The recitative to No. 2 is not very striking. The duet which follows opens in D flat, adagio, and passes into a moderato in B flat. Good as this is, it must not be concealed, that it is written decidedly in imitation of Rossini.
Sig. Crivelli’s Notturnos will not be disapproved by those who encourage the Italian style of the age immediately preceding the present. They are less simple than the productions of the Venetian and Neapolitan schools, but have not much imagination or vigour. A few inaccuracies have eluded the eye of the composer, among which standing in great need of correction are, octaves between the second voice and the base, page 3, bar 2; and a D flat rising instead of falling, in last bar of page 8.
No. 4 is rather elegant, though far from new, and the words are well set.
No. 5 is one of those things which may be heard half a dozen times without leaving the slightest impression; and that might have been written by any one having sufficient technical skill to put the notes in right order. But the composer is a maestro. He is an instance of what fame may be acquired in the musical world by a single air.
No. 6 is far from a common melody; and but for certain harsh notes, arising from an over-strained though laudable attempt at originality, we should add, that the accompaniment is as masterly as it is bold. An A double-flat, page 3, is beyond our comprehension. Had it not occurred twice, we should have concluded that B double-flat was intended. This canzonet, however, considered altogether, is highly creditable in every may to Mr. Barnett.
BALLET OPERA, The Maid of Cashmere, or La Bayadère, composed by AUBER, and adapted to the English stage by HENRY R. BISHOP. (Chappell.)