e situation, leaves the
apartment, and Amina reclines upon the bed as if it were her own. The
malicious Lisa hurries from the room to inform Elvino of what she has
seen, and thoughtlessly leaves her handkerchief. Elvino rushes to the
spot with other villagers, and finding Amina, as Lisa had described,
declares that she is guilty, and leaves her. Awakened by the noise,
the unfortunate girl, realizing the situation, sorrowfully throws
herself into Teresa's arms. The villagers implore Rodolfo to acquit
Amina of any blame, and he stoutly protests her innocence; but it is
of no avail in satisfying Elvino, who straightway offers his hand to
Lisa. In the last act Amina is seen stepping from the window of the
mill in her sleep. She crosses a frail bridge which yields beneath her
weight and threatens to precipitate her upon the wheel below; but she
passes it in safety, descends to the ground, and walks into her
lover's arms amid the jubilant songs of the villagers. Elvino is
convinced of her innocence, and they are wedded at once, while the
discovery of Lisa's handkerchief in Rodolfo's room pronounces her the
faithless one.

Such is the simple little pastoral story to which Bellini has set some
of his most beautiful melodies, the most striking of which are the
aria, "Sovra il sen," in the third scene of the first act, where Amina
declares her happiness to Teresa; the beautiful aria for barytone in
the sixth scene, "Vi ravviso," descriptive of Rodolfo's delight in
revisiting the scenes of his youth; the playful duet between Amina and
Elvino, "Mai piu dubbi!" in which she rebukes him for his jealousy;
the humorous and very characteristic chorus of the villagers in the
tenth scene, "Osservate, l'uscio e aperto," as they tiptoe into
Rodolfo's apartment; the duet, "O mio dolor," in the next scene, in
which Amina asserts her innocence; the aria for tenor in the third
scene of the second act, "Tutto e sciolto," in which Elvino bemoans
his sad lot; and that joyous ecstatic outburst of birdlike melody,
"Ah! non giunge," which closes the opera. In fact, "Sonnambula" is so
replete with melodies of the purest and tenderest kind, that it is
difficult to specify particular ones. It is exquisitely idyllic
throughout, and the music is as quiet, peaceful, simple, and tender as
the charming pastoral scenes it illustrates.

I PURITANI.

"I Puritani di Scozia," an opera in two acts, words by Count Pepoli,
was first produced at the Theatre Ita