Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-05-21
THIS EVENINGS PROGRAMME.

Inc occasion is, in sense, the inauguration
OF the peoples Exposition and the manage
ment have planned, by the miscellaneous char
acter Of the music as well as by the extraordin-
ary number and quality of the performing
forces, to make this q veritable peoples festi-
| val.
Conductor Seidl--whose face and career
were sketched in this paper yesterday-and his
orchestra of IS selected players open the festi-
| val with the Grand Centennial March, by
Richard Wagner (born Leipzig, 1878; died
| Venice, 1889. American pride may feel graft
fed over the fact that the great composer
wrote this march for the occasion of the open
ing of the Philadelphia Exhibition, in 1876.
We may also feel pleased over the pretty
compliment paid by Wagner in writing to MIR.
Theodore Thomas: "In some of the more deli
cate portions of the composition figure to my
self the beautiful and vivacious women of
America in their festival attire" (Was this
because the Women's Centennial Commission
ordered and paid for the march?) We might
have been still more delighted, however, had
this composition proved to be-what few "oc-
casionaI" pieces area truly representative
specimen of the composers work. Mr.. Kreh-
biel makes this
ANALYSIS OF THE MARCH.
First a simple ascending triplet which is heard
at the outset from the full orchestra; second, q
vigorous march melody beginning with the tones
of the majo triad of q (the key Of the march);
third. fanfare for the brass instruments; fourth,
a broadly sustained melody in b fat, succeeded
by, fifth graceful figure for the violins calcu-
lated to mark strong contrast with the other ele-
ments of the march. The most significant of these
elements is the opening trplet which impHrfts
employed dramatically, that is to say, It is played
in conjunction with all the other melodies, and
thus IL gives the tempo of the march throughout.
The second number of the programme is an
arrangement for orchestra of Bach'S g minor
prelude and fugue. This is the only work to
be given at the festival from the pen OF the
grand old Thomas-Cantor, Ito whom" says
Schumann, music owes almost as great debt
as religion owes to Its founder" Johann Sc
bastian Bach (born, Eisenach, 1855; died, Leip-
zig, 1750), within less than the allotted three
score years ana ten, made himself known as
the greatest organist of his time, and showed
himself the best of fathers to Just 20 children:
at his death he left an enormous number of
compositions that created new epochs in al
most all departments of music His organ
works-of which this prelude and fugue con-
stitute one OF the most famous-are character
lied by Grove as ''producuons unsurpassed and
unsurpassable." They were mostly written
during the ten years he spent as court organist
at Weimar. In transcribing this work for or
chestra, a chorale has been introduced as
middle movement and then placed under the
fugue as a cdnttGs JirnlICS-a proceeding sugges-
tive of Bach's fondness for writing new parts
into already completed works, just for the fun
of the thing.
wAGNER's ONLY COMIC OPERA,
"Die Meistersinger Won Nuremberg" is repre-
sented by three favorite solo numbers: Pog-
neT'S Address, Hans Sachs Monologue and
WdIter's Prize Song The first two will be
sung by Mr.. Emil Fischer, prominent Wag-
merriam bass singer, who was for eight years
manager of the Dantsic Theater and subse-
quently wen great success in leading roles at
Rotterdam, Carlsruhe. Vienna, and, especially,
Dresden. He has this season been a leading
member of the New York German Opera, at
the Metropolitan. Into the same company was
Mr.. Paul Kalsch received when he came over
last spring from Berlin (where he was one of
the lesser tenors) to marry MISS Lilh Leh-
mann. Won Buelow has wittlly dubbed him the
"Lilli-Putian tenor" "Die Meistersinger" is
legitimate comic opera, to be distinguished from
the modern opera boalfe and operetta; it
by good-humored satire. Wagner in lS4S be-
gan this lively picture of the foibles and ped
aDtry of these simple-miuded tradespeople of
the olden time, who made music by rule and
yard-stck, as humorous counterpart OF the
noble minstrels whose contest on the Wartburg
he had just finished portraying in "Tannhau-
SER" The music, however, was not written un-
til the period between 1861 and 1867 after he had
written 'Lohengrin," the text and part of the
music for the "Nibeluneen Ring" music
dramas and Tristan und Isolde" 1t was first
given at Munich in ls6S. under Hans Won Bue-
low, Wagner watching the performance from
seat beside King Ludwig.
Lists E fat piano concerto was played with
such great success by Miss Adele Aus der Ohe
two years ago, when here with the Boston Sym
phony Orchestra, that she will repeat it to-
night This gifted young woman of q sum-
mers astonished Won Buelow at the age of five,
was for seven years one of
LIszT'S FAvoRITE PUPILS
and has fully realized all early promise in tri-
umphant concert appearances on both sides of
the ocean. Franz Liszt (born, Raiding, Hun
gary, ISL; died, Bayreuth. 1885, marvellous
piano player and composer as he was has left
no more important work for his favorite in
etrument than this brilliant and original COM
position. The ingenious transformations of the
few themes employed and the fusion of four
movements into one are points that distinguish
it from concertos of strict FORM After his
two concerts, Liszt's Is Hungarian Rhapsodies
the third of which will be played tonight in
an orchestral arrangement-are his chief works
for piano. The wild, barbaric blood of the old
time Huns may be traced into this composers
veins; its effects appear nowhere more clearly
than in these brilliant erratic picturesque
compositions.
Miss Emma Juch, who needs no introduction
to Pittsburg audiences, makes her entree upon
our festival stage with the cavatina from
Gounods Queen of Sheba.r Charles Fran
co.'s Gounod (born. Paris, 1873, since his tre-
mendous success with 'Faust' in 1859, has not
produced single opera that can permanently
hold the boards. ''Reine de Saba" suffered
from a wretehed nbretto, and thus soon fell
into dIsuse after its first performance in 1862,
though an English version entitled Irene" has
occasionally been given, and several numbers
are frequently heard on the concert stage.
:. The familiar largo by George Frederick
Handel (Halle, I6S5-london, 1852 will be
played by the orchestra, with obligato by Mr..
Max Bendix, one of the country's leading vio-
linists, and formerly cOncertnIetSteT of Theo-
dore Thomas Orchestra, The melody is
adapted from vocal number in HandePs
opera, "Aerxes," produced in I13S. Is it not
nearly time, by the way, to give this overdone
tune surcease?
THE CREATION.
The first part of the "The Creation" con-
stitutes the entire oratorio programme for the
festival. Festivals of seven concerts quite
commonly devote three entire evenings to as
many. oratorios; let US be thankful that we
have one-third of an oratorio, at least. When
Franz Joseph Haydn (Rohran, 1882; Vienna,
iS09) wrote this immortal work and its COM
panion, The Seasons" &c he rather % mer-
that that of "Papas Haydn, as he is affec-
tionately called. he had finished his l25
symphonies and his scores Of scores in
almost every other department of composition;
had devoted to the noble house of Esterhazy
an ordinary life work; and had returned from
the glories of that famous visit to London
seemingly ripe for the sickle of Time, when he
surprised the world with these two great
achievements in hitherto untouched field
Both were written within a very short period
on librettos adapted from English poems
(Milton's Paradise Lost" and Thomson's
''Seasons'') and both attained Phenomenal sue
cess Immediately upon their public production
in 1893. Opinion was much divided as 10 their
respective merits. Haydn himself, being asked
by the Emperor winch he preferred, replied:
"'The Creation: because in it angels speak
and tell of God; but in the Seasons only ST.
mon talks" He also said on another occasion:
"Never was l so pious as when composing the
Creations; knelt down every day and prayed
God to strengthen me for my work." A de-
tailed description of the first part of the ora
torio may be found in the admirable Hand
Book which Mr.. H. E. Krehbiel has edited for
this festival. The solo parts will be taken by
Miss Juch, Mr.. Kalisch and Nh. Fischer. In
this work Mr.. Retter will conduct and reap the