What infinuated into him this Notion, was the Words he gives us, which imply no more but that Harmony of Speaking, which we have been endeavouring to recommend to the Study of our prefent Players. But if this were really true, (whereas it is directly contrary to Truth) yet I cannot imagine, that any Authority can juftifie that, which is abfurd in it felf. But because the Authority of a Man, that is receiv'd in the World, and allow'd to be a Man of a fine Tafte, and admirable Senfe, may be more prevalent with moft Pretenders to Wit, than Reason it felf, I fhall here transcribe what Monfieur St. Evremont has deliver'd to the Public on this Head, both in regard of his Reputation, and for the Juftness of his Reafoning, which is the best Confirmation of an Authority; and tho what he fays be on the French Opera's, it will hold ftronger against the Italian. He writes to the late Duke of Buckingham in the following man

ner:

"I have long, my Lord, had a Mind to give you my Thoughts, and deliver my Sentiσε ments on the Difference betwixt the Italian and French way of Singing.

"The Difcourfe we had of it at the Dutchefs " of Mazarine's has rather added to, than fa"tisfy'd that Defire, which I will now wholly

gratify, by these few Thoughts I now fend σε you upon it. I fhall therefore begin with a"vowing freely to you, that I am no Admirer

of thofe mufical Plays or Tragedies, which

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"we fee in our Time; I own indeed, that "their Magnificence gives me fome Pleasure, "that their Machines have fometimes fomething be

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furprizing, the Mufic in fome Places may “ charming, and the whole together feems won"derful; but then you must grant me on the "other hand, that these Wonders are extremeແ ly tedious, for where the Mind has fo very "little to do, the Senfes, after the first Plea "fure, which the fhort-liv'd Surprize affords, "muft languish and die. The Eyes grow wea ry of being continually fixt upon the glaring Objects. In the Beginning of the Conforts, "the Audience obferve the Juftness of the Con cords, and let none of the Varieties escape "them, that join in the making up the Sweet"ness of the Harmony; foon after the Inftru"ments ftun us, and the Mufic seems no more to "the Ears, but a confus'd and undistinguishable "Sound. But who can fupport the dull Tedi"oufnefs of the Recitativo, which has neither "the Charm of Song, nor the agreeable Force "of good Speaking? The Soul tir'd out with 66 a long Attention to that, in which it can find nothing affecting, retires into it self to find "fome fecret Emotion, by which it may be touch'd; and the Mind, having in vain expected Impreffions from without, has Recourfe "to empty Mufings, or grows diffatisfy'd with "it felf for being fo ufelefs to its own Satisfa"ction. In a Word, the Fatigue is fo great "and fo univerfal, that we only think how to M

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get

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get out; and all the Pleafure the tir'd Spe"ctator can propose to himself, is the Hopes of a speedy End to the Show.

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ce

"The Reason why generally I foon grow weary at an Opera, is, That I never yet faw 66 any OPERA, which did not appear to me moft de. fpicable, both in the † Difpofition of the Subject, "and in the Verfes. Now 'tis in vain to charm the Ear, and flatter the Eye, if the Mind remain unfatisfy'd, my Soul being in better Intelligence "with my Mind, than with my Senfes, struggles against the Impreffions it might receive, or at leaft fails in giving an agreeable Confent to them, without which e'en the most delightful Objects can never afford me any great Portion of Pleasure.

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06

"'Tis true, a Foolery fet off, and bautgout " with Mufic, Dances, Machines, and Decorations, is a pompous and magnificent Foolery, "but yet it is ftill but a FOOLERY: 'Tis an ugly Ground to beautiful Ornament, through "which I yet difcover the Ground with a great "deal of Diffatisfaction.

σε

"There is another thing in Opera's fo contrary to Nature, that it always fhocks my I"magination, and that is, the finging the whole from one End to the other, as if the Perfons

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* This Reason is worthy our Wits Confideration, who can value themfelves on their Understanding, yet bear Nonfenfe in Mufic for four Hours together, nay, and extol it too.

This is fpoken of the French Opera's of Quinaut, which as far excel ali the Italian Opera's, in Difpofition and Verfe, as Dryden does Quarles.

" had

163 "bad ridiculously confpir'd to treat in Mufic both "of the most common and most important Affairs "of buman Life. Can any Man perfuade his

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Imagination, that a Mafter calls his Servant,

or fends him of an Errand finging? That one "Friend communicates a Secret to another finging? That Politicians deliberate in Coun"cil finging? That Orders in Time of Battle are given finging? And that Men are melodioufly kill'd with Sword, Pike or Musket? This "is to lofe the very Life and Soul of Repre

fentation, which no Man of Senfe doubts, "but is preferable to Harmony. For Harmo66 ny ought to be no more, than a bare Atten"dant on Poetry; and the great Masters of the ડ Stage have chose to add it, not as effential or "neceffary, but as pleafing, after they have regulated all that relates to the Subject and Dif❝ course.

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"In the mean time, by these means the Idea "of the Master of Musick or Composer takes "Place of the Heroe of the Opera, and juftles "him quite out of our Thoughts. Loüigi, "Cavallo and Cefti are reprefented to our Ima

gination; for the Mind being unable to apprehend or conceive a finging Hero, comes di→ "rectly on him, who made the Mufic; nor can any one deny, but that Baptifte in the Opera's "represented in the Palace Royal is a thousand "times more thought on, than Thefeus or "Cadmus

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"I pretend not, by what I have faid, to ex«clude all manner of Singing from the Stage, " for it must be allow'd, that there are fome "things there which ought to be fung, and o"thers, which may be fung without finning against Probability, Decency and Reason. Vows, Prayers, Praises, Sacrifices, and generally all, "that relates to the Service of the Gods, are fung in all Nations, and in all Times; ten"der and mournful Paffions exprefs themselves "naturally enough by a kind of Tone; the Expreffion of Love in its Birth, the Irrefolu"tion and Doubts of a Soul tofs'd by the feve"ral Emotions of that Paffion, are the Subject " for Stanzas, or Lyric Poefy, and fo is that "for Mufic. Every Man knows, that the Greeks "introduc'd the Chorus on their Stage, and I'm " of Opinion, that we have the fame Reason to "follow their Example on ours.

"The Business of the Drama, in my Opinion, "ought to be diftributed in this manner. "Whatever relates to Converfation, to the In"trigues and Affairs, to Counfel and Action, is only proper in the Mouth of the Actor, but

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highly ridiculous in that of a Singer. The "Greeks made noble Tragedies, in which fome"thing was fung; the Italians and French make thofe, which are deteftable, in which every "thing is fung!

"Would you know what an Opera really " is? I'll tell you, It is a very ODD

← MEDLEY of POETRY and Music, in which

"the