opera,--the tenor solo, "Like a Dream bright and fair" ("M' appari" in
the Italian version), and a romance for soprano ("Here in deepest
forest Shadows"); and the act closes with a beautiful concerted
finale, quintet and chorus, which is worked up with great power. In
this finale the despairing Lionel bethinks him of his ring. He gives
it to Plunkett, desiring him to present it to the Queen. By means of
the jewel it is discovered that he is the only son of the late Earl of
Derby, and she orders his estates, of which he has been unjustly
deprived, to be restored to him.

The last act is not important in a musical sense, for the climax is
attained in the previous finale. The dramatic dénouement is soon
reached, and the Lady Henrietta, who has for some time been seriously
in love with Lionel, is at last united to him; and it is almost
needless to add that the fortunes of Plunkett and Nancy are also
joined. The charm of "Martha" is its liveliness in action and
tunefulness in music. Though not a great opera from a musical point of
view, it is one of the most popular in the modern repertory, and
though few others have been performed so many times, it still retains
that popularity. Its melodies, though sung in every country of the
civilized world by amateurs and professional artists, have not yet
lost their charms.


STRADELLA.

"Stradella," a romantic opera in three acts, was first written as a
lyric drama and produced at the Palais Royal Theatre, Paris, in 1837,
and was subsequently rewritten in its present form under the title of
"Alessandro Stradella" and produced at Hamburg, Dec. 30, 1844. The