The Express.
London, England, 1861-05-15 00:00:00

ROYAL ITALIAN OPERA.

A new star--e star of the very first magnitude--
hes suddenly and unexpectedly appeared on our horizon, to
the joyful astonishment of our musical stargazers. This
star t. a young girl, Adelina Patti—a name till now us-
known in this country—who appeared last night in the
gensseasbahs, and achieved a triumph such as we have
never seen surpaased during our not very brief theatrical
experience. Of her antecedents all that we know is con-
tained in • brief notice of her life, with some extracts from
American journals, given in the Musical World of
Saturday last. Mae. Patti is au Italian by
family, • Spaniard by birth, and an American by
breeding. She was born at Madrid in 1843. Her
mother was prima donna of the Italian Opera, and. on
the evening before her daughter's birth bad performed the
part of Norma. When the child was about • year old her
family emigrated to America, where, till her present visit
to England, she has passed her whole life. Her musical
precocity was wonderful. She could sing before she could
speak, and at four years old mug all the gems of the
favourite operas. Her first public appearance was at the
age of nine ; and, little as her name has been beard on this
side of the Atlantic, she has for some time bees the
idol of the public, in some of the principal cities
of the 17nited Stens. The American papers haws
been speaking of her in language of unbounded enthusimms
—language which we set down to American extravapase,
tin last night showed us that it is not easy to find law
guage strong enough to describe her. She was engaged, se
are told, for her Majesty's Theatre by Mr. Smith, aka
with his characteristic activity had obtained information
of Itcr character. On arriving in London she found her
Majesty's Theatre closed, but of course could have no iliffi-
cult, in obtaining the opportunity of tusking her dibcd
under the auspices of Mr. Gye.
The

of her appearance was of brief
duration, and, her mane being unknown to the
public, excited little attention. There was, how.
ever, a good house, and we observed among the audience.
wiry distinguished professional musicians. On her en•
lessee she had the kind reception always given by our pub-
he to a stranger, its warmth being evidently heightened
by her vary interesting appearance. She looks even younger
gm she is said to be—eighteen ; is slightly but finely
forolsa, has beautiful eyes, and features full of expression.
Her aspect wee full at ingenuous modesty and simplicity,
the way that an artist would imagine of the sweetest
heroine on the musical stage. Her voice was at fiat
tremulous from agitation, while she uttered the few words
of recitative introductory to the beautiful air, " Care
Complains," so full of innocent joy, which Amine
addresses to the companions of her youth. It re.
gaited but a few bars of this air to settle her position with
the public. As she proceeded, the excitement of the
audience was stronger and stronger, and she concluded
amid a tumult of applause from every corner of the house.
This air, as our musical readers know, is one of the most
brilliant things in the opera. It is full of those florid
phrases which so well express exuberant joy and happiness;
and it is the practice of the singer to enhance the expression
by heightening these rienfere to the utmost extent of her
powers of fancy and execution. This was always done by
Persieni, Lind, Bashi, and all the other Amines we have ever
had: it was dune, too, by their youthful successor, and in •
manner which, we have no hesitation in saying, far
exceeded the utmost efforts of any of them. Her powers of
execution are something astounding. The compass of her
voice seems to have no limits ; she disports herself in them
regions of the scale which all other singers that we have
ever heard can reach only for a few notes with a great and
painful effort. In the invention of original and varied pee-
rages her imagination seems exhaustion, and she executes
them with the ease and certainty of a Joachim or a
Vieuxtemps on his violin. Mozart's celebrated airs of the
Queen of Night, in the Zattherflete, seem intended to tax to
the utmost all the powers of the female voice ; but these
airs. in respect to difficulty, are mere children's play corn.
piled to the achievements of Madlle. Patti in the air we are
speaking of, end still more in the famous " Ali, uou giunge,"
the lasts of the opera. Were these things merely feats of
execution—fairs de force and nothing more, we should not
attach very great value to them. But, with this young
singer, execution is only the means to an end—that end
being the expression of feeling and passion. Of every
variety of expression, too, Madlle. Patti is mistress. The
few simple notes, breathed by the sleeping girl as she un-
oomoimudy gaffers the withered flowers to drop from her
hands, were r heart-touching as when they were uttered by
Lind bstseU—more they could not be.
In this pert, too, Madlle. Patti in a charming actress.
We have before us the very being she represents—the Mao.
osat country girl, gay and happy—the tender and sensitive
fissefe, wounded by her lover's unkindness, crushed by his
ereelty, sunk in despair, and revived to delirious rapture.
ivory parka, every fading, was expressed with so much

' simplicity and truth, that the is admiration was
may. in sympathy. In using this we are guilty of
eacaggorolicm. Any treader who sees and heals this new
Amine will only be too well coovineed of the feebleness of
our attempt to give an idea of bar beauties.
Ha& Patti was exceedingly well supported by Signor
Tiberini in the character of Elvino. Be acted with iotelli-
genes sad feeling, and sang the musio—Fortioularly the foie
air, " Ah, purche non posso odis:ti,• very beautifully. And
Tagliafico performed the part of Count Boddie) very
agreeably.