hougomont, at which pleas he com-
manded the light companies of the Guards, and had four
horses killed under him. Lord Saltoun served with Moore,
and throughout the Peninsula. The 2nd Regiment of
Foot becomes vacant, of which he was colonel. His lord-
ship was a staunch patron of most of the musical institu-
tion, of the metropolis, president of the Madrigal Soeiety,
chairman of the Musical Union, &a. The Duke of Wel-
lington had ones publicly described the gallant lord as a
lattern to the army, " both as a man and • soldier." His
ordship is succeeded in his title and estates by his
nephew, Major Alexander Fraser. The funeral of the de-
ceased lord is expected to take Sage at Frunzborough, in
Aberdeenshire.

MUSIC.

ROYAL ITALIAN OPERA.

Covent Garden closed its doors for the season on I
Saturday night, after the performance of Gull/minis
Td'. The opera was acted and sung in the usual
manner, and with the usual success. At its conclu-
sion the principal performers received the usual
tokens of the favour and good-will of the public ;
and the whole company testified their loyalty to the
Sovereign by joining in "God save the Queen."
We have been accustomed, at the termination of
the opera season, to make a few remarks on its
general character and results; and for some years
past the struggle between the two rival houses fur-
nished a good deal of materials for this topic,
as their eager competition engendered an activity
productive of both variety and novelty. 'rho ces-
sation of this contest during the past season,
has certainly caused a great diminution of activity I
on the part of the surviving theatre, and the con-
sequence has been, that though there have probably
been better receipts than when they were divided
between two houses, yet we do not remember a
season when the affairs and transactions of the opera
excited so little curiosity and interest. I' is under-
stood, however, that the contest is only suspended,
not terminated; for it is believed, and seemingly on
pod grounds, that her Majesty's Theatre will
be re-opened with great resources next season. We
shall be glad to find this the case; for the last few
seasons have shown us, both the benefits of competi-
tion and the disadvantage of its cessation.
In regard, in the first place, to the production of no-
velly, this season has been very deficient. By novelty,
we do not mean only that which is positively new, but
we include that which is old, provided it is calcu-
lated to make upon the public thn impression of
novelty. In the present degraded state of the
musical stage no operas of a high class are now com-
posed, and managers are not to be blamed for not
producing things that do not exist. Only one new
Italian opera has been produced during this season ;
and it was, we conceive, one too many—we need
scarcely say that we allude to Verdi's Rigotetto, the
weakest work of the weak composer who so un-
worthily represents the once splendid vocal school of
Italy. About this opera there are not two opinions.
Its subject is coarse and repulsive, its music is void
of originality, dramatic character, and artistic skill,
and its whole merit is limited to a few of those
smooth, pretty melodies which even the poorest
Italian composers have a facility in constructing.
Another piece entitled to be regarded as a novelty
was the " Benvenuto Cellini" of Berlioz—a piece
which no ono who knew anything about it could
possibly imagine would be successful. It had origi-
nally failed entirely at the Grand Opera in Paris;
and though a good deal was said about its successful
revival recently at Weimar, yet that circumstance
really went for nothing; for the opera was got up
wader the auspices of the composer's friend Liszt,
who holds absolute sway as arbiter elegasitiarani at
the Grand Ducal Court; and it was performed not
before the public, but the aristocratic habitues of a
theatre that cannot contain five hundred persons.
Berlioz is a man of intelligence and of genius in one
branch of Lis art, the production of striking orches-
tral effects, but he has not the slightest idea of vocal
melody; and so perfectly was this understood that
the failure of his opera (the most complete and deci-
sive that we ever witnessed) was not in the least
surprising. The attempt by some injudicious parti-
sans to ascribe this result to a cabal was as great a
failure as the piece itself. No opera ever bad a fairer
hearing; the disposition of the audience was decidedly
favourable; and growing coldness, followed by posi-
tive disapprobation, was the general feeling of the
house. The very supposition that the immense
audience who filled that great theatre would have
suffered themselves to be influenced by a hostile
clique, or would have abstained from silencing their
malignant clamour, is a self-evident absurdity.
The third and only other novelty was Spohr's Jes•
condo; the only one that was of any real value. But
this admirable opera was produced under the most
infavourable circumstances. Though promised from
. ..„

the beginning, it was delayed tilralineet the very
fag end of the season ; Spohr himself, who had come
to London for the pm pose of superintending its
bringing out, having been obliged to return to Ger-
many before it was ready. One of the causes of
delay was the conduct of Mario, who (very little to
his credit) refused the beautiful part of Nadori,which
was then committed, not to Tamberlik, but to Luc-
chesi, an obscure singer whose insipid performance
deprived it of all interest. Madame Bosio, too,
though a charming singer, was a cold and feeble re-
presentative of the heroine; and,by the incompetence
et these two principal parts, one of the sweetest and
me romantic dramas that the musical stage possesses
was seriously marred. Belletti, Castelhui, and
Formes, however, exerted themselves successfully;
and Jessonda, under all its disadvantages, was, to
every lover of high and classical art, by far the most
interesting entertainment of the season.
So much for what has been done in the way of
novelty. With the exceptions now mentioned, the
performances were confined to the most familiar and
hackneyed pieces of the Covent-garden repertoire.
Mozart has been worse than neglected; for his great
masterpiece, the unrivalled Don Giovanni—the only
one of his operas that was performed—was so poorly
got up, so imperfectly performed, so shorn of
the former splendour of its miss-en-scene—that
it was deservedly received with extreme cold-
ness, and never repeated! Masaniello, which
has for several years been a feature at
Covent Garden, and with which this season was
opened, had no longer its former success, owing to
the same causes which injured Doe Giovanni. The
diens was found to be inferior both in strength and
*laity, and there was a falling off in the whole
getting-up of this gorgeous opera, which was accord-
ingly performed a few nights to thin houses. Of
Rossini there has been little. Guillaume Tell has
bad the most success, chiefly owing to Tamberlik's
dm performance of Arnold. The Barbiere di Siviglia
trio us acquainted with the talents of Madame
Bede, showing her to be not only a most exquisite
singer but an animated and charming comedian. To
gay and graceful comedy she ought to adhere, as she
WI not sufficient passion and energy for parts of
teitinterest.
most secomeful performances of the season
have been those in which Orisi and Mario took part ;
, though both of them, with a view, it would seem, to
dMie retirement, have limited their range of cha-
momiles. Mario, in particular (much to the surprise
awarybody)gere up his great part of John of Ley-
den, Tamberlik; and Orin gave up . Fides to
Madame Tedesco. Both changes diminished the'
&fined= of the Prophet.: though in the case of
Fides, the alteration was certainly for the better,
Tedesco being a superb singer, with a voice exactly
suited to the music of the part. It has been in the
Huguenots and in Lucre= Borgia that the gifted
pair (whom we fear we have seen for the last time)
achieved the greatest triumphs of the season. These
pieces never failed to draw overflowing houses, and
to be received with the utmost enthusiasm.
The company, with the additional names we have
already mentioned, was much the same as last year.
It was exceedingly strong, but needlessly numerous
and expensive—an error we have repeatedly had
occasion to notice in the management of this theatre.
There was no occasion for five soprani, every one a
prima donna, above being asked to take a secondary
character. In addition to Mario and Tamberlik,
there was no occasion for Lucchesi, Stigelli, &o.
Nor was there any need for a whole host of basses
and baritones over and above Itonconi, Belletti, and
Formes. The consequence has been, that many of
these performers have had little or nothing to do but
go to the treasury on Saturday to receive salaries
which in the aggregate must have been a heavy sum.
This injudicious expenditure has the consequence of
inducing equally injudicious parsimony in other im-
portant parts of the establishment—the orchestra,
chorus, &c., the evil effects of which have been appa-
rent during the whole season.
If the Italian Opera is to succeed in future, a great
change of system must be adopted. The standing
repertoire is exhausted. The pub.& are becoming
weary of the stale operas of Bellini, Donisetti, and
Verdi ; and even the gorgeous melodramatic specta-
cles imported from the Academie Royale are getting
worn out. No new operas of merit are written, nor
is any rising genius heard of likely to revive the musi-
cal drama. Nothing remains but to explore the for-
gotten treasures of the older Italian stage—a task of
infinite difficulty, demur ding an amount of know-
ledge, judgment, and skill scarcely to be found among
theatrical managers. It is practicable, however; and,
what is more, it has now become absolutely neces-
sary.