New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1858-06-23
ACADEMY OF MUSIC.
THE OPERA OF SAPPHO.


The wees of Ssppho have been sung to DEATH Al
esory too, is dead. Lovers leaps are rocccco. The
classic drama in opera ia Disposed for that Of subjects
Of the medieval time and later co. too, in poetry and
in paintings The age has got tired Of wry-necked
Ietrospeciion to the Greeks and the Rom.ns. Even
the Egyptian collection of DR.. Abbott-intertwned as
it is with old biblical facts and affectiOns-iOesn't
pay for its gas bills Doesn't pay for its gas bils,
though the learned Seyharth AM, Ph.D., d D., in
his late work uses it to endesyor 70 prove thst the
world is not Sir in its dotsge, and that Ssnkoniathon
and Mear chon didn't make the dynasties 20 900 years
old more or less but chat Abou Djufar NOLAN settles
the age Of our planet by showing that when the esh
frst began to whirl after standing still for moment
ready for the race Saturn STOOD 2fo east in Libra Ju
piter l5o in Cancer Mars % ip Capricorn, the Sun o.
in Ares Venus 27o in Pisces Mercury ditto the Moon
So in Taurus and that this the beginning Of tue
world and since that day these heavenly bodies have
never stood thus again Ia fact highly probable But
we digress Our business is with Sappho and not with
the Pharaobs. Ssppho lived at time when poetry
was a necessity. Now it is luxury Whose would
zee and bear poetry measured by the early standard
should 90 to Persia and mark the effects Of the muse
on the Perssns. Ssppho loved as poetess should
love. Ssppho wss sn immense pet on the revival of
letters. When Music heavenly maid, first began the
Solieggi in Italy, Ssppho was iu demand. Those un-
happy wretches, Orpheus ard Eurdice, and Ssppho,
about divided the palm of the opera, as given in
Venice and other provincial towns'-none Of the
cities by the way which evolved the lyrical immortal
tes in that sud beipg of sufficient size to merit the
notice of genuine New-Yorker. When bass viol
ard viola amore formed the orchestra Ssppho Gang
ard broke her neck tina. brass and big drum de.
tomato the huttelDgs of the virgin heart-Sappho turns
up sgain Sappho is at home in opera. Because in her
day poetry was sung. When Virgil played the ape
and wrote an epic, and wrote Arma Nirumque Cano-
he like our modern sculptors, thought he was inspired
while be was only copying a dead 'dea. To hesr
Ssppho on the opera bosris decsimng all her
woes to music is beautiful type Of the psst and
would be specially interesting bat that the clsssics
have been overdope aud the claims Of the last few
centuries on history aud art make Indifferent to
sttic salt and aconc pepper. So Ssppho must res. for
her success on her humanity and artistic merits, sp
from tine and place.
The composer Pscin in this opera has done his
work for the most part brilliantly. Az mtlodst, ne
is rot of equal mei. with some others that might be
nsmed He is clean and clear enough, but is deficient
in the sfflatus Of memorsbleDe's. 10 professional
treatment of the voice he is excellent. 10 ju1ciOus
orchestrstion be is excellent To this must be ex.
cepted the bsnd on the tsge which he handles feeby;
aud the harp, which he uses to excess. As regards
the voice writing more choral fleets, where crowd
Of priests are ready to give them effect, would have
been acceptable.
In this respect the opera deficient in ecclesiastical
seriousness Pacini is one CT the Italian composers
who is but little known out Of Itsy. He has written
crest deal-much to order. to speak-qui,ky
come and as quickly gone We do not recolect at the
moment the period at which Ssppho was produced,
but II is evidently late work-that is to say not over
twenty years old. The scores Of Pacin exhibit good
deal OF a certain Kind Of detail That is TO say, he
takes an ornate figure as az accompaniment, in place
of mere chords, aid works away at it with most
Ike minutenets. For the rest he does not
sv or fatigue bis voices, as i. the fashion now.
The execution of the opera was pretty good for
first hearing There was want of decision at times,
and sometimes the voices in one key aud the or
cbestra in another But these little things are insep-
arabic from hurried rehearss and be set right on
the second representation. The first blood drawn
was by the solo of Gsssier, which very 6ne. The
sri. Of Miss Philps was capitaIy rendered and vo-
cferously sppsuded Miss 2. evidently is hard stu
dent A duet betwixt this lsdy and None. Gszzangs
drew forth an encore An air of Brgnoi ws beauti-
fully given and vastly approved. The acting Of Mue.
Gszzsbga a. the eliminating point of the plot may be
cited as among the best samples Of this lsdys eIraor-
dinsry talent. The graceful Greek dress, the fine
presence amptudinous gestures, passionate face IN
tense defamation, all give user to the dehnestion.
TIE actors were several times called before the curtain
The house was thn-the heat being excessive, and
the rain threatening. The opera, however, was suo-
Gees, and viii attract, doubtless. good auditory to-
night, when Il viii b repeated.