operatic stage. Its principal numbers are a short and simple but very
beautiful ballad for Siebel ("La parlate d'amor"); a passionate aria
for tenor ("Salve dimora casta e pura"), in which Faust greets
Marguerite's dwelling; a double number, which is superb in its
contrasts,--the folk-song, "C'era un re di Thule," a plaintive little
ballad sung at the spinning-wheel by Marguerite, and the bravura
jewel-song, "Ah! e' strano poter," which is the very essence of
delicacy and almost-childish glee; the quartet commencing,
"V'appogiato al bracchio mio," which is of striking interest by the
independent manner in which the two pairs of voices are treated and
combined in the close; and the closing duet ("Sempre amar") between
Faust and Marguerite, which is replete with tenderness and passion,
and closes in strains of almost ecstatic rapture, the fatal end of
which is foreshadowed by the mocking laugh of Mephistopheles breaking
in upon its lingering cadences.

The fourth act is known as the Cathedral act, and established Gounod's
reputation as a writer of serious music. It opens with a scena for
Marguerite, who has been taunted by the girls at the fountain
("Nascose eran là le crudeli "), in which she laments her sad fate.
The scene abruptly changes to the square in front of the cathedral,
where the soldiers, Valentin among them, are returning, to the
jubilant though somewhat commonplace strains of the march, "Deponiam
il branda." As the soldiers retire and Valentin goes in quest of
Marguerite, Faust and Mephistopheles appear before the house, and the
latter sings a grotesque and literally infernal serenade ("Tu, che fai
l' addormentata"). Valentin appears and a quarrel ensues, leading up
to a spirited trio. Valentin is slain, and with his dying breath
pronounces a malediction ("Margherita! maledetta") upon his sister.
The scene changes to the church, and in wonderful combination we hear