New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1896-09-20

an instrument the spectators have to make believe
that ne plays and often they have 10 make be-
lieve pretty hard.
It is not generally to he expected that man
will have two professions Il be good at both Of
them. and so It happens that comparatively few
actors are good musicians. Some are. but far
more are not So II fails out that when the "busi-
ness Of q scene requires the actor to play an in
strumen the man who regularly plays that insru-
mont in the orchestra usually has to do il for him,
while he makes motions more loss like the play
ing Of II
Somehow or other this is hard thing 10 do easy
as it 50. ms The operation Of playing an instru-
mont which makes no sound s such purely
chanica that if the actor allows himself 10 get
tho least hit Interested whatever else he Is doing
Al the same time looking up at his swecthearts
window. for instance he usually forgetS to play ~
all and it is then chiefly that the audience hear
ing the music go on just the same, has 10 make
believe great deal
FORGETFUL or THEIR FINGER1NG
Even that spot If Illuminated white cloth origi-
nalv circular but ain ost always drawn more or
loss out Of shape ana noticeaby wrinked. has
again and again heer known to exert positively
hypnotic influence Captain 'orcoran and 10
make him while he carols forth his melody to the
unconscious moon" becc mo almost as unconscious
as the moon herself and altogether stop work
There is something that has the same effect on
Lady Jane Probably 1t Is the thought. while she is
singing on that subject. of her sorrowful condition
in being so tall and stout that no manager will
eyer let her play any part hut comic one like this.
in which this dreadful stoutness Is tho very point.
At any rate before she gets through with her
cello obiigato she is usually moving her bow in
listless way that would produce very queer sounds.
II # were allowed to produce any at all Yet the
obigato never fails.
And then there is Siegfried He may know how
to blow a horn. or he may not. And the horn Itself
may be capable of being blown it may not.
once in the memory of living men the clear note OF
that horn rang out at the Metropolitan Opera
House and everybody knew that Siegfried
coming Then he came. In few minutes the
time would come TO-. him to blow his horn again,
this time in full view of the audience As the mo-
ment approached he was seen to get nervous and to
act as if he had lost something. Then those who
were quick such things saw that he had no horn
AT all He looked about and strobe up and down
the stage and iidgeted. and every instant the or
chestra was getting nearer to the place where the
horn was bound sound in spite of all that he
could do to prevent IT, and If he did not have
horn at his lips then the whole audience would
laugh as the heartlcss audience always does at ar
little unavoidable of that sort The trouble
was that nobody cxcep, himself and part of the
audience seemed to know that anything wrong.
Nobody behind the scenes knew that he looking
for horn, and he could not make anybody under
stand it, and all the time the orchestra playing
the score, which seemed hendshly rapid, for the
only time In recorded history that Wagner score
seemed rapid TO anybody. At last when the
interest Of those who what was the matter
at its height. the property man or somebody else
discovered the mistake and brought the horn to the
wing where Segfred received IT, just in tim" TO put
II his lips and puff out his cheeks the relcn
less musician under the stage blew the ringing
note.
KEEPING TIME WITH THE PIANIST.
The music is not always In the orchestra Some
times the instruments that really go have TO be
placed behind the scenes. or course. Svengali
could not really play the piano and Gecko could not
really play the fiddle. any more than Trilby could
really sing. All the playing that Svengali and
Gecko did was done pretty close to the wings, ana
in the wings. just out of sight from the audience
the men who could play the piano and the
fiddle though the way In which they did II did not
altogether Justify the fame OF Svengali and Gecko
as performers on those instruments. When the IN
strumcnt Is that is 80 generally understood as
the piano the actor and the performer have TO be
uncommonly careful to keep together, so that the
music shall begin IA soon as the actor begins 10
a single bar after he has left the piano This last
has sometimes happened. of course II Is much 100
simple mistake TO have been avoided always.
Some actors are musicians or more or less pro-
hciency Just many persons In almost every
walk OF life make music "A recreation ana an ac-
complishment. There many especially among
the women Of the stage who can play the plano
we'll enough to get through almost any scene III
which a little amateur music IL required, without
OF the room the back side and professional
musician 10 play IT, When Chanfrau was me star
the air suggested ny the name OF MS pay on a
fiddle. and when Thomas Whinen was Irplet IN
Masks and Faces; tavorite part WIN nm ne
expense the management. For "A thoroughly
modern instance. Fritz Williams. who recently
had to pick the banjo In the negro minstrel scene