in on the piano?

The opera, _La Sonnambula_, requires much rearrangement both of the
music and of the verbal text, to which it is badly fitted. The greater
part of the music written for Elvino has to be transposed, mostly a
third lower, in order to make it practicable under existing
conditions.

No effect whatever could be made were a cantatrice to follow
implicitly the written notes of this opera, such being merely a rough
sketch, as it were, of the composer's ideas, which the singer is
supposed to complete. Several instances from the andante "_Ah! non
credea mirarti_," will suffice to prove this. The following is the
printed version.

[Music:

Ah non credea mirarti,
Si presto estinto, o fiore.]

This is but a suggestion of the composer's idea. The artist will
therefore not follow too closely the printed version; but following
the evident indications for a pathetic and expressive _cantabile_ will
perform it thus:

[Music:

Ah! non credea mirarti,
Si presto estinto, o fiore.]

Again a brief outline, as printed:

[Music: Passasti al par d'amore, che un giorno, che un giorno sol
duro.]

which, if sung as follows, fills in the details:

[Music: Passasti al par d'amore, che un giorno, che un giorno sol
duro.]

Also the passage in the same aria, where Amina sobs as she slowly lets
fall to the ground the blossoms given her in the first act by Elvino,
requires an entire rearrangement of the syllables to bring out the
composer's meaning.

[Music:

Che un giorno sol duro,
Passasti al par d'amor, d'amor.]

Let any one go over this passage carefully, and he will be convinced
that it is, as I have said, merely a sketch of the composer's idea. As
it stands in the published version it is impossible of execution, and
if it were possible, would be devoid of all effect: the syllables
being wrongly placed, no opportunity for breathing is given the
singer, and the final cadenza is marred by being allotted to the word
"amore." Here is a revision of the latter, the cadenza being one I
wrote for a pupil, Mme. Easton-Maclennan, of the Royal Opera, Berlin:

[Music:

Che un giorno sol duro,
Passasti al par d'amor, ah! d'amor.]

It will thus be seen, from the numerous foregoing examples, that these
ornaments and interpolations are not added from a vulgar idea of
correcting or improving the composer's music, but are strictly in
accordance with certain conventions thoroughly understood by both
composer and singer. T