St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1889-07-01
Kings, Queens and Other Po-
tentateS Who Adore Sweet
Music.
The Prince of Wales and the
: Banjo Which He Gaily
!? StrumS.
Margaret Of Italy and Her
PianO--The Gar and His
p COrnet.
Crowned and Seeptered Rulers
Who Rejoice in Rich
Strains.

The fact that the taste, ear and talent
for music are found to prevail among
the inhabitants of the mountain dis
tricts of the world far more exclusively
than among the populations of the
plains may, in some measure, be the
reason why all persons in exalted
spheres of life. such as emperors, en-
presses, kings. queens and princes. are
not only passionately fond of music,
but, frequently, melomanlacS.
If it were only possible for some
clever conductor, such as Strauss,
Gounod or Thomas, to assemble and
drill them into playing in harmony with
one another, all those wars and rumor
of war, which from time to time do so
much to injure the development of civ
ilization, science. art and trade would
become things of the past.
One of the most charming and ac-
complished musicians in Europe is the
beautiful Queen Marguerite of Italy,
who spends several hours every day at
her piano, the strains of which are
from time to time mingled with the
clear ringing notes of her fine soprano
voice.
Before Baron Won Kendell. the former
German ambassador to the Quirinal,
was recalled by Prince Bismarck last
year, hardly week passed without his
being summoned to the palace to play
duets with the queen.
The baron is not only great artist.
but also composer of considerable re-
nown, and during the many years which
he spent in the household OF Prince
Bismarck as his private secretary had
frequent occasion to Soothe the angry
passions of the irritable German chan
cellor, by his soft and piaintive melodies
on the piano. Indeed, whenever Prince
Bismarck's feelings were more than
usually ruffled the princess and her
sons would hunt up ''Tante" (Auntie)
Kendell, as the boys had nicknamed
the baron, and insist on his playing to
the angry statesman, somewhat in the
same fashion as David used to do in the
case of King Saul.
Another distinguished musician is the
reigning Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha,
the brother-in-law of Queen Victoria.
The instrument Oh which he is particu-
larly proficient is the violoncello, and
he has moreover written and put on the
stage several operas of considerable
merit.
The Duke of COnnaught, the third
and favorite son of Her Majest Queen
Victoria, and who is now commanding
the Bombay division of the British
army out IN India, is reported by his
intimate friends to play with some skill
on the flute. But being of modest and
retiring disposition, he has never as yet
given any public exhibition of his
talent.
In this respect he is unlike his sailor
brother, the Duke of Edinburgh, who
never loses an opportunity of perform
ing at amateur and charitable concerts
on his violin. Although passionately
fond of music he has, strangely enough,
but an Indifferent ear, and the notes
which occasionally issue from his fiddle
are of a nature to impair ones digestion
for a fortnight.
1t is we'll known that the entire En-
glish royal family, and his unfortunate
wife in particular. are quite sick unto
death of his mania for scraping his bow
on all possible and impossible occasions,
and the duchess would hardly care to
be reminded now of the fact that the
first present which she made to HIM aft
er their betrothal in 1873, was an apron
for his violin, embroideree by her own
imperial hands.
The duke has only made one attempt
to allow the public to become ac-
quainted with his merits as composer.
He wrote and published the ''Galatea"
waltz, named so after the frigate which
he commanded for several years. I'm
fortunately, however, he thought it nee
essary to have the copy supervised by
Sir Arthur Sullivan. of ''MikadO'' fame,
before having it printed. Sir Arthur
revised and corrected it, and then. I'M
able to abstain from his desire of seeing
his OVID name, or at any rate his initials
connected in print with royalty, he
marked every sheet of music with his
own Initials. his full name being Arthur
Samuel Sullivan.
Either Intentionally or not, the print
ers ne glected to insert the stops be-
tween the three letters, and hence the
whole of the first edition of tie ''Gala-
tea Waltz" appeared on the market
with his initials at the foot of each page.
The laughter excited by this cOntre-
temps was so general that the duke has
never attempted since to publish any
other of his compositions.
Queen Victoria and her daughter,
Princess Louise, both play exquisitely
on the organ, the queen having been
taught by her husband, the late prince
conSort. On one occasion the famous
composer, MendelsSOhn, spent a whole
morning with her and the prince con-
sort at Buckingham palace. playing
with them on this grandest of II in
struments.
Handsome organs have been put up
in each of the royal residences, the new
one in the Waterloo chamber at Wind
sOr castle being an especially fine one.
The Princess of Wales, like her
mother, Queen Louise of Denmark, is a
perfect pianiste, and when paving her
annual visit to her parents at Copen-
hagen, spends much of her time in play
ing duets with the queen. The strang-
est thing about this is that although the
old queen is stone deaf and the Princess
of Wales very hard of hearing. the duets
are reeled off without single hitch or
false note. The Princess of Wales sis
ter, the Czarina of Russia, and her
other sister, the Duchess of Cumber-
land, are also both of them excellent
pianlSteS.
During the palmy days of her reign
at the Tuilleries the Empress Eugene
was exceedingly fond of playing on the
guitar, and occasionally would delight
her most intimate visitors with some of
those peculiarly inSpirating Gypsy
melodies which the Spanish have in
herited from the middle ages. Sorrow.
age and rheumatic govt in her hands
have, however, caused her to discard
the favorite instrument of summer
days.
The beautiful Empress Elizabeth of
Austria plays to perfection on the
either, one of the most difficult of all
instruments. 1t is her constant COM
panion and a never-failing sOlace and
consolation in those moments of
dependency which have of late become
so very frequent. Its beautiful and at
the same time mournful tones when
wailing forth one of those plaintive
''Lieders'' of the Kaernthner noun
tains seems to be thoroughly in accord
with the heart and mind of the sorely
afflicted imperial lady.
The Gar, big and burly giant that he
is, requires an instrument of more pow
erful tone and volume, and finds amuse-
ment in playingon large silver cornet,
the clear ringing blasts of which are
often heard echoing through the halls
and salons of the palace at Gatschina.
Our national instrument the banjo