331ugir.
The only operatic occurrence of the week has been the first appearance this season of Mademoiselle Picecolomini at Her Majesty's Theatre on Tuesday, in one of her best and most favourite characters, Norina in Don Pasquale. The captivating little prima donna maintains her ground in public favour. She was welcomed with undiminished warmth,— acted the part with all her usual archness and vivacity, and sang Doni- zetti's light and pretty music with great brilliancy and sweetness. It seems that she will continue to be, what she has been, the Thalia of the opera, uneclipsed even by the new Melpomene of the musical stage, the grand and tragic Titiens.
The New Philharmonic Society has been broken up ; and in its stead we have " New Philharmonic Concerts " undertaken by Dr. Wylde, the founder of the defunct Society, on his own individual account. The first of these concerts was given on Monday evening at the new St. James's Hall. It was on the -whole an excellent entertainment ; inclu- ding Beethoven's colossal symphony in C minor, his concerto in E flat played by our favourite pianist Miss Arabella Goddard, the Overture to _Egmont, several vocal pieces selected from the works of the same great composer ; and some miscellaneous pieces of a lighter character. The hall was well filled, and the performances gave great satisfaction to the audience.
Handers Sampson was performed at St. Martin's Hall on Wednesday evening, under the direction of Mr, Thillsh. This oratorio, in many respects one of the greatest works of the mighty master, has from his own day to ours, been one of the least popular ; a circumstance which has arisen from the demerits of the poem. Handel, ignorant of Eng- lish literature, employed some of the Grub Street hacks of the day to do his literary jobs, and thus greatly injured many of his works. This oratorio is taken from the Samson Agonistes of Milton ; the great poet's grandeur and beauty being debased by the admixture of a load of fustian and doggrel ; and the consequence has been that Handers grandest conceptions have been mixed with music unworthy of his genius and his fame. In the performance of Wednesday, Mr. Hullah adopted the judicious expedient of cutting out the weaker portions of the work ; and the result was, that Handers magnificent choruses and beautiful airs shone with all the greater lustre. Mr. Hullah, by thus lopping off the excrescences of one of Handers greatest works, has done the fullest jus- tice to his immortal memory.
The celebrated violinist, Joachim, is just arrived in London after an absence of several years, and is to make his first appearance at the Philharmonic concert on Monday next, when he will perform Beethoven's great violin concerto, and Tartini's famous sonata, which according to the composer's own account, was played to him, in a dream, by the Devil, and has been accordingly called the " Sonata del Diavolo."
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