The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-11-28

vous,' said the sympathizing listeners, but
| watt At the conclusion of the waltz the audi
| enee rose at the prima donna, and she had to
repeat it. Nine. Savilles success was in
measure deserved. Her voice captivates the
listener instantly, for it is a young voice,
fresh voice. and is a voice that has certain
carrying quality. In the garden scene she
| showed considerable skill as an actress and
sang with positive charm. She did not force
| her tones as before
| Judging from all accounts, Nine. Saville's
success seems to have been a genuine one.
| She is the first California prima donna who
/ has won a triumph at the Metropolitan Opera
| house, as Miss Sibyl Sanderson was not in good
| voice last year, and proved disappointment.
| The new singers real name is Fannie Simon
sen-Droun. Her mother is Fannie Simonsen,
| who was well known at one time as singer,
and her father is William NJ. Simonsen, the
! Australian impresssrio. Fannie Slmonsen-
| Droun was born in California, but went at an
early age to Australia. Her brother, William
| NJ. Simonsen. youth Of about 20, who is said
| to possess a remarkably promising tenor voice,
| is studying for the concert stage with Robert
| Lloyd. He is solo tenor at the Plymouth Con-
gregational Church on Post street, and he will
| be the tenor soloist in Governs Crosse Maiden"
which the Harmony Choral Union will shortly
| produce for some local charity.
| It is sad to see the decline of once famous
| institution of learning, but even the Italian
papers beginning to agitate the fact that the
Milan Conservatory. which in its day turned
out so many famous musicians, has become
effete and useless. II Trovatore, q Milan music
| journal, gives the budget of the conservatory's
expenses, which it appears amount to SD, 40
| per annum (72 200 francs). This sum is
| divided between professors OF singing, har-
| mony, counterpoint, harp, flute, etc. Little
| fruit is obtained from the teaching of all this
staff" says II Trovatore. "From year to year no
singers above mediocrity are turned out by
| the conservatory. 1t produces few orchestra
| players, one or two pianists and few miser-
able professors who go TO augment the already
| enormous number of struggling, despairing
| musical failures"
| The veteran Simms Reeves has made his first
appearance in modern music hall at the EN-
| pire Theater, London. The management was
| kind to Reeves, separating by an orchestral Sc
| lection his own performance from that of
| flock of trained geese; while the audience did
| their best to encourage him with applause,
which, although cordial and well meant, was
very different from the roars of cheers that
| used to greet the great tenor in the Handel Or
| chestra of the Crystal Palace. The fact is that
| the music-hall debut of the octogenerian
Smms Reeves comes too late by some years;
many promenaders moved away from the bar
| riers after feeble rendering of "Co1ne Into
the Garden, Maud" and before highly artistic
and almost pathetic delivery of Here Sheer
| Hulk Lies Poor Tom Bowling
| The old cemetery of Waehring, near Vienna,
where Beethoven and Schubert werc buried,
| is going to be dug up and q Catholic church
| built on its site. Beethoven does not, how
! ever, repose in his original tomb, his mortal
| remains having been transported about ten
| years ago to the new central cemetery, where
| a magnificent tomb was erected to his memory
| by the municipality of Vienna. But Bee
| thoven's modest monument az Waehring has
| been preserved, and lady in the neghbor-
| hood has kept up around it parterre OF white
| roses, the Bonn masters favorite flowers. The
| old Beethoven tomb and the Schubert monu-
| ment will be placed in the new Catholic
| church.
Orchestra leaders seem seriously threatened
| with feminine competition in Italy, for follow
| ing on the heels of the announcement that q
| lady conductor had been appointed to the
| chief theater in Verona, comes the news that
| at the Manzoni Theater, one of the best in
! Milan, where the Gargona Company is at pres
| ent giving a season OF light opera, the baton is
held by 'new" young girl, Signorina An
| nina Cappeli, who is nightly directing in the
|
| who for her debut conducted very ably Charles
| Lecocq's lie Occur ct la Main"
| People often wonder how the little German
| and Swiss towns manage to maintain such
| good orchestras as they possess. This is how
! they do in the town of Lucerne, which pays its
| conductor the sum OF 1000 francs year, a
| very respectable salary for Switzerland, where
living is so cheap. The board of supervisors
| contributes 1900 francs the singing society
| $50 francs, the Catholic church 500 francs, the
| concert society 700 francs and two little must
cal societies $50 francs each. But the first
| musician of the town certainly does not waste
| his time, especially on Sunday; he first has to
conduct the church music, then he directs q
| matinee musicale, and then he presides at the
| open-air Sunday concert.
| The Royal Opera house of Berlin has been
! entirely reconstructed and has become one of
| the most magnificent theaters in the world. In
| spite of the new glitter and show, however,
the public is beginning to claim that the aeous-
| tics of the old building were much superior.
| The electric lighting is magnificent, especially
| in the large concert hall, which serves for a
| foyer on opera nights. "Fidelio'' was the in
! augural performance, and though the new dec
| orations and stage accessories produced grand
| effect, the singers left much to be desired. An
| old amateur writes that "Fidelio'' at the old
| Opera was preferable, in spite of the magnif-
| cence of the new house.
| The provincial theaters in Belgium, as well
| as in France, are fond of making speciality OF
| monster performances; but the chief theater
| in Verviers recently went one better than all
| the others when it announced for the opening
| of the season a representation of "Faust," pre-
| ceded by .The Hunchback'-an opera in five
! acts and q drama in six acts. The first per-
! torrance began at half-past O'Clock and the
| last terminated little after o'clock in the
morning. The audience could not complain
| OF not being given its money sworth.
| The directors of the Carl Theater in Vienna
recently tried the plan of lending opera-glasses
| gratuitously to the public. At the end of a
week a number of the glasses were missing,
| and it is not known whether they were stolen
willfully or whether very supplemented
| theater-goers took them under the impression
| that they were given away with the seats. The
management is undecided whether to replenish
| the supply or to abandon lending opera
glasses
The Belgian papers state that Ysaye has been
consumed for some time with a desire to exer-