Hermann Klein et al. in Covent Garden - July, 1890

from Thirty Years of Musical Life in London, 1870-1900, pages 287-8:

The result was that neither “Carmen” nor “Esmeralda” appeared in its Gallic guise until late in July. Indeed, “Carmen” was given only for Harris's “benefit" on the very last night of the season,  when the demand for seats was so enormous that  stalls sold for £4 ($20) apiece, and many hundreds of people were turned away from the doors.  The only disappointment was Melba's non-apppearance as Michaela, but this was almost  forgotten amid the triumphs of Jean de Reszke  and Lassalle, whose admirable impersonations  were well matched by the fascinating Carmen of Zelie de Lussan. Being a kind of gala night, Augustus Harris imagined it would be interesting to  have each of his three conductors engaged upon  the one opera. Accordingly Mancinelli directed the first act, Bevignani the second, Randegger the third, and Mancinelli again the fourth. The effect upon the ensemble of the performance was simply disastrous, and, needless to add, the childish experiment was never tried again.

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cite as

Hermann Klein, Thirty Years of Musical Life in London, 1870-1900 (New York City, 1903), p. 287-8. https://led.kmi.open.ac.uk/entity/lexp/1438443458585 accessed: 28 March, 2024

location of experience: Covent Garden

Listeners

Hermann Klein
Music Critic, Singing Teacher, Writer
1856-1934

Listening to

hide composers
Carmen
written by Georges Bizet
performed by Enrico Bevignani, Alberto Randegger, Jean Lassalle, Jean de Reszke, Luigi Mancinelli, ZĂ©lie de Lussan

Experience Information

Date/Time July, 1890
Medium live
Listening Environment in the company of others, indoors, in public

Originally submitted by sp327 on Sat, 01 Aug 2015 16:37:39 +0100
Approved on Mon, 25 Apr 2016 10:50:27 +0100