The Sun.
London, England, 1863-09-04 00:00:00

Reminiscences of the Opera.

My earliest recollections of the opera aro of the days
when Sontag was the madness of the hour—the Jenny Lind
of an aristocratic public. But these memories are vague.
Burningly vivid is the memory of Pasta, the unapproach-
able; she stands out, like Kean, Paganini, and Rachel.
among my artistic experiences, as something quite special
and unforgettable. Merely because he sang with her, I also
remember Curioni, who, I fear, was a stick. It is with
Grisi's first season that my steady vision of the past begins :
and what a succession of triumphs were those seasons in
which she conquered and held her public, aided by Rubini,
Taraburini, and Le.blache I Suffer me for a moment to call
up those vanished images with which so many readers must:
connect enchanting memories. It was unfortunate for
Grisi's fame with the preeent genera ion that she continued
on the stage many years after the glory of her voice and
parson had faded. She was to the last deservedly a great
attraction ; no one could rival her in her Own parts; and
• old Grisi," as she was half affectionately called, proved.
better wor,h seeing and hearing than the younger rivals who
tried to wrest the sceptre from her. Nevertheless, it is only
those who heard her between the years 1831 and 1814 who
have a real conception of that matchless voice and superb
beauty which placed her above all the operatic heroines of
cur time, 'I here have been finer singers and greater actresses,
but no one has been at once so beautiful and impassioned ;
no one has united her excellencies ; no one has been so
thoroughly satisfactory. Elvira, in "I Paritani," has since
been played by Persiani, Lind, and Bosio ; nevertheless the
opera has been a failure since Grisi ceased to play in it, The
part of Lucrezia Borgia was written for Caroline Ungher; I
saw her play it many times, and thought no ono could
surpass her in it ; but when the opera was produced in Lon -
don, I confessed that the feverish passion of Ungher was
many degrees less admirable than the terrible beauty and
large style of Grisi. Norma, Donna Anna, Serniramide,
Nina, Norina—what visions they were. 1 . . . Rubini, so.
indelibly associated with her, was a marvellous singer, and,
until his failing voice made him ream t to a provoking eys •
tem of alternate shout and whimper, no such tenor was to be
heard. But as an actor he was null. He had no idea of cos-

tume, and was often saved from being " a guy" only by his
unaffected beating. He had neither grace nor energy;
moving about the stage with an indifference which was at
times exasperating, and which you may now see reproduced

in the dreary languor of Giuglini, without the compensa-
ting charms of voice and style. Rubini, in great moments,
made his voice act for him ; and I doubt whether Rachel
herself ever threw more intense expression into a passage
than Rubini threw into the curse in "Lucia." As I said,
he was a consummate singer, and in grand bursts of bra-
vura ho carried us to the seventh heaven of rapture. Never-
theless, on the whole, I think Mario would have been pre-

tarred by most people, when Mario had learned to act, and
had not lost his delicl,us voice, He is undoubtedly the tenor
to pair off with Grisi, for the rare union of qualities. So pic-
turesque, so handsome, so graceful a tenor, who is also so
admirable an actor, has not been seen ; and if he could never
sing like Rubini, still one cannot imagine Rubini as
Raoul, John of Leyden, or Gennaro satisfying the public
which has seen Mario. Tamburini was a very handsome
man with a superb voice, and great power of florid execu-
tion. He was a capital favourite with the public, but I do
not recall him with the same fervour as the others. His
acting was animated and respectable, never above the line.
In Assur and Fernando he was very fine. In Don Juan he
was rather vulgar, and in Figaro fussy, not funny. The
acting of Itonconi as far transcended the acting of Tam-
burini, as the singing of Tamburini transcended the singing
of Ronconi. And what can be said of thee, incomparable
Lablache ? Other singers had been admired ; Lablache was
loved. He was certainly one of the grandest-looking men
ever seen, and had the most superb voice that has been
heard in our time, so full, resonant, and equal, blending so
perfectly with other voices,supporting them with firm stacato
notes like notes of an organ, and leading them like a clarion.
Great in tragedy, and great in riotous humour, the grandeur
and passion of the one never prevented the most fanciful
exaggeration in the other; and he had the immense superi-
ority over Itonconi that his lazzi never descended to vul-
Alagazine for September.

COUNTRY MARKETS.

1.• -

BRISTOL—TnuRsDAY.I

At this day's market the supply of English wheat was
moderato, which met a fair ssle at prices fully as high as
last week. In foreign more doing, and quite as dear.
Some fine samples of new malting barley changed hands at
38s to 395. Grinding sorts scarce. Oats inactive, and 6d
to is cheaper. Scarcely anything doing in beans,