Grove's dictionary of music and musicians

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658 SPONTINI
Spontini'a choice of a subject. He set to work
with the seriousness which was his main oharaeteristio
as an artist ; read, studied, and did
everything to imbue himself with the spirit of
the epoch, one wholly foreign to anything he
had before attempted.' The libretto in its final
form was a good one on the whole. The scene
is laid at Mayence in 1194, during the reign of
the Emperor Henry VI. of Hohenstaufen, and
the plot turns on the factions of the Guelphs
and Ghibellines. The music is thoroughly
German, the harmonies richer and more satisiying,
the melodies quite national in character ;
isolated passages recalling Spohr, and even
Weber, though without anything like servile
Imitation. It is throughout the result of an
entire absorption in the dramatic situation and
characters. A comparison of it with the sentimental
ballad-like effusions of even good German
composers in similar circumstances will serve to
accentuate the difference between them and
Spontini. Neither is there any sign of exhaustion
of inventive power. The stream of melody flows
as freely as ever ; indeed there is a breadth, an
dan, and a fire in some of these melodies, to
which he rarely attains in his earlier operas
instance the terzetto in the second act, ' Ja, statt
meines Kerkers Grauen,' and Agnes's solo Meiu
'
Konig droben.' The criticisms of the day were
most unjustly severe ; but though the music was
never published the MS. score exists, and an
examination of it will fully bear out all that
we have said. It is not too late to form an
impartial judgment, and Germans should recognise
that they have a duty to perform to
'Agnes von Hohenstaufen,' as the only opera
which deals worthily with a glorious period of
German history. When this has been fairly
acknowledged it will be time enough to look out
for its defects.
It was the last opera which Spontini completed.
Various new plans and schemes continued
to occupy him, as before, especially during
the latter part of his stay in Paris, when Louis
'
XI.,' La Golere d'Achille,' and ' ' Artaserse ' had
in turn been thought of for composition. For
a successor to Olympia ' ' he thought iirst of
' Sappho 'or of ' Die Horatier,' and then of two of
Werner's tragedies, Das Kreuz an '
der Ostsee '
and ' Attila,' but none of these projects appear
to have advanced far enough even for a preliminary
rehearsal. More progress was made
with a poem by his old friend Jouy, Les
'
Ath^niennes, ' first offered him in 1819, and accepted
in a revised form in 1822. In a review
of the poem 2 written in 1830, Goethe implies
that the music was complete, but at Spontini's
death nothing was found but unimportant
fragments.' An opera founded on English
1 Sponiini In DeutgcJUand, p. 102 (Leipzig, Steinacker und Hartknocli,
1830).
s Goethe'a ITorfta.Goedecke'Bedition.Tol. xill.p. 653,Cotta.
Spontini in Deutechland, p. 22. Leipzig, 1830.
3 Robei-fa Spanilni, p. 84. BBrtln, 1883.
Also
history occupied him longer. We have already
mentioned the revision of his 'Milton.' His
studies for this deepened his interest in the
English history of the 17th century. In 1830
Eaupach wrote a, libretto for a grand opera,
'
Milton,' which was bought by the committee of
management for 30 Friedriohs d'or, and placed,
at Spontini's disposal.* The only portion of the
smaller opera retained was the fine Hymn to the
Sun. After completing the revision of Agnes
'
von Hohenstaufen,' Spontini wrote to the Intendant
(May 9, 1837) that he hoped in the winter
of 1838 to produce ' Miltons Tod und Busse fiir
Konigsmord ' (Milton's death, and repentance for
the King's execution). He spent the summer of
1838 in England, studying historical, national,
and local colouring for this historico-romantio
'
opera. Raupach's poem; extended and revised
by Dr. Sobernheim, had now assumed a political
and religious tendency, so distasteful to the King
as to make him prohibit the opera. Further
alterations ensued, and it became Das ' verlorene
Paradies' (Paradise Lost). By May 1840 the
score of part of the 1st, and two-thirds of the
2nd act was complete. Up to March 1841 he
certainly intended finishing it, but not a note
of it has ever been heard. We may add that on
June 4, 1838, he mentioned a fairy-opera to the
King, and in Dec. 1840 professed himself ready
to begin a new comic opera. He was apparently
bent on composing fresh dramatic works; and
often complained that the management did not
offer him sufficient choice of librettos ; but he
was incapacitated from creation by his increasing
pedantry, and by the perpetual state of irritation
in which he was kept by his critics.
Spontini's other compositions during his residence
in Berlin are unimportant. A hymn for
the coronation of the Emperor Nicholas of Russia,
to words by Eaupach, was performed at Berlin,
Dec. 18, 1826, and May 9, 1827.* A cantata to
Herklots' words, ' Gott segne den Kbnig,' had a
great success at the Halle Musical Festival in
Sept. 1829, which Spontini conducted so much
to the general satisfaction as to procure him an
honorary Doctor's degree from the University,
and a gold medal inscribed Idricae Tragoediae
JPrindpi Oermania meritonim cultrix. A Domine
salvum fao regem,' a 12, with ' accompaniment
of organs, trumpets, violoncelli, and basses,
was written on Oct. 15, 1840, for presentation
to the King. Besides these he published a number
of French,German,and Italian vocal pieces, with
PF. accompaniment, the best of which is Die
'
Gimbern,' a war-song for three men's voices. As
a mere matter of curiosity may be mentioned
that he set Goethe's Kennst du das Land,' and
'
the Italian canzonet ' Ninfe, se liete, ' in which
he again clashed unconsciously with Weber's
* In Spontini in DeutBchZand this libretto is said to be by Jouy.
I have not been able to aseei-tain whether it was Jouy's work revised
by Baupach, or an oi'iglnal production.
6 Hanpach had intended to have tableaux vUiante to each five
stanzas ; but this was not carried out.