The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1885-03-13
DIE wALKURE.
An Intelligible, COmmon-Sense Criticism of
Wagner's Great Opera.

VaSher'S GFeat OpeTA
Eugene Field, in Chicago News.
There is strange fascination about Herr
Wagners musical drama of die Walkure." A
great many people have supposed that Herr
Sullivan's opera of '.Das Pinaforer was the most
remarkable musical work extant. but we believe
the mistake will become apparent as Herr Nag
ners masterpiece grows in years. We will not
pretend to say that die Walkure" will ever be
whisted about the streets rs the airs from ''Das
Pinafore' are whistled: the fact is that no rem
dition of '''Die Walkure' can be satisfactory
without the accompaniment OF weird flashes of
fire, and it is hardly to be expected that our
youth will carry packages of lycopodium and
boxes of matches around with them for the sole
purpose of giving the desired effect to any
snatches from Herr Wagners work they may
take the notion to whistle. But in the sanctity
of our homes, around our fresides, in the front
parlor where the melodeon or the newly hired
piano has been set up-lt Is there that
Herr Wagners name viii be revered,
Ger The libretto is not above criticism; 1t
strikes US that there is not enough of it. The
probability is that Herr Wagner raE out of
libretto before he had got through with his
music, and therefore had to spread out compare
lively few words over a vast expanse of music.
The result is that great part Of the time the
performers are on the stage is devoted to
thought, the orchestra doing a tremendous
amount of hddling, etc, while the actors wander
drearily around with their arms folded across
their pulmonary departments and their minds
evidently absorbed In profound cogitatlon. AS
for the music, the only criticism we have to
pass upon it is that it changes its subject too
often; in this particular it resembles the die
tionarv-in fact, we believe ''Die Walkure' can
be ter ned the Websters Unabridged Of musical
language. Herr Wagner has his own way of
doing business; he goes at it on the principle
of the twelfth man who holds out against the
eleven other jurors and finally brings them
around to his way of thinking For in
stance, in the midst of pleasing strain
in b natural, Herr Wagner has a
habit of suddenly bringing out small reed in
strument with big voice I'VE do not know its
name) piped in the key of L sharp. This small
reed instrument will not let go; it holds on to
that sharp like mortgage For brief period
the rest of the Observation-Disclosures baSsoons,
viols, flutes, fageoets, cymbals, drums, etc. -
struggle along with an attempt TO either drown
the intruder or bring it round to their way of
doing business; but it is vain. Every last one of
them has to slide around from B natural to F
sharp, and they do it as best they can. Having
accomplished its incendiary and revolutionary
purpose, the small reed instrument subsidies I'M
Til it finds another chance to break out. 1t is a
mugwump
Die Wakuren, as given US by the Damrosch
company, nine stout, come!y young women,
attired in costumes somewhat similar to the ar
NOR worn by Herr Lawrence Barretts Roman
army in Herr Shakspeare's play of der julius
Caesar" Readers of Morse mythology may sup
pose that these weird sisters dm
vague, shadowy creatures, but they are mis-
taken Brunhilde has the embonpoint of a dow
ager and her arms are as robust and red as
a dairymaid's. AS for Gerhde. Waltraute
Helmwige. and the rest, they were we'll fed,
buxom ladies, evidently of middle age, whose
very appearance exhales an aroma of kraut and
garlic which, by the way, we see by the libretto,
was termed mead" in the days of Wotan and
his court. These die Walkuren said to ride
fiery, untamed steeds, but only one steed is eX
hibited in the drama as it is given at the Colum-
bia This Steed. we regret to say Is a FESTIVE,
noisy brute, and invariably has to be led off the
stage by one of das supcs before his act con
cludes However no one should doubt bis heroic
nature inasmuch as the cabalistic letters ~.
S. are distinctly branded upon his left flank
The Seglinde of the piece is Fraulein Siach, a
young lady nc bigger than minute but with
wonderful powers Of endurance. To say nothing
of Hunding's prosecutions, she has to shield
Siegmund, elope with him. climb betting preci
pices, ride Brunnhildes fiery. untamed steed,
confront die Walkuren and look her slain
lover, and in addition to these prodiges, partici
pate in Gr@co Roman wrestling match with an
orchestra Of sixty five pieces for three hours and
a half. Yet she is equal to the emergency. Up
to the very last she is as fresh as daisy and
and after recovering from her swooning spell in
the second act she braces her shoulders back and
dances all around the top notes of the chromatic
scale with the greatest of ease She is a won
derfu little woman. is Fraulein Slach! What a
wee bit of humanity-yet what volume of voice
she has, and what enGurance!
Down among the orchestra people sat q pale,
sad man, His apparent consequences interested
US deeply. We could not imagine what he was
there for. Every once in awhile he would get
up and leave the orchestra and dive down under
the stage and appear behind the scenes, where
we would catch gimpses of him practicing with
a pair OF thirty pound dumb bels and testing a
spirometer Then he would come back and re-
occupy his old seat among the orchestra, and
looked paler and sadder than ever. What
strange mysterious being was he? Why did he
infilct his pale sad presence upon that galaxy of
tuneful jewellers? What cunning master the
great Herr Wagner isl For what emergency
does he not provide! 1t was 1870 when the
third act began. Die Walkuren had assembled
in the dismal dell-all but the den Walkure,
Brunnhilde Wotan is approaching on appalling
storm clouds, composed of mosquito bars and blue
lights The sheet iron thunder crashes, and the
orchestra is engaged in another mortal combat
with that revolutionary mugwump the small
reed instrument that persists in reforming the
tune Of the opera. Then the pale, sad man pro-
ducesa large brass horn-big enough at the
business end for q to walk into. 1t
is fearful, ponderous instrument,
manufactured especially for ode Walk
ure' at the Krupp gun factory in
Essen 1t has an appropriate name; the master
himself christened it the boomerangelungen 1t
is the monarch, the jumbo of all musical
dinguses. The cuspidor end of it protrudes into
one of the proscenium boxes. The fair occu-
pants of the box are frightened and timidly sink
back Wotan is ut hand. He comes upon 700
yards of white tarletan and fourteen pounds of
kissing, blazing lycopodium. The pale, sad man
at the other end of the boomerangeungen ex
plains his wherefore. He applies his lips to the
brazen monster. His eyeballs hang out upon
his cheeks, the veins rise On his neck, and the
lumpy cords and muscles stand out on his arms
and hands. Boohoop boohoop-yes, six times
boohoop does that brazen megatherium bare
out, vivid and distinct above all the other sixty
instruments in the orchestra. Then tho white
tarletan clouds vanish, the blazing lycopodium
goes out, and Wotan stands before the excited
spectators. Their the pale, sad man lays down
tho boomeranselungen and goes home That is
all he has to do; the six sonorous boohoops an
nouncng the presence of Wotan is all that is de-
manded of the boomerangelungen But it is
enough it is marvellous appalling prodigious