Combination Italian Opera: Guillaume Tell

“A performance of ‘William Tell’ such as that given last night at the Academy of Music would have made the reputation of any company. Coming as it did after the remarkable interpretations of ‘Trovatore,’ ‘Rigoletto,’ ‘The Huguenots,’ and ‘Lucrezia,’ it formed the bright crown of the most brilliant series of representations our present opera house has ever witnessed, and it will long be remembered as a magnificent finale to a season of unusual splendor. The praise which we have so often given the manager for the thoroughness of his preparations, the completeness of his appointments, and the spirit and vigor of all that he does was better deserved on this occasion that ever before. The chorus was nearly doubled. The stage was always well set, and sometimes picturesque. The action was uniformly good, and the multitude of minor parts in the opera were distributed to competent representatives. With a good orchestra, led by Mr. Neuendorf, and three of the best artists in the world in the principal roles, ‘William Tell’ last night was something to kindle the enthusiasm of the coldest critic. The chief point of interest was of course the Arnoldo of Mr. Wachtel. No part in which he has yet appeared is perhaps so perfectly well suited to his extraordinary powers. He first roused his audience by the famous duo with Tell in the First Act, but the effect of this number was surpassed by the great trio which certainly has never before been so well given in this city. It was something more than an exhibition of mere power and range of voice, for there was passion and rare sweetness in his singing, and withal such apparent ease that one scarcely realized what a musical feat the tenor was performing until it was all over. When ‘William Tell’ was last revived in New-York in Nov., 1869, Le Franc made an extraordinary sensation in this trio, but he made it with evident effort and almost with pain. Wachtel unquestionably here surpasses the French tenor in every particular—in voice, in expression, and in artistic polish—until it is needless to say that with Mr. Santley as Tell and Mr. Aynsley Cook as Walter, he had the cooperation of a baritone and bass far superior to anything Le Franc could command. The duo between Arnoldo and Matilda was a charming performance in a totally different vein, and the beautiful aria of the Fourth Act, ‘O muto asil,’ was given successfully, though not so well as the more vigorous numbers. Of Mr. Santley’s ‘William Tell’ we cannot speak too highly. The noble artist had here a noble part. Just [tilted?] to his taste and powers, and he played it to perfection, winning round after round of honest applause, and keeping the sympathies of the whole house from the opening scene to the close. Matilda is rather a subordinate character, but when Madame Parepa Rosa undertakes it, it becomes one of the features of the evening. Nothing could have been more thoroughly charming than her singing of the one aria, ‘Selve opaca.’ That inimitable grace and purity of vocalization, that wonderful perfection of voice, that exquisite taste for which she is eminent, were here displayed in all their glory. She was enthusiastically recalled and obliged to repeat the song. In the duet she showed the same rare qualities. We have no hope of hearing anything equally good until she comes back from Europe.

The other parts in the opera were, as we said before, well, or at least, satisfactorily filled. Mr. Tom Karl did full justice to the role of the Fisherman; Miss Doria was Jemmy; Mr. Ryse made a sepulchral Melchthal; and Mr. Hall was a sufficiently villainous and agreeable Gessler. The choruses were almost with exception correct and spirited.”

“A respectable, we wish we could conscientiously say, a great performance of ‘William Tell’ was heard last night at the Academy. Yet a respectable performance of Rossini’s masterpiece is in one sense great, and we certainly have never heard such an one here before. When the opera was sung last season in the same walls, the singular effect produced by Lefranc in Arnoldo gave interest to a recital otherwise offensively ragged and paltry. The great trio in the second act was respectably sung, and the tenor named carried his great songs of love and war with much power and feeling. Most of the rest of the work was, however, beneath criticism, and the spectacular parts were even worse than the choruses. It should be said at once that the anxious effort that has characterized the whole of Mr. Rosa’s management was not wanting in the preparation of ‘William Tell.’ With a really first-rate baritone, tenor and soprano, inferior bass may perhaps be forgiven, and there were last night some features of peculiar and even unexpected excellence. Those, for example, who have been accustomed to hear the pretty part of the Fisherman butchered were agreeably surprised to find so good a tenor as Mr. Tom Karl singing the part. Mr. Karl seemed a trifle hoarse, but sang the charming aria at the beginning firmly and sweetly. The following quartet, sung by Tell, (Mr. Santley,) Arnoldo, (Mr. Wachtel,) Jemmy, (Miss Doria,) and Hedwig, (Mrs. Schofield,) was evenly rendered, and the subsequent sextet was better. Mr. Wachtel went through the two arias which typify the characteristic struggle of Arnoldo’s mind with his usual force, style and precision. He did not, however, succeed in warming up his public. The ‘Ah Mathilde,’ was less passionate than that of Lefranc, but the succeeding air was more vigorous and martial. To our surprise, the splendid duet between Tell and Arnoldo, that comes after evoked no enthusiasm, although powerfully rendered, and the concluding chorus of the first act fell rather flatly. Mme. Parepa-Rosa came to the rescue in her customary finished style, and sang the beautiful air opening act second so admirably as to win the first encore of the evening. The tenor and soprano duet succeeding was attacked by the lady and Mr. Wachtel with fire and delicacy, and was warmly applauded. Mr. Wachtel, Mr. Cook and Mr. Santley then essayed the terrific trio, so often omitted, but made a feature of on previous representations. We cannot assert that the basso was altogether equal to the occasion, but the baritone, on whom so much depends, was so much finer than has been listened to here in the number before that the effect was capital. Here again, however, the recollection of Lefranc worked slightly to Mr. Wachtel’s disadvantage. There is not the least question about the latter’s superiority, taken as a whole, in Arnoldo; but the French singer was the better in certain isolated passages. Great pains were taken to do justice to the critical ‘Mustering of the Cantons,’ and the result was passably smooth. The intention of the composer is notwithstanding so grand, that defect of execution is always in this scene painfully conspicuous, and what was done last night was far from perfect. Still, we must go back to the old story, and consider the performance in its relative rather than in its positive aspects. It was far in advance of what New-York has been favored with before, and Mr. Rosa deserves full credit for doing his best with the available material.

The orchestra of the occasion, barring the lack of strings, was well up to its duty under the baton of Mr. Neuendorff, and the overture was given with tolerable smartness and precision. In the final acts the concerted music was treated with rather more fervor and rather less exactness than at first, and the principals sang with greater enthusiasm. At the close of act third the latter were summoned before the curtain—an event that had not occurred before—and the audience, which had before been coldly critical, thenceforward became more demonstrative. In Duprez’s famous battle-horse in the fourth act, wherein ‘Suivez Moi’ becomes ‘Ah, non mi abbandonar,’ Mr. Wachtel created much more sensation than his predecessor, and altogether this act surpassed former local interpretations of it. The house, it is hardly necessary to say, was crowded to excess, and it is perhaps a pity that the termination of the season will render a repetition of ‘William Tell,’ with this company, impossible. With all due allowance for shortcomings, the performance of last night has certainly not been equaled here before.”

“The presentation of ‘William Tell’ last night at the Academy was one of the greatest triumphs achieved by the present management. The difficulties to be overcome were of no ordinary nature, but such as might dishearten the most energetic and enthusiastic impresario, it is, therefore, much to the credit of Carl Rosa that he undertook the responsibility of presenting to the New York public the great opera, which by many is considered to be the masterpiece of Rossini, in a manner never before witnessed in New York, and succeeded so well that the most exacting critics must acknowledge that he has surpassed their expectations. The chief difficulty in the way of an effective rendering of ‘William Tell’ is the character of the music. The score was written in a style adequate to the grandeur and impressiveness of its theme, and the constant introduction of grand choruses and concerted pieces of great elaborateness has been the result. Although the rôles offer excellent scope to the artist the main interest of the opera cannot be said to centre in the performance of individual actors, we seek it rather in the general effects than in isolated efforts. The organization of the chorus and orchestra, therefore, are matters of very great importance which cannot be neglected or tended to superficially in the case of ‘William Tell.’ Knowing this, we confess we went to the Academy last night not at all expecting to find the completeness which marked the performance. We came away disappointed, but agreeably so. The cast was such as has been rarely equaled, even in the European capitals, and the choruses, and orchestra were remarkably satisfactory. The performance last night was superior to many representations that we have seen in Covent Garden, London, not alone in the higher but even in the inferior rôles, and certainly Carl Rosa deserves the fullest recognition for his endeavors to make opera in America worthy of the name—not the lame and imperfect thing it had been made by managers whose only aim was to squeeze as much as possible out of the American public, and give as little as possible in return. We do not mean to say that no fault could be found with the performance, but we have never seen one so perfect as to please everybody, or, to be absolutely beyond the reach of adverse criticism. But, taking the excellencies and the blemishes into full account, we pronounce the performance last night highly creditable to the management. The ladies’ rôles are uninteresting and unimportant. Madame Parepa-Rosa sang the part of Matilda with much sweetness and brilliancy, imparting to it an importance that does not naturally belong to it. She sang the romanza ‘Selva Opaca’ with great feeling, displaying finished vocalization of the highest order. Her voice was in good order, and the notes produced were clear, pure and flexible in a remarkable degree. The honors of the evening were undoubtedly due to Santley, whose personation of William Tell was one of the most finished performances we have seen before him. It might have been improved, perhaps, by the addition of a little more energy, but nothing could have added to the sweetness and nobleness of the conception. Santley sang well all through, but in the scene with his son the tenderness that marked his rendering of the aria, ‘Ti Benedico,’ was perfectly charming. Wachtel sang well, but his rendering of the rôle of Arnold was disappointing. At certain moments he was powerful and brilliant. Few tenors could sing the delightful aria, ‘Ah muto asil,’ with the same telling effect that he did, and the manner in which he executed the many difficult passages was masterly and beyond all praise. One of the most artistically rendered and effective of the concerted pieces was the trio in the fourth act by Matilde, Edwige and Jemmy, the two last roles being filled by Mrs. Schofield and Miss Doria. The way in which the choruses were given was one of the happiest features of the representation. For the most part the chorus sang in unison, and kept with the orchestra, though there were several times when hitches occurred. The conspiratorial scene and chorus was somber, but was wanting in earnestness and intensity. It did not impress itself as it ought to do, although the finale, ‘Guriam,’ was well and effectively given with much force and dramatic expressiveness.”

“In ‘William Tell’ the Parepa Rosa opera troupe have given us one of the finest evidences of their wide scope and great ability. A better performance of this massive work has not been heard here since the days of Badiali or of Gassier, both of whom were splendid representatives of the central character of Tell. Last night, however, the interest centered in the part of Arnoldo, which was acted and sung by Wachtel in the most superb style. Lefranc, a few seasons ago, made a great impression in this part, and in the famous trio certainly aroused a greater enthusiasm than did Wachtel; but the latter was far more even in his singing, and made points which Lefranc never thought of. In the duet with Matilde, Wachtel sang in a style in which every merit seemed happily blended. He was tender, passionate and accurate at once, while his matchless voice vindicated thoroughly by its pathos, its power, and at times its ravishing sweetness, all the glowing words which have been spoken in its praise. In the trio he was magnificently effective, though the audience failed to encore this marvelous composition. In the great aria of the last act he flung out several high Cs, but otherwise his rendering of this brilliant passage has been surpassed here.

The Tell of Mr. Santley was dignified and quiet, and after the invocation in behalf of his son the applause was most liberal. Mr. Santley, however, does not in this part seem to fill the stage as some of his Italian predecessors did. Madame Parepa-Rosa, on the other hand, made much more out of the part of Matilde than most artists have done. She was encored in the O Selva opaca, one of the most majestic and massive compositions ever written for a single voice; and in the succeeding duet was also admirable. In the last act the trio for Matilde, Hedwig and Jemmy, which is never sung here, was restored. It is in the pure Rossinian style, one voice starting the theme, and the others taking it up in turn. Similar examples may be found in ‘Semiramide,’ in the ‘Gazza Ladra,’ and in others of Rossini’s operas. The restored trio was well sung last night by Madame Rosa, Miss Doria and Mrs. Schofield, and was listened to with marked attention.

The minor characters in this popular and populous opera were generally well taken. Mr. Karl sang the fisher’s song in the first act very acceptably. Mr. Hall’s Gessler was as good as the part allowed. Mr. Cook, a baritone, took the part of Walter, which was written for a basso, and therefore is not within the best part of his vocal range.

‘William Tell’ is a very long opera, but the audience remained till the close, and left with the impression that they had seen Rossini’s master work sung with fewer mutilations and in a far better style than is usual in this city.”

“At the Academy of Music was heard on Wednesday evening the finest representation of Rossini’s masterwork that has ever, to our remembrance, been given within its walls. Other performances have been better in parts—for instance, when our large German societies have made part of the chorus, to give due effect to the splendid choral portions of the second act—but taken as a whole the representation was of unsurpassed excellence. And to this result Wachtel contributed in the highest degree, quite exceeding, in sustained power and wealth of voice, all his former efforts.

It is not too much to say that the honors of the evening belong chiefly to him, and that in no part that he has assumed has he shown such conspicuous merit or found music so admirably fitted to his peculiar powers.

The music of the tenor role calls for the exercise of the highest capacities of a singer. Most of it lies very high. It is very dramatic and cannot be given with any reservation, but must be sung out fully and broadly. No delicate sotto voce singing will suffice. A great deal of it is concerted music, and very difficult at that.

Wachtel’s marvellous power carried him bravely through all these difficulties, and made it, as we have said, an occasion of genuine triumph for him. The marvel is that any voice can stand the severe strain that he puts upon it night after night. He never seems to spare himself or to reserve or nurse his power.

Mr. Santley, on the other hand, sings so simply, quietly, and easily that what he does seems not to call greatly upon his capabilities. Though he seldom astonishes, he never fails to delight his audience. His Tell, it is, perhaps, needless to say, was an almost faultless piece of vocalism. The female rôles in this opera are not of great prominence. Madame Parepa-Rosa, however, sang the music of Mathilde with even and artistic excellence and much sentiment.

All the subordinent rôles were well cast. Mr. Aynslie Cook always commends himself to the favor of his audience both by the richness and pleasing quality of his voice, and by his admirable method. In the character of Walter he added materially to the success that attended representation, singing admirably throughout, especially in the famous trio, which was superbly sung.

It is a pity that the season is so soon to close, for such representations of an opera are too rare.”

“The second and last performance of this noble opera by the Parepa-Rosa troupe was in some respects even better than the first. Wachtel was absolutely sublime. In the famous trio the wondrous tones of his matchless voice seem to touch the very depth of passionate despair. But the great hit of the evening was the duet in the second act with the soprano—that exquisite duet with its trembling, palpitating accompaniment of violins, its rich voluptuous thirds, its bewildering wealth of gorgeous melody. Never has this number received here such a superb interpretation as it did last night. Both Wachtel and Parepa appeared at their very best, and the elaborate cadenza at the close of the duet was followed by loud and persistent applause, which was far more than equivalent to an encore. 

In the other acts there was much to commend. Amateurs were again charmed with the restored trio of the last act, sung by Madame Rosa, Miss Doria and Miss Schofield; and the repeated scenes of enthusiasm during the evening testified to the constant delight of the immense audience. There were, however, several important omissions of no ordinary importance, especially the tenor solo of the last act. “

“The attendance last night at the Academy seemed to suffer no diminution from the sultry heat, which rendered theatre-going somewhat uninviting. All parts of the house were well filled with an audience that was inclined to be quiet, if not critical. It must be confessed that the music of Rossini’s masterpiece is somewhat caviare to the mass of opera goers, and there were traces of weariness among the assistants, as well as a noticeable thinning of the house towards the close of the third act. Nor was the taste of the audience altogether to blame in the matter; for there was not by any means the same spirit or dash in the performance that marked its presentation on Wednesday night. The company were then on their mettle and did much better than last night. We cannot understand why this should be so. There was a general expectation that the performance would run more smoothly than the first, but it did not happen so. There was no change in the cast. Wachtel appeared as Arnold, Santley as William Tell, Tom Karl as the Fisherman, Cook as Walter and Hall as Gesler. A considerable part of the score is usually omitted, but last night the finale of the third act and the first two scenes of the fourth act were left out wholesale—cutting off ‘O, muto asil,’ one of Wachtel’s best and most trying songs. Owing to the skipping process so freely indulged in the ensemble of the opera was seriously injured, and a certain lameness communicated to the performance that created a very disagreeable impression. It is much to be regretted that this opera, which had brought so much credit to the management, should have been marred on its final presentation. Wachtel’s singing was marked by his usual defect—want of tenderness and feeling—though the rugged energy of his style and the metallic clearness and purity of his high notes secured him the applause of an audience ever more ready to recognize and applaud robusto effort than careful and cultured interpretations. The duet in the second act with Matilde was entirely wanting in expression and tenderness. He had resolved to concentrate himself on this point—perform a tour de force, and so acquit himself towards the public—and he did it. The duet was brilliant enough until the allegro passages, when there was some unevenness, the singers not being well together; but Wachtel covered up all his defects by one of those marvelous efforts which never fail to bring down the house. It is, perhaps, useless to blame an artist for sacrificing a rôle to make a sensation of this sort; but, since the people pay him for it, and applaud him to the [illegible], he can plead strong justification. In the trio in the same act he sang with telling force; but the trio was very poorly given, Cook found himself out of his depth, and sometimes out of his time as well, and Santley preferred to sing in such a quiet and subdued manner that he could scarcely be heard. Probably it was the best thing to do under the circumstances. Neither Santley nor Mme. Parepa-Rosa were [sic] in very good voice, but as the opera proceeded both seemed to recover themselves. Parepa-Rosa sang the ‘Selva Opaca’ with much sweetness, but there was not the same flexibility in her voice as on Wednesday last. However, she secured an encore, and did better on the second singing. Tom Karl sang the pleasing baracola ‘Il piccol legno ascendi’ with much sweetness and artistic finish. The choruses were well executed, but they are so grand and impressive that it would require a very much stronger company than we are likely to see at the Academy for some years to give them with full effect.”

“The performance of ‘William Tell’ on Friday was the last regular evening representation of a season unparalleled for both pecuniary and artistic success. The night was hot; the Academy was uncomfortably crowded; and the score was cut rather liberally but not unwisely. Yet the performance on the whole was even better than it was on Wednesday; Wachtel was superb; Madame Rosa looked magnificent and sang like an angel; Mr. Santley delighted all good judges; and Miss Doria, Mr. Tom Karl, Mr. Cook, Mr. Hall, and the others afforded the respective parts with even more than their accustomed ability. The chorus was admirable; the orchestra was very good; the appointments were all satisfactory. To hear ‘William Tell’ so given [illegible] are long to be remembered. For the general merit of the performance we have to thank Mr. Carl Rosa and Mr. Neuendorf; but the great popular sensation has been the Arnoldo of Mr. Wachtel. There is no role in which the [illegible] tenor has exhibited such marvelous power, displayed so fully the glorious character of [illegible], or excited so much of that personal magnetism with which he usually sways an audience. It is [illegible] in one or two numbers that he electrifies the [illegible], but [illegible] it with great effects. After the duet with Matilda on Friday he was twice recalled, and there was an uproar among the audience in consequence of his reluctance to reappear. Yet strange to say the famous trio on both nights elicited very little applause, though it was better sung than we remember ever to have heard it before.” [Followed by several lines that appear to be general remarks on the season, though very difficult to read]

“The performance was one of the best I have ever heard; and even had it been otherwise, the music is so beautiful that we should forget to criticize the performance. The role of Tell gave Mr. Santley ample opportunity for the display of his splendid voice, and in the ‘apple’ scene he showed a dramatic talent for which he does not usually get credit. The role of Mathilde was a small one for an artist like Parepa-Rosa, but the cast was strengthened and the performance greatly improved by her excellent singing and beautiful appearance.—She showed that no role is really insignificant when it is well filled.”