The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1869-09-18

We are about entering upon new era OF
music, and one that is much to be desired after
the vapidness which has for 80 long time
characterized that branch Of public entertain
mont. We have been treated for the last four
or I've years to kind Of ola podrida in the
divine art, until we have become weary Of
opera 6oute, which, at the best, with all Onen-
hach's musical jingle and Graus sagacious
management, and, later still, the whole of the
young Fisk's treasury at its back, was little
more than French negro minstrel perform
anoe. OPERA 6ou6s hurt every one that had
anything to do with it, except the public, and
they hardly escaped unscathed, in the matter
Of q very serious decentralization of taste. We
are now, however, likely to see an epoch in
musical entertainments restored which will
probably bring us back to that inaugtrated by
Jenny Lind in 1862. Carlotta Patti is about
to appear in q series of concerts. Patti is said
to possess voice superior to Lind, and, as a
concert singer, is reported to have no supe-
rior. We know that before she left this coun-
try for Europe she was an excellent singer.
She comes back to-. this country with a
method and voice greatly improved, with a
confidence in her merits sustained by repu-
tation which is not excelled in Europe by any
concert singer who has charmed the courts
and capitals of the Old World by the genius
which seems to be tho inheritance of her
family, and beauty Of person which is pecu-
iarly her own; for Mile. Patti is not only an
exquisite artistic, she Is beautiful woman-a
most excellent creation to look upon as well as
to listen to.
According to the programme we are to have
= healthy revival of classical music in the
Patti concerts. We need not say how re-
freshing this will be after the wretched at
tempts at Italian opera doled out by broken
down singers in the unfortunate Catacombs,
where by an unhappy combination Of poor
artists, bad management and grasping stock
holders, Italian opera went down never per-
chance to rise again.
Dramatic art has had severe struggle for
life in this community for the past few years.
1t was sorely assaulted by leg performances at
Niblo's and other theatres for hundreds of
nights. Entertainments good deal more ex-
Cltl1B tuau luStTuC6iVes anu, III ldCC, WHICH,
might be styled an offence to refined taste and
q case of assault and battery upon dramatic
art itself. Then we had furious muscular
efforts on the trapeze, which people enjoyed
In the morbid expectation that the performers
men, women and children, for all of them are
In the business-would kill themselves. and
thus give the full value for the price of
the ticket; but we are happy to say that the
audiences were generally disappointed. Again,
the legitimate drama had to stand the shock of
Japanese jugglers, the attacks of parti-colored
harlsquins, -breeched pantaloons, nimble
clowns and Sinking Columbines, who flourish
In the attractive pantomime. We have had q
deluge of these things-this frippery Of stage
scenery, illusions and legs-but now there is
Q likelihood that we shall have new depar-
ture in the advent Of Carlotta Patti. The de-
moralizing condition Of affairs on our stage
looks as though it were about to vanish into
the outer darkness where Satan is supposed to
dwell, to be replaced by brighter epoch in
our experience of music and the drama.