Los Angeles daily herald., 1889-06-02
SOUVENIRS OF MAEsTROS
Personal Traits of Some OF
: the Great Composers.
WRITER'S OF FAMOUS OPERAS.
Rossini the Joker, Meyerbeer the
Jealous, Berlioz the Dyspeptic,
Offenbach the Gamester.

being the original publisher of the works
,f such shining stars in the musical
armament as Rossini and Meyerbeer,
Beethoven and Berlioz, Offenbach and
Tlotow. For over q quarter of century
the senior partner and managing director
of the house was M. Gemmy Brandus,
who, in addition to being a publisher,
was a devoted admirer of music and
critic of no mean parts. At his home in
the Faubourg Montmartre he loved to
hold reunions of the musical talent Of
the day, and there the great masters
came on terms of the warmest friend
ship and intimacy. Here, at his fathers
house, it was that Mr.. Edouard Brandus
now living in this city, met the musical
celebrities OF the day, and saw tbem ID
the familiar intercourse of everyday life.
Mr.. Brandus now has in his possession
several score of personal letters from such
of the dead maestros as Rossini, Beetho.
ven and Meyerbeer, besides liberal
fund of anecdotes regarding their per
aonal habits, traits and characteristics
To see these letters and gather some
of these anecdotes, called upon Mr.
Brsndus at his residence, in West Fifty
seventh street. He very kindly con
eented to furnish the information sought
Going to quantity carved little cabi
net he procured a package bound abou
with bright blue ribbon. Upon loosen
ing the ribbon a mass of papers and let
tiers, yellow and time-seared, were scat
tered over the table. Examination
showed that the bundle con
tanned letters, receipts, etc., from
Beethoven, Chopin, Meyerbeer
O6enbach. Flotow, Lecocq anc
many others of, comparatively speaking
less or note. Among the letters was
large portrait Of an old man with power
ful shoulders, strong features and
brown wig. There was the Suggestion
of Q wicked twinkle in the dark, widely
opened eyes, and about the clean-shaver
lips there lurked decided sarcasm. Or
the back of the picture was scrawled
signature-Rossini. Taking up the pic
ture and looking into it with a smile
Mr.. Brandus began to talk.
"Rossini? Yes, that's just how HI
looked when this was taken. He wal
then nearly 20 years old, and, as yot
will notice, thanks to his brown wig, hi
looked remarkably young and we'll pre-
served. Rossini, although the writer O
such serious class of music, was, strange
to say, one of the biggest jokers that evel
lived. To have met him in life, without
knowing anything about his fame, one
would have surmised that he was 6
writer of comic operas, to such an extern
was the love of joking predominant il
him. l remember, for instance, ont
practical joke in particular perpetrate'
by Roseini. There was a compose
named Carafa who was always in tn
most alarming state of impecuniosity-
dead broke as we say here. One day
it was in 1866-Carafa came to borroy
some money from Rossini.
"Well,' said Rossini, after listening t
Carafa's dolorous tale, Pm sorry
can't lend you any money to-day, bu
III tell you what I'll do. I'll writ
some music for you, and if you will jus
take it to Brandus, my publisher, he'l
give you some money down for it,
"Carafa gladly accepted this PROPOSE
ton, and in wonderfully short amour
of time Rossini had filled several page
with notes. The piece he entitled
sDouces "reminiscences sur PAfricaine,
by Rossini. Carafa hurried off with tn
composition to the Rue Richelieu to la.
it before Brandus. The latter, upon zee
ing the manuscript, was greatly excite
and surprised, for Rossini and Meyer
beer, the composer of PAfricaine,
were, it was well known, bitter enemies
"The publishers Joy over receiving al
improvisation on 'L'Africaine' from sucl
q source was great, for the composition
would be sure of having very larg
sale, and he gladly paid Carafa, the i'm
pecunious, the sum of l 900 francs. Sool
after Carafa had left with the money an,
the publishers excitement over the pur
chase had little cooled down, it occurre'
TO him to try the music. What was hi
discontinue to find that it consisted of
series of the most vilely discordant com
binations, certain amount of fiendisl
ingenuity having been exerted in pro
ducing the hideous ensemble.
"The antagonism between Rossini anC
Meyerbeer was very great. Up t,
1881 Rossini's William Tell stoot
in the very first rank of oper
attic successes, but in that year Meyer
beers Robert 6 Diable was brough
L
as TO cast even William Tell in the shade
After that Rossini never wrote anothe
opera. 1t may, therefore, be said tina
1881 marks the rise of Meyerbeer and the
partial eclipse of Rossini.
"These were Rossini's sweet reminis
cences of his enemy Meyerbeer's 'L'Af-
ricaine.' M. Gemmy Brandus nevel
sought to recover the 1000 francs giver
to Carafa. He preferred to lose them
quietly, rather than have Rossini's joke
get abroad.
"But If Rossini was thus liberal in his
charity-even If it was with other peo
ple's money-his wife certainly never
displayed any tendencies whatsoever in
this direction. She was penuriousness
itself. Yet, in spite of this tendency
she loved to have company about her
and to give dinner parties at her house
n Paris.
1.-THE one source of solicit ude to her
in connection with these dinner parties
was the expense of the edibles consumed
by the guests"
Upon one occasion she gave little
dinner party, and when the time fol
dessert came she suddenly astonished
those gathered around her festive board
by making the following announcement
my dear friends, had some lovely
fruit sent here from Potel & Chabot's
and some excellent pastry from Fras
cati's, and it's all there in that buffet
but, unluckily, I've lost the key. Won't
You come to the drawing-room and have
q demi-tasse of coffee?'
at is not generally known of Meyer
beer that his real name was Joseph Beer