Sweethearts–The Angelus

We have come to the end of our examination of Victor Herbert’s lovely operetta, Sweethearts. We wanted to leave you with a haunting melody that is derived from Sacred Music, such as prayers. We sometimes forget the difference between Sacred Music and music composed around sacred prayers. For example, according to Wikipedia, Franz Schubert’s magnificent “Ave Maria” was written as part of seven songs composed from Sir Walter Scott’s Lady of the Lake, first published in 1826. The Latin version is now so often used with Schubert’s melody “that is has led to the misconception that he originally wrote the melody as a setting for the [Roman Catholic Prayer] ‘Ave Maria.’ ”

Thus, we have Herbert’s beautiful “The Angelus” written for an operetta but surely suggestive of prayer music. You will hear it sung by Christie MacDonald in a 1913 recording; at the end, Reinald Werrenrath will join her in a short duet reprise of “For Every Lover Must Meet His Fate,” along with choral support. This is the third time you have heard the song, because it was featured in our previous posts as part of compilations (Nathaniel Shilkret and Eastman-Dryden).

We have two purposes of sharing this music with you; one, it is a beautiful song. However, it is also symbolic of the way composers moved from opera to operetta.

In the next post, scheduled for release 10 minutes after this post, we will share another piece of music that was written for a commercial production, this time an opera in 1890. That aria is intended to resemble a Latin hymn.

https://youtu.be/-Xi5KvvRNWA