Corentin
is not so stupid as he seems, and, suspecting something underhand, he
persuades the mad Dinorah to go down into the ravine in his place.
Dinorah consents, but while she is crossing a rustic bridge, preparatory
to the descent, it is struck by lightning, and she tumbles into the
abyss. She is saved by Hoel in some inexplicable way, and, still more
inexplicably, regains her reason. The music is bright and tuneful, and
the reaper's and hunter's songs (which are introduced for no apparent
reason) are delightful; but the libretto is so impossibly foolish that
the opera has fallen into disrepute, although the brilliant music of the
heroine should make it a favourite role with competent singers.
Meyerbeer was extravagantly praised during his lifetime; he is now as
bitterly decried. The truth seems to lie, as usual, between the two
extremes. He was an unusually clever man, with a strong instinct for the
theatre. He took immense pains with his operas, often rewriting the
entire score; but his efforts were directed less towards ideal
perfection than to what would be most effective, so that there is a
hollowness and a superficiality about his best work which we cannot
ignore, even while we admit the ingenuity of the means employed. His
influence upon modern opera has been extensive. He was the real founder
of the school of melodramatic opera which is now so popular.
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