of the great musical events of the age, not solely in virtue of the
beauty of the work, but on account of the very remarkable quartet
which embodied the principal characters--Grisi, Rubini, Tamburini, and
La-blache. This quartet continued in its perfection for many years,
with the after-substitution of Mario for Rubini, and was one of the
most notable and interesting facts in the history of operatic music.
Bellini's extraordinary skill in writing music for the voice was never
more noticeably shown than in this opera. In conducting the rehearsals,
he compelled the singers to execute after his style. It is recorded
that, while Rubini was rehearsing the tenor part, the composer cried out
in a rage: "You put no life into the music. Show some feeling. Don't you
know what love is?" Then, changing his voice: "Don't you know your
voice is a gold-mine that has never been explored? You are an excellent
artist, but that is not enough. You must forget yourself and try to
represent _Gualtiero_. Let's try again." Rubini, stung by the reproach,
then sang magnificently. "I Puritan!" made a great _furore_ in Paris,
and the composer received the Cross of the Legion of Honor, an honor
then less rarely bestowed than it was in after-years. He did not live
long to enjoy the fruits of his widening reputation, but died while
composing a new opera for the San Carlo, Naples. In the delirium of his
death-bed, he fancied he was at the Favart, conducting a performance of
"I Puritani." Mlle. Grisi's first appearance before the London public
occurred during the spring of the same year, and her great personal
loveliness and magnificent voice as _Ninetta_, in "La Gazza Ladra,"
instantly enslaved the English operatic world, a worship which lasted
unbroken for many years. Her _Desdemona_ in "Otello," which shortly
followed her first opera, was supported by Rubini as _Otello_, Tamburini
as _Iago_, and Ivanhoff as _Rodriguez_. It may be doubted whether any
singer ever leaped into such instant and exalted favor in London, where
the audiences are habitually cold.