The San Francisco call., 1895-10-10

early next year with series of grand operatic
performances. 1t is not Tamagnos intention
| to reserve his theater selfishly for himself and
| his friends, he has already announced that he
means to give performances for sweet charity
| there and he will also encourage young and
| talented composers. AS preliminary Tamagno
has commissioned the maestro Gnagna to
| write him an opera, which win be performed
at the opening of his theater.
! Ivan Caryll, the popular light opera COM
| poser, has Just met with touching adventure
! in Scotland. The maestro is a Belgian, and
not having the least idea that it was against
| the law, outraged Scotch Sabbatarianism by
going out fishing on the day of rest. He was
accosted on the lake by member of the High
| land Vigilance Committee, who commanded
him to desist, and when the merry melodist
| refused the Scotehman cut his boat loose from
| its anchor and. then rowed rapidly to land.
| Then there was a dreadful discovery. The
| Laird who had personally conducted" the
| composer to the spot had rOWed away in his
own boat, promising to come and fetch his
| friend ashore in the afternoon, and the victim
| of Scotch bigotry knew nothing of the naViga-
| ton of the waters or even where he was, and
dared not set the sail, and just as he was max
| ing up his mind to row Scotch mist swept
| suddenly down from the mountains He
| shouted ''Yo-hol yo-ho," and Haul away"
| and "Heave hop and various other things
which his librettists had imposed upon him as
/ genuine nautical expressions, but no voice an
| swered his, and in the binding fog he fancied
himself off the coast of Newfoundland. Early
! the next day search party from the castle
| discovered the Sabbath breaker busily en-
gagged, it is satd, in setting some lyrics which
| he had in his pocket. At any rate the COM
| poser of ''My Honey" went up to London di-
| rectly after and deposited with his publisher
| two new plantation songs, "De Little Black
| Coon Up Oar" and ''Way Down de Ohio"
| Considerable interest is being aroused in
England and France by a travelling orchestra
| of Russian musicians. ''These artists" says
| La Semaine Musicale, ''use instruments which
are quite unknown here, and which have the
aspect of large pipes of conical form, bent
| toward the mouthpiece and varying in dfmen-
sions from quarter of a yard to yard in
diameter. One of these instruments that only
produced one note made deeper sound
| than any the contra basso can make.
The musician who plays has two of these
| pipes, into which he blows alternately. Some
of them are capable of producing one, others
1 two notes, and the effect resembles the deep
tones of an organ" "The difficulty of per-
| forming on this orchestra of Russian horns"
says LIE Menestrel, ''lies in the absolute pre-
| cislon which Is necessary and which is pro-
| digiously difficult to obtain on such instru-
ments, when each performer only produces
one or two notes. The inventor of this system
! was Bohemian named Maresch, born in
| 1719. His music found favor in Russia, and
| he was generously recompensed by the then
! Emperor"
| Johann Strauss new opera will be produced
| this month at the theater An der Wien in
| Vienna, and afterward at the Leasing Theater
in Berlin. The operetta is called "Asperula"
This odd title is explained by the fact that the
pretty little plant the asperula, is used in Ger
many and Austria as a drink infused with
white wine, generally Rhine wine. The opera
contains some pretty drinking songs as well as
a waltz round the asperula barrel. 1t is not
the first time that this plant has had the honor
of inspiring poets lays. Without counting
the charming verses that Maurice Bouchor has
! consecrated to it there still exists in Germany
poetical legend in which the asperula is
| elevated to the dignity of Prince Charming.
| Western nations often find it difficult TO
realize how much attention is paid to art, par
/ ticularly to musical art, in Russia. An ac-
count of the new conservatory at ST. Peters
burg, which is rapidly nearing completion,
| gives some idea OF the money which is Law
ished in this direction. The building, which
is an imposing one, is conveniently close to
| the Grand Theater. The conservatory how
ever, will contsin fairly large theater OF its
| own, furnished with the latest improvements
in stage mechanism, for the pupils perform
ances. Another large hall is destined for the
recitals of the Imperial Society of Russian
Music The interior decorations of the con-
| servatorv have been the object of most artistic
care, and the accessories will leave nothing to
be desired. The building will be lighted bv
not less than 5000 electric lights
The composer Zollner, who was so spccessfn1
with his Sat Sedan" a short time ago at
Munich, has just produced another lyric act
"Ihe surprise" at the Royal Theater at Dres
| den. This opera also relates an episode of the
war OF 1870, and is based on a work bv Won
| Wfldenbruch, the favorite poet of William IT
The success OF ''The Surprise" was "disereet >,
1 as they say IN Italy, in spite of the excellent
conducting of Won schuch. The composer. who
was for years ehorus-master of an orpheum at
Cologne and who is now musical conductor nj
large music-hall in New YORK, went hack tn
germany 10 be present at the first perform
ances of his operas.
Inc 1tailan Government gave the composer
Luigi Rieci OF Trieste the order to write the
olnclal nymn for the fete of the Goth of Sem
TEMPER at Rome. 1t appears from the Italian
] papers that this hymn has not given general
| satislacuon. 1t is accused of being SO lacking
AZ ~ meiooy mat the people cannot remember
1t. Ano 10 think that Verdi in his earlier man.
ner was obliged to hold back some of his most
celeprated airs till the last moment; for in
| stance, La Donna Mobile" was suppressed
until the nnal rehearsal for fear people should
| De singing 1t before the first night. o tenn
pora! Q compositoresl
IN an essay on operate libretti, which
Maseagni has recently written, he says that
over 1000 books of operas are written in Italy
every year, and that of these about 200 come
TO TO MIN. Every Italian believes he can write
| hhretto. and among his would-be nbrettists
are railway porter, sailor. shoemaker
| ana pig-dOctOr. One lihretto srhpoittad To
hlm dealt with Italian unity, the dramatis
persona being Garibaldi as a barytone, the
| rope as basso and Victor Emanuel as a
tenor. Another libretto, entitled MAY Day"
dealt with q strike, and boasted an elaborate
| chorus, "We want an eight-hour day."
| There are thirty.three works on the pro-
gramme for the coming opera season at st.
petersburg, and of these, thirty are the works
OF Russian composers. Among the latter are