Rarely has Massenet written anything more delightful than
this exquisite song, so fresh in its artful simplicity, so fragrant with
the charm of mediaeval monasticism.
Mention must be made, for the sake of completeness, of the performance
at Nice in 1903 of Massenet's thirty--year--old oratorio, 'Marie
Magdeleine,' in the guise of a 'drame lyrique.' French taste, it need
hardly be said, is very different from English with regard to what
should and should not be placed upon the stage, but once granted the
permissibility of making Jesus Christ the protagonist of an opera, there
is comparatively little in 'Marie Magdeleine' to offend religious
susceptibilities. The work is divided into four scenes: a palm-girt well
outside the city of Magdala, the house of Mary and Martha, Golgotha, and
the garden of Joseph of Arimathea, where occurs what a noted French
critic in writing about the first performance described as 'l'apparition
tres reussie de Jesus.'
In 'Cherubin' (1905) Massenet returned to his more familiar manner. The
story pursues the adventures of Beaumarchais's too fascinating page
after his disappearance from the scene of 'Le Mariage de Figaro.' What
these adventures are it is needless to detail, save that they embrace a
good deal of duelling and even more love-making. Massenet's music is as
light as a feather. It ripples along in the daintiest fashion, sparkling
with wit and gaiety, and if it leaves no very definite impression of
originality, its craftsmanship is perfection itself.
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