John Evelyn in London - 5 May, 1659
from Diary of John Evelyn, 5 May 1659, page 110:
May 5 I went ... to see a new Opera after the Italian way in Recitative Music & Sceanes, much inferior to the Italian composure & magnificence: but what was prodigious, that in a time of such publique Consternation, such a Vanity should be kept up or permitted; I being ingag'd with company, could not decently resist the going to see it, though my heart smote me for it ...
cite as
John Evelyn, Diary of John Evelyn, 5 May 1659. In De la Bédoyère, Guy (ed.), The Diary of John Evelyn (Woodbridge, 1995), p. 110. https://led.kmi.open.ac.uk/entity/lexp/1408442476179 accessed: 1 December, 2024
Listeners
Listening to
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Italian opera
written by Signor Baptista |
Experience Information
| Date/Time | 5 May, 1659 |
| Medium | live |
| Listening Environment | in the company of others, in public |
Notes
The "time of such publique Consternation" Evelyn refers to is the anarchy and uprising which ensued following the Lord Protector Richard Cromwell's decision to disband parliament on 22 April that year. Cromwell was to resign his post just 20 days later, on 25 May 1659.
Originally submitted by isobel.1111 on Tue, 19 Aug 2014 11:01:16 +0100