The Cincinnati daily star. [volume] ([Cincinnati, Ohio]) 1875-1880, 1879-12-26
THE DAILY STAR
BROOKLYN LETTER.


Esthetic Inflaences-.The Past,
Pre- ena and Future Of opera on
This Continent.
Special Correspondence Of the Star.
.n. BROOKLYN, N. Y, Dec. %.
Opera, that lovely offspring of Euro
pean culture, is fast becoming accli-
mated here, and must, at day
not very remote, become regularly
naturalized American citizen. Having
once attained citizenship, The hope is
that progeny thoroughly American,
yet never rejecting discredit on their
high-bom lineage, will spring up 50 that
the United States of the future can with
justice lay claim to native Wagner,
Meyerbeer, Verdi, Rossini Auber, No
Fart or Donizetti. Indeed, l believe'the
day is close at hand when this country
will rejoice in a native composer as thor
oughly a master as any of the noble
names l have just mentioned. Why
should we not attain to this excellence
in music? There was time when our
literature was pooh-poohed abroad, and
even at home, but we found our Haw
thorne, our Longfellow, our Emerson,
our Motley, cur Prescott, and are still
progressing in literary achievements.
And to-day there are those who cry out
that we have no pictorial art, not know
in their ignorance thrt in one depart
ment of painting-landscape-we are
no whit behind Europe, but if anything
slightly in advance. Powers, Crawford
and Ward have also nobly pronounced
for American genius in their sculptures,
until it can no longer be charged that
this is a statueless land. So that rea-
soning from analogy, and arguing from
present glimmers of coming dawn,
believe that am not out of the way in
predicting for music achievements as
great as any won by the sister fine
arts, and fame perhaps as lofty as that
which Germany, Italy or France pos
sesses. But where will the star
rise9 In proud and wealthy New
York? In lovely and cultured
Brooklyn? In intellectual and art
fostering Boston? In sedate and appre-
ciative Philadelphia? In enterprising and
musically inclined Cincinnati, or in
luxurious and seven-wondcr San Fran
cisco? Perhaps in none of these-rather
in some retired American Nazareth, for
genius claims a universe as it's own, and
its voice is as much respected when ut,
tered in the lowly hamlet as in the
boastful city. But the star will surely
rise, and when it does we shall not
have to wait for the Washington obser-
vatorv to proclaim its presence.
1t does not require a very severe
stretch of memory to recall the time
when we had no opera season here in
New York and Brooklyn, and if we had
none here, surely no one else on this con-
tinent had. Sedate, Puritanical New
England, of course. could never be a
starting point for opera in its full sense.
And, excepting New England, twenty
years ago what section of the United
States but New York State could sup
port the opera, pecuniarily and in respect
Of accommodations and stage appoint
ments? Well, | know of none, and so
speaking ! do not wish to be understood
as rejecting on any city, though to-day
there are half dozen cities in my mind
that quite come up to the standard of
requirements. But twenty years ago,
even, we here had no opera season, in the
highest aoceptation of the term, nor
even ten years ago. 1t is within ten
years that Madame Nilsson made the
tour of the United States, and since then
several operate stars have visited these
shores, but their coming and going were
ftful, and until a year ago, when Mapleson
put fortunate foot in New York, opera
managers had generally Jared i'll, and the
public had little that they could regard
as stable. But Mapleson opened the
eyes of the public to the fact that an
opera season in the two great sister cities
could be successfully made permanent
thing. ... I..... ...
Now would not underrate or throw
discredit on the efforts of other managers
to naturalize opera here. What they ac
complished is matter OF history; what
they failed to accomplish must be as
cribed rather to the indifference of the
public and hard times than to any
marked shortcomings on their own part
But last year Mapleson with Hel
Majesty's Opera Company gave us ar
opera season simon pure, and following
up his success he has this year repeated
his triumph with added force and to tn,
increased satisfaction of the public. Tn.
two scenes of his triumph have been tn.
Academy of Music, New York, and th'
Academyof Music, Brooklyn, and thougl
for Brooklyn the season closed last Thurs
day with Donizetti's "Linda Di Cha
mount" and for New York will close tn,
coming Saturday, it is hoped, though Mr.
Mapleson's plans have not been mad
public, that his splendid company will
return in the spring. But while Maple
son made the season, its attractions hav'
been multiplied by Emma Abbott's high
ly meritorious English Opera Troupe ant
later still by Maurice Grau's artisti
French Opera Company, SO that ther
has hardly been night for three month
r,ast>that r. onera WAS not on the hoard