Cincinnati daily press. [volume] (Cincinnati [Ohio]) 1860-1862, 1860-06-18
ConsoIius n Mourning Prima Donna-Nsl-
nncholy Contretempe Of A Musical C,rtt1c

Coneohug Mourning Primn Donna-Nlel-
nneholy contretemps Of a Musical Critic.
One day, during the sojourn Of the Stra-
kosch Concert Company in this city, the mu-
slcsi crltic OF morning cotemporary, who
mad been quite lavish in his praise of the pet
Primd donna, Adalina. Patti. happened to take
dinner at the Burnet House and sat near a
table which was occupied BY the petite devoted
OF Euterpe, her father and Monsieur and Mad
anne Strakosch. spEIE NEKETT =,
He had been entranced, he said, by her
rendering of Ertidni Inpoldmi; the Echo iSon0
had made him quite as foolishly absurd in his
laudations as the critics Of the Eastern press.
who apparently became lunatic when she
sang tn them, and her performance of the An
non gtunge had taught him TO believe her hall
divine.
Judge then of his surprise when he saw
her enter the dining-room of this elegant
hotel, with bended head, sad, woe-worn
countenance, and eyes, Of which some one
has grandiloquently remarked, "such orbs
lost Mark Antony the empire of the world"
red and swollen with recent weeping. In
terested, now, more than ever in her BEHALF
and deeply sympathizing with her in her grief,
which he supposed had been caused by some
adverse criticisms, he watched her every
movement. ar. t
Suddenly she began to weep anew; he
ohW bne ma0o
every effort to conceal them. His annette
suddenly forsook him, and panied beyond
control, he rushed from the table and the
room. When the printd donna had finished
her dinner, the critic sent up his card craving
an interview, which she, probably thinking
in this manner to partially forget the great
woe with which her heart was bursting,
readily granted. -''
Upon being admitted 10 her apartment, the
scribbler threw himself on his knees at the
feet ofthe delicate girl whose voice had bewild-
cred, and whose grief had maddened him,
and taking her hand, which he firmly held in
both his, in spite of her astonishment and
struggling, delivered himself-as the story
goes-of something like the following
Dearest Adalinal Beautiful representa-
tive of the lyric muse! Your tears, which |
just now witnessed, when you thought no
eye saw your expression of grief have fallen
upon my heart and feel, quite as deeply as
you, the woe you have been compelled to
endure. Unappreciated as you must ever be,
by those whose souls are less full of music
than your own, the rude and cruel manner
in which you have been treated by q portion
OF the press of Cincinnati, has doubtless
deeply panied you, and | can readily under
stand how your beautiful and sensitive spirit
must have been shocked by these unl<ind at
tacks upon your voice and style.
believe me, however, when assure YOU
that there is ut least one heart in this vast
city that fully appreciates not only your
faultless execution and your superb STYLE,
but also your excellent phrasing, wonderful
heXibility OF voice and sweet and bird-like
tones, and, besides this, deeply sympathizes
win you In the suffering you must expert
ence from failure on the part of our critics
to estimate your genius at its full value. All,
Adalinal am ashamed to admit it, but they
love gross materialism better than music,
and are much better judges of Catawba and
Heidsick than of the lyric art, in whose fir
mament you are the brightest star. Your
merit great as 1t is, shall be faithfully repre-
serted in the columns of the -, and you
may rest assured that you will have a de-
fender while have power to WELD a pen or
a medium through which to reach the public
ear" WV ~
At first the prima donna felt disposed to
regard the critic as one of the many whose
heads she had turned and half laughed at his
rawlings. The effect of the righteousness of
his speech, however, soon passed, and the
smile that rippled over her face had hardly
reached her eyes before they were again suf-
fused with tears. This first outburst rem
dercd the critic still more tender than ever.
and in soothing tone he "begged that she
would not allow the miserable opinions that
had been printed in the papers to which he
alluded to trouble her further" when.
through her sobs, which almost choked her
utterance, Adalina, much to his chagrin and
dsmay, with considerable difficulty made
him understand that "she did not caro- for ze
critique, but ze cher ehisn, vat you call him,
dog re bootiful Edgardo, vas lose, and she
would nevair see him no more" Heartily
disguised with the weeping prima donna,
and himself particularly, the scribbler rushed
from the apartment into the street, and since
that time all that is necessary to throw him
into paroxysm of rage is to inquire if he
can tell you the name of the principal char
acter in Lucia di Lamnaermoor.