audiences. Rubini would merely walk through a large portion of an opera
with indifference, but, when his chosen moment arrived, there were such
passion, fervor, and putting forth of consummate vocal art and emotion
that his hearers hung breathless on the notes of his voice. As the
singer of a song in opera, no one, according to his contemporaries, ever
equaled him. According to Chorley, his "songs did not so much create a
success for him as an ecstasy of delight in those that heard him. The
mixture of musical finish with excitement which they displayed has never
been equaled within such limits or on such conditions as the career
of Rubini afforded. He ruled the stage by the mere art of singing more
completely than any one--man or woman--has been able to do in my time."
Rubini died in 1852, and left behind him one of the largest fortunes
ever amassed on the stage.

Another member of the celebrated "Puritani" quartet was Signor
Tamburini. His voice was a bass in quality, with a barytone range of two
octaves, from F to F, rich, sweet, extensive, and even. His powers of
execution were great, and the flexibility with which he used his voice
could only be likened to the facility of a skillful 'cello performer. He
combined largeness of style, truth of accent, florid embellishment,
and solidity. His acting, alike in tragedy and comedy, was spirited
and judicious, though it lacked the irresistible strokes of spontaneous
genius, the flashes of passion, or rich drollery which made Lablache so
grand an actor, or, in a later time, redeemed the vocal imperfections of
Ronconi. An amusing instance of Taniburini's vocal skill and wealth of
artistic resources, displayed in his youth, was highly characteristic of
the man. He was engaged at Palermo during the Carnival season of 1822,
and on the last night the audience attended the theatre, inspired by the
most riotous spirit of carnivalesque revelry. Large numbers of them
came armed with drums, trumpets, shovels, tin pans, and other charivari