The Indian Princess, telling the story of Captain John Smith and the Princess Pocahontas, was announced as an Operatic Melo Drama in three acts, words by J. N. Barker, music by John Bray; and you could have seen it at the New Theatre, Philadelphia, on April 6th, 1808 for the price of three dollars. The Ethiop was more complicated, both in plot and provenance. Set in Baghdad (“Bagdat is the place for fun” sings one of the characters), it involves conspirators and subterranean voices in a mystical catacomb. It began life as a play by William Dimond, which opened at Covent Garden in 1812 with music by Henry Bishop. A New York premiere followed, this time with music by a composer called Perossier, and then by 1814 it reached Philadelphia, where a new score was written by Raynor Taylor ready for production on New Year’s Day. The originals survive in fairly primitive notation, a treble stave for the melody, with words below, then a bass with little indication for harmony or use of instruments. Prominent among musicologists who have made a special study of American theatre music in this period is Victor Fell Yellin, who has ‘restored’ both scores, on principles explained in his admirable notes for the recordings, which are now generally obtainable over here for the first time.
Though Taylor’s style is the more developed, I found Bray’s the more charming. Musically, it is not merely simple but naive, and yet its freshness and enthusiasm win through, so that one easily enters into the spirit of the New Theatre audience in ready enjoyment. Yellin quotes another authority, H. W. Hitchock, who found the music “vaguely early-Beethovenian in thematic content”; really there is much more kinship with Haydn. The Ethiop does have a touch of Beethoven in its overture, but despite some pleasant incidental pieces most of the songs and choruses are too short for sustained interest.
The performances are of what I would suppose to be good amateur standard, and it is doubtful whether anything more polished or sophisticated would be an improvement. The soloists are modestly named in the listing of items, and the soprano Susan Belling who sings Pocahontas’s solo (with an F in alt) deserves individual mention. It is good to hear the chorus recorded right from the front and singing with spirit. The disc is currently without competition on the Gramophone Database (which knows neither Bray nor Taylor), and it does a useful job.'