New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1853-05-09
Italiau Opera.

Annterestng musicOdamatc event took place on Friday
night A benefit was given to Mr.. lie Grand Smith, the
Manager Of the Opera gentleman whose beraty borders
on the unusual and who has at expense OF not few
thousand dollars endeavored TO sustain Italian Opera
which for the merit and numbers Of its members combined
| has not been equaed in this country We deem it
credabe TO Mr. lie Grand Smith and equally discredabe
10 the company he employs that he should have
Ii seems that in the illustration Of operate art which
will here and afford .be recOmpense TO all the
performers borders the morally hdeous and regiousy
athesic that ars be found whose of salary
far as ouweghs their Of justice that they will any
worthy gentleman deliberately pay out than they
can draw into the house
As much as we desire TO lyrical art flourish in this
country we would sooner thousand times see il blasted
from existence and consigned to oblivion than to find it
babituay connected with avarice iealousies quarrengs
and the bankruptcies of the highmnded and liberal And
it. in the maelstrom of trade the public could arrive at
an anchorage of ethical observation they would the
cessy of setting the seal Of terrible reprobaon upon all
graspng cupdy and the quackey and pharasac parade Of
Jenny Lind crusade would never be repeated The diff
cuties of Mr. lie Grand Smith arise simply from the fact
tbat operac art is not sysematzed with There is
combination among capitalists to set it in regular motion
There no religious feeling among artists to from
habitual wreck The idea that the generous gifts of God
nav be rewarded by something else than gold in excess
never appears to be felt on the operate stage.
The divine fire which made Correggio devote himself to
single portrait for years and be paid in pennies the
equally sacred enthusiasm that doomed Mozart TO such life
of poverty that at the time he writing his Don
Giovanni he was arrested for debt of five doars-has no
more existence than if human nature in creative genius
was different thing from the same quality in performing
talent The profanity of paying four five six hundred
or more dollars night for single voice is submitted TO
by the public who, if dignity were pervasiye as folly,
would fully assert the claims of justice and that
4at. 81 hoo
even find out that at least half of the of
opera depends upon the composer and would not let singers
prev upon his works without giving him the rights of
authorship under a international law of Copyright.
We think the duty of this public to support Mr. lie
Grand Smith We think that they should force the artists
under him to come reasonable terms. not let them
sing at all We never have any art in this country
long crazy cupdy fires every artist based on the Jenny
Lind suctioneering charity giving angelic charlaansm
Singers should be paid here they are in Italy much
Der cent only added for tie voyage and the public should
refuse to give more otherwise art have epieptc
spasms but no continuous growth for the benefit Of
the artists themselves.
The Opera on Friday ght Don Gi0vaRH Upon the
apparton Of Max Maretzek leader, there genial
burst Of applause showing the appreciation in which this
eminent Conductor Is held.
The public used TO hear operas written according to
the musical development of this century tina; they
fully prepared listen to Den Giovanni with equal interest
or express their applause with equal warmth.
This work which coldy received on its first presen
taion Vienna and left its author in wreched poverty has
held possession of the stage from its intrinsic worth The
mode OF treating the orchestra the forms of vocal expires
sion have changed since then Composers, for example
would not now give the srnged orchesan unbrOken con
tuuy for three hours which is mOnotonous They
cause the srnged the wind and the brass instruments to
be heard freely alone well as in combination and be
sides there are many extensions effects and combna
tons We deem the opinion often expressed that Don
Gi0panHi is unapproachable utterly baseess. We hear
more modern Instrumentation which is much varied
and ntere sting In regard 10 accentuaOn great changes
have take place Mozarts time he constructed his
melodies with elegant fuency giving the accents on the
potes of the chord the fiery and romantic genius OF
Weber or the eegac OF Bellin the fer
vent appog gaura throbs in the melody the note of the
chord cannot here into this part Of operAc
treatment
Not little comedy is believed TO be in this music OF Mo
zart But dscovert He wrote pensvey and SUD-
timely ike who was doomed 10 die early The air
Madanaina ma though copied closely from the bufo pa
dante of Italian mssic is not comic.
The applause was net vehement except for Albonis
solo. and for SAlvs II te0ro which he did not give
with his usual felicity The heroic tenor voice which
the back bone Of the modern opera is wanting in this
work The pitch of the tenor voice some two notes
lower than the modern tenor songs and the splendid re-
sonance the decamaiory vgor the tragic sorrow, which
make Salv eminent thus wanting The elaborate
ingenuity of the orchestra hardly leaves the voice any
prominence that the attention nus be given to sym
nhony in the orchestra well 10 the voice and such
doubs attention is not often awarded by the public.