And thus has the great extension of
musical taste been injurious to music.
But, to return to our old favourite. All who remember him must likewise
remember his powers of attraction ere this blight of _fashion_ had come
over us. Witness his various benefits, and above all, that at the Opera
House, producing, it is said, 1,500_l_. Such marks of public favour,
added to the constant request of company, both public and private, and
to a man who, like Incledon, _loved_ his art, were sure to be productive
of _vanity_--vanity, the besetting sin of all great men, from Alexander
on his Persian throne, to Mr. Kean enthroned in the Coal Hole.--His
education had been limited. The songs chiefly in vogue at the early part
of the late war were _nautical_, which led him to a bold, free style;
these were his faults--vanity, want of cultivation, and a freedom of
manner approaching to excess. But he had a qualification as a singer
which threw all these into shade. The "Spectator," I believe, somewhere
says it is necessary for a good dancer to have a good understanding; but
I think it is much more necessary for a good singer to have a _good and
feeling heart_; and whether singing or acting his part in the drama of
life, with family, friends, or brother (not forgetting sister)
performers, Charles Incledon had as warm a heart as ever beat.
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