The Sun.
London, England, 1863-09-21 00:00:00

NORWICH MUSICAL FESTIVAL.

NORW: cis, Sept. 19.

Nothing could be happier than the manner in which the
legend of Blondel de Nesle has been turned to metrical and
musical account by the author of the book of" Richard Coeur
de Lion." In a poetical sense it is quite equal to " Undino"
(from the same hand); while the incidents not being drawn
from the supernatural world, hero and heroine are alike
creatures of flesh and blood, and the interest is altogether
human. In the account which appeared on Tuesday it was
said that the old story had been modified to allow for the
introduction of a female character; and, indeed, without
such an innovation it would hardly have served so well for
a cantata. The devotion of friendship is by no means to be
sneered at ; but the passion of love has been always, and
will always be, the cherished theme of musicians. Besides
the resources of a composer are crippled for want of a so-
prano voice, the contralto quality of tone being an affinity
too close to the tenor for that variety of contrast indispens-
able to musical effect, Lastly, a quartet of principal singers
—soprano, contralto, tenor, and bass—is essential, for the
purposes of combination, as well as of contrast; and but for
Mathilde Mr. Benedict must have remained soprano-less.
Regarded from the dramatic point of view, moreover, Ma-
thilde is an engaging personage ; and the invention of the
White Lady provides her with sa mething of importance to
achieve, thus rendering her a necessary agent of the plot.
The book, in short, is one of the most perfect things of its
kind with which a modern musician has had to deal ; and it
would have been strange if the composer who set " Undine"
had failed in " Richard Coeur de Lion." Instead of failing,
however, Mr, Benedict has enriched the art with a new
work calculated in an equal measure to satisfy musi-
cians and delight the great community of amateurs.
The overture consists of an introduction in two parts—
andante connota, and andantino—to which reference is
subsequently made in the finale and elsewhere, followed by
an allegro, beginning in the minor key and ending in the
major, the two leading sutjects of which are afterwards
made use of in a scene of great importance. Brilliantly ar-
ranged for the orchestra, this overture is constructed after
the manner of Weber's operatic preludes, a manner which
it is not surprising should exercise a potent spell over
Weber's most gifted pupil. Mr. Benedict, however, can
emulate his master without borrowing his ideas. The in-
troduction comprises a chorus—" Another dance ; another
dance ;" a romance for Urbain, the page (contralto)---" An
hundred hundred years ago ;" and a repetition of the open-
ing chorus, with some slight modifications. Built upon a
graceful melody in waltz-time, the chorus (accompanying
the diversions of the villagers at sunset) is sustained with
the utmost animation, and a flow of tune which never allows
the attention to flag for a single instant. An episode—
semi-chorus—where the tenors and basses ask, "Can we
not dance by the light of the moon ?" the trebles and altos
replying, "No, no I you forget," (the White Lady is sup-
posed to make her rounds at moonlight), is in effective relief
with the preceding, and through its appropriate change of
character leads naturally to the romance of Urbain. Here
the page relates the legend of the spectre believed to haunt
the castle (the ghost of a lady who died for love), inter-
rupted at intervals by the exclamations of the villagers in
chorus, The situation closely resembles that where Reim-
baut tells the story of Robert le Diable (" Jadis regnait en
Normandie") ; but Mr. Benedict has been in no way influ-
enced by Meyerbeer ; on the contrary, the theme ho has
found for the romance is as fresh as it is quaint, while the
responses are in excellent keeping. The resumption of
chorus and waltz movement becomes all the more striking
on account of this episode, which is as sentimental as the
context is exhilarating. The next piece is a scene for Ma-
thilde (soprano)—recitative, andante, and allegro—an ope-
ratic show-piece of the most legitimate stamp. In the an-
dante (" Gentle shade l")—a movement as melodious as it is
richly accompanied—Mathilde addresses words of consola-
tion toi the White Lady, citing her own love for the un-
known prisoner as a bond of sympathy between them. The
allegro (",To live and hopelessly to:love") is an apostrophe
to the tender passion, wedded by the composer to a
vigorous movement in florid braviera. To the foregoing
succeeds a chorus (" A stranger see in foreign dress"),
piquant and pretty, in which the villagers make remarks
on the outward appearance of Blondel and speculations
as to wbat may have brought him to their neigh-
bourhood. Blondel (tenor) satisfies their curiosity with
a ballad (" I wander in search of a treasure"). Like one
of the most charming songs in " The Lily of Killarney"
(the Colleen Basan's first air), this is a tender ditty in the
minor key, with a more sprightly and melodious retrain in
the maj.T. Blondel avows a determination nev, r to rest
until he has discovered the retreat of the friend of whom he
is in search ; and at the conclu-ion •of each verse the vil-
lagers express their adsetiration of his constancy in the
delicious melody of the refrain, We aro now transported
to the interior of the castle where Richard Coeur de Lion is
imprisoned. The composer takes advantage of the situation
to write a grand scene for his chivalric hero. This com-
prises a recitative, allegro (" My sight can pierce thro' my
prison wall"), and andante (" One beauteous image near
me strays"). In the weariness of his solitude the thoughts
of Richard revert to the events of his past life—first to the
glorious deeds in Palestine, then to the auspicious day
when he conducted the lovely Berengaria to the altar. Both
movements are well-imagined and admirably written—the
andante especially, which is as gracefully tuneful as it is
impassioned. The scene that ensues, the most interesting
of all, both in a musical and dramatic sense, is the one, it
need scarcely be explained, where Blondel finds out that
his master is in the castle and that the end of his own labor
is at hand—the chief incident, in short, of a legend which
has thrown such charm over the romantic history of Coeur
de Lion, and which it is almost cruel to the imaginative
mind to be invited to dismiss as fabulous. After a recitative
and airs (" The load upon my heart grows lighter")—by
no means the least engaging solo in the cantata—Blondel,
hearing the sound of a lute (harp) from within, begins to
sing the old romance with the sound of which in the course
of his travels he has assailed the walls of many and many
a dark and frowning keep.

This time it is not in vain. The voice of Blondel is re-
cognized by the illustrious prisoner, who straightway re •
peats a fragment of the melody. Blonde', enchanted, re-
commences the song ; when strain after strain is echoed from
within, and no further doubt is left in the mind either of
Richard or his minstrel. Mr. Benedict has managed this
situation with extraordinary success. The words of the
signal song are not only poetical but metaphorically sug-
gestive :
" May is into prison cast,
Icy chains have bound him fast ;
Though the flowers awake from sleep,
From their beds they dare not p&ep.
Only in the wood is heard,
Sadly singing, one small bird.
Dull and dreary all must bo
Till our liege King May is free.
" When the breath of Spring is felt,
Icy chains will quickly melt ;
Then the flowers will sparkle forth,
Scatt'iing glory o'er the earth—
Then the birds on ev'ry spray
Loud will sing their roundelay.
Bright and joyous all must be;
May regains her liberty."
The melody to which they are allied is one of those unaf-
fected strains which not only a child might easily catch
and retain, but with which the most cultivated ear could
not be otherwise than pleased, its marked and appropriate
simplicity being unaccompanied by the slightest tinge of
vulgarity. It might be sung, by the way, just as readily to
the original Provence' romance with which poetic legend
has accredited Blondel

" Domna vostra beutas
Etas belles faissos
Els bele oils amoros
Els geus cor ben taillatz,'' &c.
As we have already said, the principal themes here em-
ployed are also, in a shape more or less modified, the prin•
cipai themes of the allegro in the overture. A duet (" I
heard the song and the response") in which Mathilde, who
has overheard what was going on, promises Blondel her aid
in his difficult enterprise—is just what it should be, easy and
unpretending. The song of the Page (" My Lady and
the stranger listening there") is as sparkling as one of
Auber's most sparkling improvisations; while the
chorus of soldiers, to which it gives place (" Your health,
gallant comrades,"—in five-part harmony, for altos,
tenors, and bases (the tenors and bases divided)—has a
strong Weberian flavour, which, combined with spirit and
vivacity, makes it all the more welcome. The incidents of
thefinale may be easily defined. Mathilde assuming, ac-
cording to agreement with Bloudel, the appearance of the
White Lady, frightens away soldiers, visitors, and page ;
and Richard, with his faithful adherent, effects his escape,
but not till poor Mathilde has discovered that the object of his
jo.ro is a personage altogether out of her sphere, and regis-
tered a solemn vow to pass the remainder of her days iu the
seclusion of a convent. The music of this finale, which
draws largely upon the overture, includes an extremely
effective trio for Mathilde, Blondel, and Richard, and ter-
minates with a jubilant chorus, of which the last theme is
that of the troubadour-song of Blondel—is as characteristic
and attractive as anything that precedes it. The end, in-
deed, is worthy the beginning, The score of "Richard
Cour de Lion" is everywhere masterly, the arrangement
of the choral parts, the writing for the solo voices, and the
instrumentation for the orchestra being alike complete and
finished; but no less was expected of its author, to whose
'veil-earned Imola this now cantata rill add another leaf.