The Penn's Grove record., 1882-07-15
Rossini's Home Life.


From the anteroom you entered tue
dining-room, a moderately sized OBJ
long table to seat fourteen people fill
ling it nearly wholly. To the right of
1t vas the drawing-room where on
Saturday nights the famous soirees
were given, which brought together
celebrities OF every class or section of
politics, art, science or financial Pr 81
ton at the left was his studio, in fact
his be iroom-a square little place, Con-
tanning a bed, a w~riting-table, a Pleyel
pianino and a wardrobe full of perish
able linen and his imperishable man.
uscripts. On the little table in his
bedroom he wrote them-on the big
diuing.room table the copyist copied
them, because he never allowed a man.
uscript to go out of his house. 1t is
certainly Incredible that he shonld
have written the "Barber of Seville"
in fifteen d US, not that there can be
the slightest doubt about the sponta-
neity ofthe melodies streaming quicker
into his pen than out of 1t, but pre-
cisely because, although writing very
fast. he had away of rounding the
head of the notes, which took time,
and writing a whole operate scene in
q fortnight does not allow of many
wasted minutes. Yet another instance
of quick slow writing was Alexandra
Dumas q mean the father). He wrote
lis novels on long half sheets, and he
was beside himself with happiness
when | brought him some large Eng
lish blottiug paper, in sheets bigger
than bis w writing paper, which be
had only to turn over to dry it at once.
He wrote a wonderfully handsome
hand, very long letters and seemingly
slowly, as if painting, yet one IL at was
covered after another in next to no
time. Donizetti wrote quickly, to
such an extent that when / saw him
write Tor the first time, L did not
think he was writing music. He had
a knack of covering the pages with
dots like a Telegraph strip, and when
he had done SO he added the tails and
lines. Rossini used to set to work at
10 o'clock in the morning, having got
up at nine. His toilette took half an
hour, his breakfast, house gossip, ETC.,
another half hour, then he took his
pen and wrote continuously. From
ten to twelve, while he wrote, num-
bers of people came: some with letters
of introduction, or old friends, and so
on. He was very glad to make the &C
quaintance of talented young artists,
he received them with immense kind
ness, giving them advice, and some-
times letters. But what he absolutely
hated was to be stared at as of the
sights OF Paris. Once his old friend
Caraffa came and told him There is
a Russian princess on the boulevard
who waited two hours yesterday to see
you pass: she wants so much to
make your acquaintance; what
shalt l tell her ?" .'Tell her." said
R~ossini, that 1 am excessively fond
of asparagus. She need only go TO
Potel ct Chabot and buy the finest
bunch she a get and bring it here.
1 shall then get up, and after she has
well inspected me in front, 1 shall
turn round and she a complete her
inspection by taking in the other view
too, and then she may CO." He was
rather fond, not only of asparagus, but
of anything good to eat, and whenever
he was sent some delicacy in that line,
he enjoyed it In advance by unpack-
ing it himself, and then he used osay
with delighted looks: VOLTA a quot
la gloire est bonnie" His visitors gone
or not gone at twelve, he put on his
wig, which until then lay quietly on
the table, his big bald head being COW
cred with a towel for the time being,
then he dressed, and by one o'clock
every day he WAS out he took the
first cab he met and asked him Est
ee que vost chevaux cont fatigues ?"
care your horses tired Ply When the
unfortunate driver said : mon, Mon
sieur," he never took him : he would
never trust himself to other but tired
horses, and during all his life never
had he entered a railway carriage.
Then he usually drove to the Palais
Royal, in the latter days to the Pas
sage de rOpera, and walked up and
down in the shaded galleries, meeting
q number of friends and hearing with
great interest all the newest gossip
about singers, composers and operatic
chat In general. 1 remember particu-
Iarly two instances when i was with
him, having met great composers, and
every time he said something worth
noting.
Oneeit was Gounod who had Just Civ
en- Faust" and Rossini stepped him
to say he had heard ofthe great success
the opera had met with. 80 maestro"