298 THE MUSICIAN ABOUT TOWN. 
the melodies themselves must ever remain fresh and green with all 
who appreciate a natural and forcibly direct expression ; for all his 
phrases, like that which has been defined to be the purest style ef 
literary composition, viz. “ proper words in proper places,” seem to 
be instinctively the very—indeed, the only—media through which 
the sentiments of the poet can be conveyed in musical sounds. 
With a genius which, upon numerous occasions, prompted him to 
anticipate more than a century of improvement in counterpoint, 
Purcell was imbued with a poetical temperament which at once dic- 
tated to him the full force of the meaning which he was to convey 
in melodious phraseology. Not to instance his well-known secular 
compositions, examples of eminent felicity in forcible and natural 
expression may be found scattered through his anthems and other 
sacred works. To the professor and amateur not already acquainted 
with them, we earnestly recommend the two anthems, ‘* Who hath 
believed our report ?” and “ My beloved spake,” the latter from the 
Solomon’s Song ; compositions totally opposite in character, and yet 
vieing with each other in profound learning and an anticipation of 
the modern resources in counterpoint, together with so easy and 
sweet a naturalness of character that it appears as if no different 
form of expressing the sentiments could be rationally contemplated. 
The great charm in Purcell’s music is, that not only is it no reflec- 
tion of any other school, but that its profoundly scientific construc- 
tion never clouds or obstructs the clear beauty and progress of his 
melody. He is a difficult author for the modern sciolist, because he 
is all expression, and never sacrifices the sentiment of a passage to 
an unmeaning roulade, or piece of vocal execution. His songs are 
the very antipodes of a modern singing-master’s studio. To con- 
elude, then, our notice of the performance of the Tempest at Covent 
Garden Theatre, the musical department would do credit to any 
establishment. The principals (Miss Horton more especially, as 
Ariel) sang the songs with characteristic simplicity ; and the cho- 
russes were so well drilled that even the boasted German company 
could scarcely have surpassed them. 
The Tempest has been followed by the production of Knowles’s 
« William Tell,’ with aselection from the best chorusses, and con- 
certed pieces from Rossini’s opera ; and the entire opera, under its 
original title of “ Guilleaume Tell,” was brought out at Drury 
Lane on the same evening (the 3rd instant). The manager of the 
latter theatre, with his usual disregard of accuracy, when it suits 
his purpose, publicly announced that this was the first time the mu- 
