New operas, like angels' visits, are few and far between.
If we meet with such a thing, it is sure to be Verdi's, for his arc the only new operas that have been produced in London for these many years. We hear now and then of a new piece having been brought out in Italy by some unknown aspirant to fame ; but even if it obtain a little local and temporary success, it never makes its way across the Alps, and we are left to batten on the " toujours perdrix" of Verdi. There has been a new opera (new' at least, in London,) at Her Majesty's Theatre this week, and it is the only novelty we are to expect on our Italian boards this season. It is Verdi's of course, and is called Luisa Miller, the name of the heroine of Schiller's tragedy, Kabale tend Liebe; the Italian opera being a lyrical version of the German play. The play is one of Schiller's early works; crude, immature, and unworthy of the poet's genius and fame. The subject is one of the mere commonplaces of romantic fiction, treated in the violent and extravagant style of The .Robbers,—a piece, by the wax, which is also the foundation of one of Verdi's operas. There is the old story of a country maiden of low degree, loved by a noble youth whom she thinks a simple ,rustic like herself; a lordly father who has high matrimonial views for his son; and a villain, who, to gain his own ends, betrays to the father his son's secret attachment, and makes the son believe that his mistress is faith- less. These ordinary ingredients are mixed up so as to cause a terrible explosion. The youth, maddened by love and fury, poisons his mistress and himself; and having, when too late, discovered the infamous plot of which they have been the victims, avenges himself and her by stab- bing the traitor with his dying hand, and falls dead upon her body. This is sufficiently tragic, but it belongs too much to what may be called physical tragedy. The prolongea agonies of the two lovers dying of poison belong to the horrible rather than the pathetic ; and there is something beyond the ordinary amount of operatic absurdity in the at- tempt to express those agonies by the tones and cadences of a long vocal duet.
As to the music, it is neither better nor worse than that of Iligoletto or the Trovatore, operas akin to Luisa Miller in their black and horrible subjects. Verdi's music has no character of its own. Whatever the subject or the situation, it is equally pretty, trite, and unmeaning, and depends for its effect upon the expression thrown into it by the genius of the performer. In this instance Verdi has the advantage of able in- terpreters in Piccolomini and Giuglini. Our young prima donna is a charming representative of the hapless village maiden. Her acting, in every look, tone, and gesture, is full of truth and nature ; and she throws (as in the Traviata) a certain grace even into the physical horrors of the catastrophe. She sings, too, with all her heart and all her strength ; and, indeed, exerts herself so earnestly in conquering passages of unmerciful pitch and difficulty that we seriously fear the in- jury such efforts may do her voice. Giuglini imparts much interest to the character of Rodolfo, and his high, flexible organ gives him great facilities in the execution of Verdi's music. Alboni appears in an insig- nificant part; but her singing of one air is the highest vocal treat which the opera affords. As a whole, the piece is well got up and promises to be successful.
At the Royal Italian Opera the most remarkable occurrence has been the appearance of Ronconi in two characters "far as the poles usunder " ; the Duke of Ferrara in Lucrezia Borgia, and Figaro in the Barbiere di Siviglia. Such is the versatility of this performer that, in the terrible Duke and the sprightly Barber he is equally at home and inimita- ble. Were his voice equal to his genius he would, in his own walk, be without arival on the opera stage.
The most remarkable Concerts of the week have been that of the Phile harmonic Society on Monday, of the Musical Union on Tuesday, and of the Vocal Union on Wednesday. The Philharmonic Concert was the fifth, and last but one, of the season. Its principal features were Beet- hoven's colossal symphony in C minor, the performances of the young Russian pianist Rubinstein, and the fine singing of Madame Clara No- velle. Of Rubinstein there is the same diversity of opinion that existed last year. He is of what is called the ultra-modern school, and his style resembles that of Liszt, whose pupil he is. His characteristics are won- derful force, brilliancy, and rapidity of execution, while ho is deficient in the cantabile, melodious manner of :playing for which the late John Cra- mer was so distinguished, and which has always been popular in Eng- land. Rubinstein, nevertheless, is a great artist; and his performance of Weber's Concert-stuck on Monday evening made a great impression on the experienced and discriminating habitues of these concerts. The Concert of the Musical Union brought into combination the great powers of Joachim and Wilhelmina Clause, whose performance (together with Blagrove and Piatti) of Mendelssohn's pianoforte quartet in B minor will not soon be forgotten by the audience. The Vocal Union is a choral society lately established, whose performances, under the direction of Mr. Benedict, take place in St. James's Hall. There is an amateur choir about three hundred strong, who are well trained by their able conduc- tor, and sing choruses and part-songs very effectively. We think, how- ever, that they confine themselves too exclusively to modern German pieces, to the neglect of the fine madrigals and glees of which England has so much reason to be proud.
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