13(5 



that iiiiifoim proprletj' of conduct, and 

 of all tliose virtues wliicli ougjlit to 

 cliaractciize Iicr sex, which form the 

 charm and happiness of domestic hfe, 

 and which in lier united gracclully with 

 that superiority of talent and l<nowledge 

 tliat commanded the admiiation of tiie 

 public. E. 



Account of JOHN PAESIELLO, 



mid of his vvoRKs; fi(y </(« chevalier 

 LE suEUK, siiperintendaut of music 

 to the KING, and member of the in- 

 stitute. 



John Paesiello was born at Ta- 

 rento, in the kingdom of Naples, on 

 the 9th ]\ray, 1740. He was par- 

 ticularly noticed in his youth by his 

 sovereign, and afterwards patronized by 

 the principal potentates of Europe, to 

 whom the friends of Ihc arts are under 

 great obligations for the support they 

 lent to this illnstrious composer, and 

 the chefs d'oeuvre they excited him to 

 produce. Pensioned by each sove- 

 reign, lie enjoyed an ample fortune. 

 Placed above want from the age of thir- 

 teen, and free from all domestic cares, 

 he was enabled to execute a great num- 

 ber of works. 



He composed twenty-seven grand 

 cperas, (ifty-one comic operas, eight in- 

 termezzos, and an infinite number of 

 cantatas, oratorios, masses, motets, 'J'e 

 Deums, &,c. ; seven sym[)honies for the 

 Emperor Joseph H.; several pieces for the 

 piano, for the Queen of Spain ; and many 

 theatrical pieces for the court of Russia. 

 It may be said, that Paesiello in- 

 vented his style particularly forthe comic 

 opera. His principal serions operas arc 

 the Olympiad, Pyrrhus, Elfreda, Dido, 

 and Proserpine. In the magical kind, 

 ■what can be more alfecting and tender 

 than his celebrated Duo in the Olym- 

 piad? Nothing can be more noble or 

 dignified than his Pyrrhus : several 

 fragments of his Proserpine are chefs- 

 d'oeuvre. The scene wiiere one of the 

 iiymphs of Ceres loses her speech at the 

 moment of divulging the secret of the 

 gods, or the Kape of Proserpine, is one 

 of the happiest traits of genius. 



In another style, what can be more 

 natural or touching than hi> Nina, more 

 picturesque than his Barber of Seville, 

 more simple or more na'ivi than his 

 Molinaia; or, to conclude, what melody 

 more rich than his Frascatana, and his 

 celebrated piece of King Theodore. 

 Before his lime, musicians had essayed 

 ilie grand i)ieces called Finaies, but bis 



Memoir of PaesieUa. [Sept. 1, 



predecessors had merely an idea of them ; 

 Paesiello was the first who executed it, 

 and with sucli a suj)eriority of talent 

 that he was regarded as the inventor. 

 The first time We heard, at the ancient 

 theatre of ftlonsieur, the famous Finale 

 of King Theodore, we could not avoid 

 exclaiming, " It is beautiful as the crea- 

 tion of the world." The expression is 

 a little hyperbolical undoubtedly, but it 

 does not tlie less denote the extraordi- 

 nary sensation, and the species of deli- 

 rium he created; and now, we will ven- 

 ture to say more boldly, that, if there be 

 any thing absolntely perfect in music ; 

 if there be any chefs d'ceuvre which dis- 

 arm criticism itself, we would define it 

 to be this morceau, from the surprising 

 efiect it produced ; and that, too, by the 

 most astonishing simplicity, where no 

 harmonic efiect is suspected, and iu 

 which the sublimity appears inversely 

 as the means employed to produce it. 



Fertile in invention, correct in his 

 designs, happy in the choice of his 

 chords, judicious in his accompaniments 

 and images, varied in his melodious 

 turns, and contrasted in his details, yet 

 always keeping in view the strictest 

 nnity; this great master observes the 

 strictest propriety, and never commits 

 an excess. Exact without servility, 

 natural without negligence, at once full 

 of art and simplicity he is always diver- 

 sified, and always the same. His the- 

 atrical Music is an enchantress who 

 leads our hearts as she pleases ; and it 

 would be as impossible to resist the im- 

 pulse created by his melody, as it would 

 be not to experience the involuntary im- 

 pressions made on us by the sight of a 

 beloved object. 



By what secret is it, said I one day 

 to Paesiello, do you produce this mu- 

 sical ascendant over us, and this de- 

 spairing simplicity? Ah! amico, Dio 

 lo sa, che fa ttitto de niente : — " Ah ! my 

 friend, God knows, who created all out 

 of notliing;" — he added. Inhearingthese 

 pieces, the auditor only experiences the 

 delirium that created them. 



Paesiello not only shewed himself su- 

 perior in the serious and comic opera, 

 but also in sacred music. He has left 

 in the library of the King's chapel, a 

 collection of tw'ent3'-six masses, of which 

 several are master-pieces ; amongst them 

 may be accounted his mass of the Pas- 

 sion of Christmas, and his Motet Judi- 

 cubit in Nationilms. In the latter, the 

 character of his musical picture is strong, 

 and the colouring sombre and tragic — 

 r effetto 



