- Lorenzino de'Medici, 1857
"The Carnival Season of 1857-8 opened on Tuesday ... with Elisa Velasco [alternative title for the Florence revival], a superb opera by Pacini, and one that for a time made me stagger in my Verdi faith. It is so fresh, so original, and combines musical science so well with ear-haunting and simple melody that it appears to me astonishing that it has not obtained a reputation out of Italy. [...] In the second act the soprano appears, opening with a grand scena and aria, followed by a duo by soprano and baritone. A concerted piece in the style of the favorite quintet in Lucia, only vastly superior to this master-piece of Donizetti, closes the act. [...] But Elisa Velasco has been withdrawn to make room for I Lombardi, and Pacini is forced to yield before Verdi. It must be said, the latter shines but poorly in comparison .."
Dwight's Journal of Music, July 2, 1858.