The San Francisco call., 1896-12-31

Saturday matinee. After the collapse OF the
Mapleson company all hopes of grand opera
i'll San Francisco were abandoned for this sea-
son, so it will be great satisfaction to opera
lovers to find that something very nearly ap-
preaching grand opera is to be given after all.
The War Department of Aus a-Hungary has
just addressed rather curious circular to the
generals of the army. II is a well-known TACT
that in Austria the military bands, which are
numerous ana for the most part excellent,
play in the places of amusement, restaurants,
cafes, etc, to the no small detrlment OF the
civilian bands. The remuneration the SOL
diers receive for this work is the chief source
of revenue of the military bands. To add at
tractiveness to their programmes the military
bandmasters have lately taken 10 playing
pieces where several musicians whistle with
the orchestra. Needless to say, in so musical
country as Austria, the melodies whistled or
sung By the soldiers were speedily taken up
and sung by the bystanders in restaurants OF
the cheaper kind, and the rendering of pop
ular air was the signal for general and very
noisy II usical demonstration. The War De-
partmcnt has been very much worried over
this state of things. and the circular above al
luded to prohibits the members OF military
bands from either whistling or singing, except
incidentally, and an entire air is never to be
whistled. In the popular waltz for instance,
"Wciner Madepn," the principal melody has
TO be first whistled and then taken up IN cho-
rus. This waltz is henceforth on the black
list and the Viennese will never again hear it
performed by their favorite military bands.
On the other hand, the popular song ''Den
Weanea Schan'," which only contains one
brief whistle at the commencement, is still
permissible. 1t is easy to see that the distinc-
ton Is very casuistical between prohibited
music and that which is still allowable.
Henceforth an expert will pass judgment on
all pieces that contain whistling or singing
before the Austrian military bands are a.
lowed to render them.
One of the leading Berlin critics has just
made record for himself By refusing abso-
lutely to report any concerts except those
which deserve signalling to the public on ac-
count OF their artistic excellence, and his
proposition has been received with enthusi-
asm in the concert-ridden capital of Germany
where sometimes as many as nine concerts
are given in one day. This critic evidently
thinks that there is very little but notoriety
TO be obtained by concert giving in Berlin, for
he says: ''If my fellow critics would follow
my example artists would think twice before
foolishly spending their money without OBJ
tanning even the satisfaction of eeeing their
names printed In the papers in return"
andrea Chenier," poor Maplesons one
operatic novelty, could not save the veteran
impressario from bankruptcy in the East but
in Europe 1t seems to be doing pretty bris k
business for it is annouced simultaneously
for the following countries and towns: Aus
tria and Germany, at Budapest Prague.
Trieste, Hamburg, Frankfort and Breslau !;
Russia, at ST. Petersburg and Moscow: Italy,
AT Drl-
cia Palermo, etc., and Portugal at Lisbon
Not a bad beginning for the first season OF a
new composers first opera. Indeed, the sue
cess of Giordanos opera is such that it has
revived an interest in the unfortunate poet,
whose sad story forms It's plot, and the fad is
TO read Andrea Chenier's poems and attend
lectures on him.
saint-Saens' new ballet d'action, "Javotte, y
has been most enthusiastically received at the
Grand Theater of Lyons. The score is said to
be full OF charm and vivacity, and the story,
although simple, is effective. Jayotte is a
young peasant who is SO passionately fond of
dancing that she escapes through window to
attend the village dance her parents have for
hidden her to see. There she meets lover,
and in competition for the best dancer he
wins the prize, that of being allowed to select
BRIDE He chooses Jayotte, and in the end
wins her parents consent to the wedding,
which closes the story of the ballet.
Some of the Eastern papers are making hot
warfare against the foreign artists, who seem
to have things their own way at the Metro
politan Opera-housc. In the meantime the
French papers are circulating the report that
these same artists had such rough weather on
the voyage over that they cursed America and
its dollars and regretted sweet France, ''whose
only storms are electoral storms"
Nicolas Barilli, half brother of Adelina Patti,
on the mothers side, died recently in New
York The mother of the ceIe brated singer
had for her first husband the son of cele-
brated singer Mme. Barilli, and by the first
marriage OF PATHS mother there were two
sons. The eldest, Antonio. became clever
conductor, and was also known as a composer; /;
he died at Naples in 1876. The second son,
Nicolas Barilii. NAMED obscure all his life.
The ranks OF royal composers are continu-
ally being augmented. The latest recruit is
the Archduke of Austria, Peter Ferdinand,
grandson of the ex-Grand Duke of Tuscany.
This young man has just published at Salz-
Dourg series of waltzes entitled "My Favor
ite."
dispatch announces that q new opera
entitled "Armida Rinaldo" has met with
great success in Italy. The work is by Anni-