"Since that time," remarks Mr Hogarth, "the superiority of Malibran to Pasta in song became more and more evident; while in respect to acting, though no performer has ever approached Pasta in her own peculiar walk of terrible grandeur, yet none has ever surpassed Maria Malibran in intelligence, originality, vivacity, feeling, and those 'tender strokes of art' which at once reach the heart of every spectator. Her versatility was wonderful. Pasta, it has been truly said, is a Siddons: Malibran is a Garrick."
On the morning following the Parisian début a note came asking Señor Garcia to go round to Rossini's rooms. Upon doing so he found him in a tremendous state of excitement, and prepared to give Maria Malibran a four years' exclusive engagement, at the rate of more than a hundred thousand francs per annum, if she would bind herself to sing exclusively at the Grand Opera House during that period.
The terms were immense for those days. In spite of this, after careful consideration, the contralto decided to refuse them, feeling that it would be unwise to abandon Italian and confine herself to French for so long a time. She did, however, appear for him in a few operas, at enormous fees, with, if possible, greater success than before, at the Théâtre Italien during April and May.
Now it seemed very extraordinary to Señor Garcia and to his sister that Rossini should have heard her sing again and again in society without even mentioning such a thing as engaging her, and yet, after hearing her at the Opera House in music which she had sung before him on so many occasions, he should at once make her a magnificent offer for a term of years. Why was it? They could not understand it at all, and accordingly asked one day for the explanation.
"It is true," answered Rossini, "that I knew Maria Malibran was a brilliant singer from listening to her at private houses. But I had never heard her in a big place before a large audience. Consequently I felt that I could not make her a definite offer which would at all gauge her true value. Either I should be offering her less than she was worth, and by this be doing her an injustice, or I should be offering her more than she was worth, and so be doing myself an injustice. But now that I have heard her sing in front of an audience, and have observed what effect they mutually had each on the other, I can offer the very largest sum which her singing is intrinsically worth. That is the explanation of what I have done."
After remaining for a time to see his sister successfully started on her Parisian career, Manuel Garcia set out for Italy, and took up his residence there for some months. During this period he made the acquaintance of Lablache, whose voice was of the most marvellous power. There is a story which the maestro used to tell of the basso and Carl Weber which illustrates this fact.
Lablache was originally a double-bass player, and his first appearance in opera as a singer came about through a happy chance. A celebrated vocalist was suddenly indisposed just before the performance one night, and Lablache was induced to take his place and attempt the rôle. His rendering of the character was entirely successful, and he abandoned his old career for this new one.
A few months afterwards Weber, who had known his massive figure in the orchestra, heard him sing in opera. After listening to the enormous voice and magnificent basso notes, the composer exclaimed, "Mein Gott! he is still a double-bass."
The size of Lablache's voice aroused the emulation of Garcia, who, as his sister Mme. Viardot puts it, proceeded to play the part of the frog that wanted to make itself as big as a bull. In trying to imitate this Gulliver of bassi he undoubtedly did further injury to his voice, which had already been much overstrained by the hard usage it had received in Mexico.
When, therefore, about the beginning of 1829, he made a public appearance at Naples, as his parents had persuaded him to do, he did not come through the ordeal with much success. "Il débuta à Naples, je crois," says Mme. Viardot, "et il eût ce qu'il désirait, un four noir."