DER FREISCHOTZ.
EVERY time we hear this opera, every time we sit down to a perusal of it, we are more and more struck with the extraordinary genius and character of its author. WEBER was, in private society, of modest, unobtrusive habits, and of simple manners. You would not guess that there lurked beneath this guise, a world of creative fancy stretching beyond that of his fellows—a boldness, an originality, a vigour, that distanced all that music was supposed to be capable of reaching. He is tender, he is sublime, he is graceful, he is terrible—he melts the heart, he inflames or appals it, with a power which seems natural and familiar to him. Take, for instance, the scena " Through the forest;" mark the tender and graceful melody of the first strain—suddenly the whole feeling of delight and repose is interrupted, the spell of the dtemon is upon you, and the senses are steeped in all the horror of its influence —he vanishes, and you breathe again ; all is calm, serene, and gladden- ing—he returns, and the magic power of the master again subdues and appals you. His lightnings lurk beneath the placid summer cloud. Every chord of human feeling is made to respond to his touch, and to vibrate at his will. He stamps his impress on the scenes he would describe, and kindles the imagination of the hearer to clothe them with hues as vivid as those which presented themselves to his own.
It has often suggested itself to our thoughts, whether WEBER's mind was not tinged with the superstitions of his.country. Such a supposi- tion would in no way derogate from the splendour of his genius. Minds of the greatest power and vigour have sometimes bent before the mys- terious spell of supernatural agency. It was thus with our great mo- ralist, Dr. JOHNSON. But be this as it may, with respect to WEBER, he is pre-eminently the musician of the unseen world. He rises, not by effbit or discipline, but by a sort of instinct, to the delineation of what is terrible and dasmoniacal. He enters the world of spirits with a fearless tread, as if he felt conscious of th power to subdue them, and to make their prison-house the temple of his genius.
" Udite, udite, o voi, che de la stele
Precipitar gii i folgori tonanti !
Si voi che le tempeste e le procelle Moveteeabitator de l' aria erranti;
Come vdi, cae a P inique anime felle
Ministri sete de gli eterni pianti: Cittadint d' Averno, or qui v' invoco, E te, signor de' regni empj del foco "
Great, however, as was WEBER'S power over this single depart- ment of his art, it was alike extended to every branch of it. His ima- gination revelled equally in the regions of nature in its fairest and mildest garb, as in those of the wildest fancy. It is a gift or exercise of genius to impress itself on whatever it touches ; and to find or frame in sounds, motions, and material forms, correspondences and harmonies with its own fervid thoughts and feelings. Let him speak for himself on this subject.
"Nature operates upon me in a peculiar manner. That quality of the mind in which all the other faculties concentrate—call it talent, vocation, genius, what you will—restricts within its magic circle all our powers of vision. Not only to our physical, but also to our mental eye, is its particular horizon as- signed. Both may be varied by change of position ; and well is it for the artist, if, in his progress forward, he can enlarge it ; for to go out of it is im- possible. Nay, more—all objects assume the peculiar colouring of the artist's mind, and imperceptibly partake of the characteristic tone of his life and sen- sations. At least, such is the fact in my case : with me, every thing is asso- ciated with musical forms, and becomes modified accordingly.
"The composer who draws his materials from his instrument, is little else than a child of distress ; or, at all events, is on the high road to poverty of spirit, and its inseparable companions, vulgarity and commonplace. Yes, even these hands, these cursed pianoforte fingers, which by eternal hammer- ing and practising assume, at least, a kind of independency and will of their own—even these become the tyrants and taskmasters of the creative facul- ties. They invent nothing new; nay, what is worse, they are ever ready to war with whatever is not old. Cunning and roguish, like true handicrafts- men, they patch up, from musty antiquated materials, forms of tone that have almost the look of new figures ; and these, as they have something taking in their sound, bribe the ear, which sits as judge, and secure a favour- able reception.
"Flow very differently does he create, whose inward ear is the judge of what is created, and which, in the very act of its invention, is submitted to the ordeal of criticism. This mental ear receives the forms of tone, and assigns them their relative value. Herein lies that divine secret, which is hnown only to the initiated, and remains incomprehensible to the many."
We would willingly pursue this interesting subject further, but our limits forbid; and we must hasten to a consideration Of that which has oc- casioned these remarks. Der Freischiitz has, at length, been presented entire to the notice of the Enelish public. In a former number of the SPECTATOR we briefly detailed the history of its first appearance. The reasons which operated to delay it in the first instance, led also to the adoption of some alterations which, it was supposed, were neces- sary to propitiate the public opinion in its favour. These were varied according to the taste of its different adapters and arrangers. Of late it has been cut down to the mere outline and shadow of its real pro- portions. These have now been exhibited in all their native beauty and grandeur; and it was fittingthat the same place in which the ex- periment was first made, should recognize its full and complete success.
* See the very interesting posthumous work of WunEn, Tonkunstler's Lehen, trans- lated and published in the Harmon icon for last January and following numbers. The performance on Wednesday evening was, on the whole, gond. Perhaps Afar (our Rodolph) and Agathe (our Agnes) were nevelt. personated with such effect as by BRAHAM and Miss PATON ; ands, there is no question but the splendour of their singing mainly contri- buted to the favourable impression which the opera originally made. But next to BRAHAM, SAPIO is the best Rudolph we have heard: He felt his character, and developed it with considerable power. Seldom: have we been better pleased with "Through the forest." Pini.mrs's smooth and level style does not assort with the airs of Caspar. Sciain is the only performer who filled up the outline of this character. Instead of old servants and friends of Zamiel, our Caspars have all seemed as if they were only cap acquaintance, and half ashamed of his company. Hence all the native brutality which belongs to the part has been carefully smoothed and softened down, and the English Caspar is a -gentleman who may be safely produced in respectable society. Miss BETTS sang the notes of her character with great cor- rectness; and there, we imagine, she conceives her duty to end. It is surprising that she does not perceive the effect which clear and dis- tinct enunciation gives to Mrs. KEELEY'S singing. The finale, now for the first time performed entire, might be rendered more effective. The hermit's part was a miserable burlesque ; and Caspar's delibe- rately walking to the front trap, after he has been shot, is a piece of gratuitous absurdity. The house was crowded.
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