Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-05-23
TO-DAY'S PROGRAMME.
A Wagner Matinee-Selections From Parsi-
fal. siegfried, The Flying Dutclman
and Tannhauser-Saint-S -Saens'
DeluRe In the Evening.

fal. Siegfried, The Flying Dutcliman
and Tunnhnuser-Saint- -Saens'
Deluge in the Evening.
The matinee at 215 o'clock this afternoon
presents programme culled exclusively
from the works OF Wilhelm Richard Wag-
ner (born, Leipzig 1913; died, Venice, 1881.
The prelude to "Parsifal" is the only extract
from the masters last music-drama included
in the programmes of our highly Wagnerian
festival Very little else in "Parsifal' is really
suitable for concert performances, it being
a work which on account Of the mystic
religious subject matter and the indissoluble
union of music, dramatic action and stage ef
fects could scarcely be adequately understood
except when performed under the ideal condi-
tions of the Wagner Theater at Bayreuth, to
which stage alone the composer directed that
its performance be ever confined. Such con-
cert performances of extended parts of "Parsi-
fal" as have been given serve to confirm the
wisdom of this restriction.
The "Walweben" is an extract from ''Sieg-
fried" arranged by Wagner himself for concert
purposes. 1t is deliciously poetic portrayal
of the scene in the forest where Sieqfried,
pausing moment before calling the dragon
out of his cave to do battle for possession of
the magic ring, falls to musing amid the wood
land murmurs and the native song of the
birds, from whom he would fain learn the
secret of his birth. The "Kaiser Marsch" was
written for proposed public celebration to
greet the victorious troops on their return
from the Fra1co-Prussian war. The musical
celebration did not come Off so Wagner ar
ranged his march for the concert room, where,
he said, 'let it fit as well as it can"
A wAGNERIAN FEAST.
The rest of tie programme is made up of ex-
cerpts from The Flying Dutchman" and
.'Tannhauser." From the former these:
Overture: spinning chorus (women) and ballad
(Mrs. Herbert-F Foerster) ;duo from Act II Miss
Juch and NJ. Campanari). From Tam
hauser'' these extracts: Overture, aria, "Dick
theure Halle" (Mrs. Herbert-Foerster); ro-
nance to the evening star (Mr. Campanari):
Elizabeth'S prayer miss Juch). All of these,
with the possible exception of the duet, are
among those Wagnerian fragments which are
best suited. and most frequently chosen, for
concert use.
'pThe Flying Dutchman" (produced, Dresden,
1922 marks an important dividing line IN
Wagner's self-development. In its predecessor
"Rienzi" he had simply followed Meyerbeer
and others of the Paris Grand Opera school.
The "Dutchman," however. saws the somewhat
enthusiastic Mr.. Harry T. Finck, contains
the germs of most of his later demonstrating
motives, text of real poetic value in form
and contents, a highly characteristic orchestral
Dart an unprecedented freedom in the use of
discords and modulations, an avoidance of arias
and ornamental vocalsm. = The acting assumed
as much Importance as the singing. 49,
No opera had ever been writted in which there
was such unity amidst diversity of coloring,
and such a close Interviewing of parts"
All these germs of reform reached further
growth in ''Tannhauser" Dresden, lS45); and
at least two important portions-ELizdbethS
prayer aud TdnnhGuSer'S narrative OF his pill
grimage-possess the same declamatory and
dramatic vocal style found in the later music
dramas. At the same time there is preserved,
in the hero's song to Venus, in the whole scene
che mn fnUr nrnan inf i'm n
the evening star, and elsewhere throughout the
work much of the familiar operatic idiom of
the past-the definite and fully developed
melody. the simpler rhythmic structure, the
general form-though all invested with deeper
meaning and a hitherto unknown elaborateness
of Orchestration,
THE EVENING PROGRAMME.
The first part of this evenings programme is
miscellaneous in character. Gioacchino An
tonic Rossini (P esaro, l792-Passy, 1889 the
greatest master of the recently pre-
yalent Italian school is represented by
two selections from his masterpiece "William
Tell" one of the two operas in which he quite
steps out of his conventional style toward
that of Mozart and the earlier Ger
mans The parts chosen are the famil-
lar overture and the famous trio, the latter
to be sung by Messrs. Perotti. Campanari and
Fischer. Mr.. Perotti will also sing the we'll
known ''Salve Dlmora'' from Gounod's
Faust" and Mr.. Emil Fischer
will interpret Lgsiarrs great scene from
the third act of "Eurganthe." one of the pas
sages in which Weber most clearly foreshadOws
Wagner. Miss Aus der 0he undertakes Bee
thoven's emperor" concerto, the noblest work
of its class. The orchestra contributes Edouard
Lalo's Rhapsodie, composition which shows
at his best (for the concert rooml the Spanish
composer whose opera lie Roi d'Ys" is one OF
the continental successes Of late years. Chorus
and orchestra close the first part with the
Cathedral scene from Lohengrin.
Part II is devoted to one OF the most impor-
Itant novelties Of the festival the Biblical can