At the Covent Garden Opera, the new performances have been,
Norma added to the repertoire of the season, in a style never surpassed; and the assumption of Rosina by Mademoiselle Alboni, in order that the Barbiere di Siviglia might not be stopped by the illness of Madame Persiani. The music of Rosina is quite suited to Alboni's voice, having been originally composed for a mezzo soprano; but it lies so much in the upper part of the scale, that it has been generally (in this country uniformly, as far as we can remember) sung by soprano voices. Grisi and Persiani have sung the principal air, " Una voco poco fb.," a minor third above the origi- nal key, but without making any other alterations in the pitch. Alboni restored the original key, with excellent effect; ascending at the same time, in a series of bold and novel fioriture, into the highest regions of the soprano scale. In the singing-lesson she introduced a trashy mezzo soprano air by Pacini, which Pasta was in the habit of hacking about at every concert during her sojourn here. It allowed Mademoiselle Alboni the exhibition of a singularly brilliant shake, and a rather os- tentatious employment of her deepest tones; but it was not en- cored, as the bravura display in the above scene usually is Though Alboni's performance was very satisfactory in a vocal sense, it was by no means so as a representation of the character,—after all, the princi- pal point, even on the musical stage. Alboni is not fitted, either by person er manners, to personate the lively and high-spirited, yet refined aud sen- sitive heroine of this opera; and, admiring her as we do, we regretted her appearance in a part so much out of her line.
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