The Cincinnati daily star. [volume] ([Cincinnati, Ohio]) 1875-1880, 1878-05-27
THE MUSICAL FESTIVAL.
We've All Gushed Irs Praises,
Now Let's Give the Other Side a
Hearing.

, was not quite so satisfactory as we all made
ourselves believe at the time. The greatest
praise evidently came from the masses, and
\ little investigation showed that the most
cultivated of our musical people were not
pleased in all respects.
! The primary cause grew out of the fact
that the Festival Committee was composed
of people who knew little or nothing of mu-
| sic. They ignored the advice of all our
local musicians, and in doing that ignored
the taste of the people as a whole.
We have here men of eminence in all
: schools of music each devoted to his par
ticular composers, and representing the
taste of certain proportion of the musical
community.
The advice of all these was ignored and
a contract made with Mr. Theodore Thomas,
who though one of the finest of musicians,
is an enthusiast of special class of music,
and so far as he can ignores all others. With
the matter all in his own hands he gave us
a series of heavy entertainments, all made
up of selections from the authors to whose
compositions he and Mr.. Singer both of the
same school, are welded. In order to see
just how our patrons and professors of mu-
sic feel in regard to the matter, a STAR re-
..
ton.
The first man struck was an enthusiastic
music teacher, devotee of Italian music.
He gushed on his fayorite authors with the
same want of liberality that either Mr..
Singer or Mr.. Thomas would when discuss
ing their favorites Then he struck new
vein and ran on as follows: 'There is one
thing more sir, that you should MENTION
and that is the ignoring entirely of the cele-
brated and rising vocalists of this city
With proper selections they should have
had every one a number suited to their
ability. And tell you there are vocalists
here who, had opportunities been given,
would have astonished and delighted our
visitors beyond what they believe possible.
Eminent Cincinnatians who are abroad
should have been brought home, and capa-
BILE ones who were in the city should have
been given engagements. This would have
secured rehearsals with the chorus, and
there would have been none of the trouble
that was experienced when the rehearsals
: were attempted, and it was found that
neither the foreign soloists nor the imported
fiddlers were up in their parts"
A prominent local musician a man of
culture and knowledge of music, was next
encountered.
Said he "Nothing but the great chorus,
the unusual efforts of all the newspapers and
the novelty of the opening of great Music
Hall that had been advertised the country
over, kept the Festival from being failure.
1t was a great success, not because
of any knowledge or judgment displayed by
the Festival Committee, but because it
couldn't help being a success
"Why, sir" continued the gentleman,
warming up as he proceeded 'the ignor-
ance, arrogance, presumption and want of
understanding that characterized that Com
mittee would have been the death of an
undertaking under any but the most ex-
tremely favorable circumstances. The
chorus was made up of people, many of
whom were socially, intellectually and in
point of wealth-to which the Committee
pay so much deference-the superiors of
most of themselves; yet these chorus singers
were treated with no more respect than if
they had been SO many supers hired at so
cents night from the crowds on the street
corners. sing in the chorus, and say to your
readers, that such was the indignation that,
had it not been for the influence of few
gentlemen coupled with the pride all feel
in the city, the chorus would have refused
: to sing, and thus broken up the Festival at
the last moment. Then ignoring the Grand
Orchestra of this city and importing musi-
clans entirely from New York, was another
S outrage In all previous Festivals Cincin-
lldIl were dLlu ~ Neo
admitted by Thomas himself that they
were better up in the music at the early re-
! hearsals, and were as fine performers as any
! in the country. At the first rehearsal this
: wear the New York fiddlers were as igno'
= rant of the music as mules and it is pretty
certain that they never rehearsed it for this
Festival until they arrived in Cincinnati
These are small matters, perhaps, but they
) count for great deal in the aggregate. The
e chief difficulty was in the character of the
vt music 1t was wanting i'll variety, and was
r such as would be made up by an impracti
= cal man like Theodore Thomas, who, though
e among the greatest of musicians sees nC
h good outside of his own musical divinities
This is so well recognized in the East tina
!, in a series of Concerts given in New 4orl
,f by Theodore Thomas it is especially stipu
i lated that for but one night in the weel
u ! shall the selections be wholly under hi
: control Thomas selects just such music a
" pleaSes his own ear and it is fair to say
81 that nine-tenths of the people who pro
% nounced the selections grand, and ex
pressed themselves delighted, really fel
If bored at the sameness of the music, but dit
If not dare say SO, because no one else did"
l. Signor Janotta was found yesterday a
4, the Hotel Emery and interviewed as to the
If question. He said: ut is undoubtedly tru
IS and patent to all that there was enough
If and even more than enough, of home tai
ent to have prevented the Musical Commit
tee from hiring outside musicians. 1t wa
is a small thing on the Committees part to d'
n So and disgrace to them to ignore ou
Is home talent. 1t showed their total ignor
q ance of managing such Festival and i
l. was not in the least credit to them tina
c, the affair was a success" Signor Janotti
q continued: Undoubtedly we have NOR
a musicians here, and better ones, than il
any other city. Cincinnati has stepped tc
e the front as the Queen of Music and Art
is and it is a disgrace that its culture of mus
d should have been ignored. If the Commit
s. tee desired to engage the services of Mr
b. Thomas, that was well enough, but tina
n they should hire a New York orchestra ant
" New York singers was preposterous, and in
s duced the public of this city to believe tina
is the Committee were fools. We have here,
Mr. Janotta proceeded, "a magnificent mu
sical band the Cincinnati Orchestra, capa
10 ble of competing with any such institution
IS in this country. Then, besides, we have ou
IL singers and music professors, ETC. All o
as these could have been engaged and consult
II ed, and the public taste of our citizens sat