of intelligence extensive and various; while it assimilates itself by its harmonious construction and entirety, it becomes effective by external impression and rational combination. It blends instruction with delight; if it does not make heroes, it at least leads captive the noblest attributes of humanity.

The singers were equally lauded. Dr. Francis held them all in high opinion:

The indomitable energy of Garcia, aided by his melodious strains and his exhaustless powers, the bewitching talents of his daughter, the Signorina Garcia, with her artistic faculties as an actress, and her flights of inspirations, the novelty of her conception, and her captivating person, proved that a galaxy of genius in a novel vocation unknown to the New World, demanded now its patronage. To these primary personages, as making up the roll, were added Angrisani, whose bass seemed as the peal of the noted organ at Haerlem; Rosich, a buffo of great resources; Crevelli, a promising debutante; the younger Garcia, with Signora Garcia, and Madame Barbiere with her capacious tenor [sic!], constituting a musical phalanx which neither London nor Paris could surpass, nay, at that time could equal.

By a strange coincidence, "The Harmonicon" of Nov., 1825 (p. 200-201) published a "catalogue of the stops in the great Organ at Haarlem."

What circumstances operated in bringing to our shores a European opera troupe singing in a language foreign to the majority of the resident population, is a point upon which, in the absence of positive information, one can now only speculate. Dr. Francis, recalling the event some thirty-two years later, declared that "we were indebted to the taste and refinement of Dominick Lynch, the liberality of the manager of the Park Theatre, Stephen Price, and the distinguished reputation of the Venetian, Lorenzo Da Ponte." Ritter summarily points out that the latter seems not to have been directly involved in the negotiations which brought Garcia's troupe to America. That he was, however, a factor in encouraging the scheme is not to be denied. Indeed, to establish Italian opera in New York was, as he himself phrased it in his "Memore" (v. 3, p. 42), "il desideratum del mio sommo zelo❞— the desideratum of his complete zeal. As a poet of the Viennese court, the librettist of Mozart's operas, "Don Giovanni" and "Così fan tutte," and finally the compiler of a pasticcio which had been performed in the Kaiser-Stadt, he had reason to move with pardonable pride in the social circles of the day, especially in a city where the art of music was still in the crude stages of development. For such an one, the local theatres had little to offer. The contemporary musical productions, for the most part, were meagre and mediocre in comparison with the repertoire of Vienna. They consisted of English ballad operas, truncated versions of continental operas and plays with incidental songs, called melo-dramas. Each evening's principal entertainment was invariably preceded by a farcical curtain-raiser or followed by a silly after-piece, all delivered in a language strange to his ears. What more laudable or justifiable desire, then, could he entertain than to see the works in which he collaborated and the gorgeous operas by his countrymen performed in the city which he had chosen for his home. He must have known

Price, a man of the theatre, and met his friend, Lynch, with both of whom he certainly would have discussed a project which engrossed his mind.

Dominick Lynch, the first member of the group mentioned by Dr. Francis, was a wealthy New York wine dealer. He seems to have been inordinately fond of music, particularly in its operatic form, for we find him connected with a subsequent and larger venture along the same lines. According to Dr. Francis, he "was the acknowledged head of the fashionable and festive board, a gentleman of the ton, and a melodist of great powers and of exquisite taste; he had long striven to enhance the character of our music; he was the master of English song, but he felt, from his close cultivation of music and his knowledge of the genius of his countrymen, that much was wanting, and that more could be accomplished..." Not unlikely, through his interest and possibly with his funds, he was instrumental in winning Price to look with favor on Da Ponte's "desideratum." At all events, he went for Price to London, where the manager of the New York Park Theatre was well remembered, to engage singers for such an enterprise. He was undoubtedly the "agent of Mr. Price," of whom "The Harmonicon" (London, October, 1825, p. 194) speaks.

The company which Dominick Lynch recruited in the British capital consisted of eight members: two sopranos, one alto, two tenors, and three basses. It consisted of the Garcia family: Manuel, sr., aged 50, tenor; his wife, Joaquina Sitchès Garcia, soprano; their 20-year-old son, Manuel, jr., bass; their 17-year-old daughter, Maria (Marietta) Felicità, alto; Mme. Barbieri, soprano; Giovanni Crivelli, tenor; Felix Angrisani and Paolo Rosich, basses. "The Harmonicon," cited above, expressed surprise that so small a troupe should set out to produce opera. It adds, ungracefully: "But our trans-atlantic brethren have no experience in this kind of musical representation, and, therefore, will not perhaps be very nice.”

Of the Garcia family, we need not speak in detail here. Suffice it to say, the elder Manuel had already enjoyed a wide career as a singer and a composer. He was a Spaniard who had identified himself with Italian opera. His wife had appeared in minor roles in Paris and "made an unsuccessful attempt in the same," according to "The Harmonicon," "in London." Their daughter, Maria, had been on the stage from her fifth year. She had made her debut in London at Her Majesty's Theatre on June 7, 1825, which year also witnessed her advent across the Atlantic. She was then on the threshold of a marvelous career, which was prematurely to be cut short by death eleven years hence. Their son, Manuel, jr., was still a novice. He was to make his first appearance on the stage on the opening night of his father's first season in America. The younger Crivelli (the "New-York Evening Post" gives his first name as Giovanni) had sung previously to his New York engagement in secondary parts at the King's Theatre in London. Paolo Rosich had an occasional appearance in London in 1824, and, though re-engaged for the next season in 1825, at a salary of £50, did not return to the boards. Angrisani was an experienced singer, of whom "The Harmonicon" made no dis

paraging comment. He had been a leading bass in the Italian opera at the King's Theatre, in London, from 1817 to 1821, and, perhaps, later.

Garcia, sr., also, had sung at the King's Theatre in London and was heard in Rossini's "Il Barbiere di Siviglia." "The Harmonicon" (1830, p. 248) said of him:

He was half worn out; if he had ever possessed the power of sustaining a note, it is now entirely gone and he endeavoured to conceal the defect by the utmost profusion of florid ornament. It must be acknowledged, however, that, in the novelty, variety, and taste of his divisions, he has been excelled by no tenor of our time; and if the power of multiplying beautiful roulades were sufficient of itself to constitute a great singer, he had every title to the distinction.

Dominick Lynch seems to have justified the trust vested in him by Price in his efforts to get together an adequate company, as it proved, for New York's first season of grand opera. Among the renowned singers he is said to have endeavored to engage were Mme. Pasta, Mme. Caradori-Allen, the young Signora Marinoni, and others. Mme. Caradori (afterwards Caradori-Allen) had made her operatic debut in the Italian opera at the King's Theatre in 1822, singing with Angrisani. She came to America in 1837. Returning to England, she sang in the first production of Mendelssohn's oratorio, “Elijah," at Birmingham, on Aug. 26, 1846, under the composer's direction. Sufficient evidences, indeed, of Lynch's "taste and refinement," as Dr. Francis characterized his qualities.

Whatever may have been the merits of the individual members of the troupe they started for America, setting a precedent which has never been eradicated. "The sums said to be secured to these persons," commented the same "Harmonicon," "are past belief, all circumstances considered. We have hitherto been the laughing-stocks of Europe, for the preposterous manner in which we pay foreign singers, but the ridicule will now be transferred to the Western continent which we cannot credit - should actually prove true." The fortune of Dominick Lynch and the liberality of Stephen Price are reflected in these words.

Accompanied by Lynch, the company embarked on the packet ship, "New York," on or about Oct. 1, 1825, from Liverpool. On Oct. 28, the "NewYork Evening Post" communicated the fact that berths had been erected, fore and aft, on the packet, for the accommodation of her passengers. The boat with its galaxy of singers, passengers and merchandise reached New York on Sunday evening, Nov. 6. As members of the Garcia-Lynch-Price opera troupe were also listed Señor and Señora Ferri, Don Fabian, Giuseppe Pasta, Giovanni Cardini and Cristofaro Constantino "of the Italian Opera." These names are not to be found in the casts of the operas performed by Garcia's company during its first and only season in New York.

On Nov. 17, the first announcement of the plans of the "Italian troupe (among whom are some of the first artists of Europe)" was published in the "Evening Post." On the editorial page of the same issue appeared a letter

reprinted from the "New York American." It explained the different types of arias in Italian operas and retold the circumstances surrounding the production of Europe's first opera, "Eurydice," by Ottavio Rinuccini [sic]. The communication was signed "Museus." Query: was the letter inspired by Garcia and written by Price (or one of his assistants)?

Da Ponte was not slow in making the acquaintance of Garcia. He introduced himself as "the author of the libretto of Don Giovanni, and the friend of Mozart." Garcia is said to have embraced him, singing the beginning of the "champagne" aria, "Finch'han dal vino." No doubt, Garcia outlined his repertoire and the poet must have felt gratified in at least one of his secret ambitions to learn that "Don Giovanni" was a forthcoming production.

The season began at the Park Theatre on Nov. 29, 1825, with the first performance in America of Rossini's opera, "Il Barbiere di Siviglia," in Italian, as described above. The doors of the theatre opened at 7.30 p. m. The performance commenced at 8 o'clock and ended about half an hour before midnight. The opera itself was not entirely new to the theatre populace. It had been heard on the same stage six years earlier, on May 17, 1819, in an abridged English adaptation.

The orchestra at the Park Theatre for these opera performances was no "scratch" band, even though it was lacking in some of the instruments required by the operas rendered by the singers, and needed a piano to strengthen and unite its elements. The leader, who was also the principal violinist, was Nathaniel De Luce. His orchestra consisted of the following musicians: violins, Dumahault, Hill, Hollaway, jr., Milon, Moriere, W. Taylor; violas, Hollaway, sr., Nicolai; violoncello, Bocock, [Peter F.] Gentil, [P. K.] Moran; double bass, Davis, Greer; flute, [Francis] Blondeau, P. Taylor; clarinet, Beck, Mertine; bassoon, [John] Hornung; horn, Eberle, sr., Eberle, jr., trumpet, [Raymond] Metz, Peterson; kettledrum, [John S.] Carroll; piano, [D. G.] Etienne. The first names or initials in brackets are supplied from the city directories of the time and may not be correct in all cases. Oboes, rare instruments in the New York orchestras of those days, were noticeably absent. One wonders, too, how De Luce, whose orchestra likewise lacked trombones, managed the supposedly horrific and fateful blasts on these instruments at the entrance of the ghost in "Don Giovanni!" The personnel of the Garcia-De Luce orchestra was fairly international. De Luce was the regular leader of the Park theatre orchestra. His wife appeared here in the English adaptation of Weber's opera, "Der Freischütz,” in 1825, creating the role of Aennchen, called Linda in the version. Among the musicians, W. Taylor was undoubtedly the William Taylor who had conducted concerts in New York and played the overture of Beethoven's "Prometheus" for the first time in New York, according to the announcement on the programme, on March 20, 1823. Etienne was another active musician who appeared in the capacity of an orchestral leader and participated on many programmes. During the 40's, he figured both as a soloist and conductor of The Philharmonic Society of New York. As a composer he

published a number of piano pieces. Gentil was probably the same who gave concerts and appeared as a conductor. P. Taylor was very likely the P. H. Taylor, a noted flute soloist during the first quarter of the century. Hornung, the bassoon player, according to the city directory, was also a grocer. Who the Eberles were is doubtful; a Jacob Eberle, musician, appears in the directories for 1825, a Fredrick in 1826.

From the start, Garcia showed himself an enterprising impresario. Said the "New-York Review and Atheneum Magazine" (Dec., 1825):

Signor Garcia has shewn great judgment in the selection of the first opera. The music of "Il Barbiere di Siviglia" has always been extremely popular... The music... is of the sort which is almost immediately appreciated by the most unpractised ear (provided it be naturally good one), and fixes itself firmly in the least retentive memory.

The choice of "Il Barbiere di Siviglia" was the more appropriate when we recall that Garcia himself created the role of the Count Almaviva at the original production of the opera at the Teatro Argentina in Rome on Feb. 5,

1816.

For his repertoire, Garcia had chosen only such operas which, with exception of two, had proven unmistakable successes in Europe. In course of his season he brought out no less than seven standard Italian operas and two of his own composition. Rossini was then the foremost operatic composer in Europe, and Garcia, besides playing his "Il Barbiere di Siviglia," put on his "Tancredi," "Il Turco in Italia" and "La Cenerentola" which in numerous English adaptations was one of the most popular operatic productions in New York for nearly half a century. He mounted also Zingarelli's "Romeo e Julietta" and Mozart's "Don Giovanni."

After playing Rossini's "Il Barbiere di Siviglia" five times, Garcia essayed what in modern journalese phraseology is designed a world premiere. It was an Italian opera in two acts, "L'Amante Astuto," the music of which was written by Garcia himself to a libretto by his basso buffo, Paolo Rosich. On April 25, 1826, Garcia brought forward another world premiere, his own "La Figlia dell' Aria," for which Paolo Rosich had again provided the libretto. This opera, founded on the story of Semiramis, has been consistently confused by all writers on the subject, including Krehbiel, with Rossini's "Semiramide" and ascribed to the swan of Pesaro. Garcia never played Rossini's opera. It was first introduced in New York at Palmo's Opera House on Jan. 3, 1845.

Although the season began auspiciously, local interest in the novelty of opera gradually waned. The company, generally, played on Tuesdays and Saturdays, alternating with English drama and comedy on the other nights. The performances usually began at 7.30 o'clock. The prices of admission were: boxes, $2; pit (orchestra) $1; gallery, 25 cents. An increase in prices, however, was found necessary and a new scale was allocated accordingly, 1st and 2nd tier boxes, $2; 3rd and 4th tier, $1; pit $1; gallery, 25 cents. The practice of selling opera librettos of a performance began on the first night: "Books of the opera can be procured at the theatre - price 3734 cents," read