St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1896-01-06
GONE MUSIC WILD.
1T IS OPERA, CONCERTS, PIANO
RECITALS, EVERYWHERE IN
GOTHAM.
FROM SEIDL TO GUILBERT.
THE PADEREWSKI GLORIoso RE
CITALs BY MAUREL, OPERA
BoUFFE, ETC.
RISE OF ONE YOUNG GENIUS.
Bagby Morning MusicaIes Replace
Simple Concerts of an I'm
known Musician.
pecial Correspondence Of the Globe

Special Correspondence OF the Globe.
NEW YORK CITY, jan Music!
music! music! The city is full of it.
from the opera at the METROPOLITAN.
with It's Incompatible list of singers and
lts magnificent orchestra, under Seiol.
Gown to-if she viii pardon me-Yvette
Gullbert, with symphonic concerts; the
Sagby morning musicals, the Paderew-
SKI glorioso, the recitals by MaureI and
others, the choral societies. opera boufe
and musical receptions in between. Nor
is this all. Where music is there is
gossip also, not always Of the magni-
tude Of the Eames-Calve contretenps.
nor Of the Seidl-Damrosch rivalry
(Where the town took sides and night
was made more or less hideous) but
still sufficiently interesting-the differ
ence between what John L. Sullivan
called smuggling match as contraCis-
tinguished from a friendly set-to."
what has interested ne most in it all
as showing growth and character was
the success of the Bagby morning must
Gals. Morris Bagby, who is a teacher
musician ana literateur, came here some
nine years ago unknown and unherald-
cd For two years he had been study
ing under List, and left him to ioin the
group Of his enthusiastic worshipers
In June, 1885, Bagby offered to the Cent
ury magazine an article called IA Sum-
mer With List in Vienna" II was ar
cepted. List died July 81, 1885, and
bagby's article led off the Century for
september. This was a lucky boom for
the young and unknown author. and
when the fall came he found MANY ac-
qualntances almost made for him and
he was thereby enabled to get a nnniI
or Two on the pianos to start with. as
MS circle of friends grew and his studies
became larger he gave recitaIs to his
arenas on Sunday afternoons, first tell
AIS them that he was going to play
them what the music said to him
ana then playing. This continued until
his studio was crowded, when il was
suggested that he get up substitution
fecltals, with a short lecture on the
music. 10 make long story short the
hst OF subscribers grew year after year,
TN now Bagby has the only and the
largest morning recitals here. They
are given every Monday in the ball
room Of the Hotel Waldorf, which is
seated to its full capacity, and his LIST
includes the best people here. The SUBJ
scr1ption part of the entertainments is
not thing of the past, and it has de-
Velopeq INTO beautiful morning con-
cert. for his singers, he gets the best
the world affords. All the principal
grand opera singers have sung for him.
except Jean de Reszke; but the others
Melba, Calve, Edouard de ResZke, Nord-
lca, the handsome Viennese: Nine
beeth, at the very price they
are paid per night at the
opera, have appeared and do ap-
pear Tor him. The subscriptions are not
PUBIC; and Bagby is the sole judge of
VINO snail enjoy his efforts though his
sole test has been impartially lived I'D
TO, and his list is full, and there are
many applicants for places
learned much Of this from Bagby
hlfnsen this morning, though the news
papers treat his concerts as social
functions; and SO the world may know
much.
Il try" said Bagby in his studio ito
do all I can to strengthen and Guilt
Yate the best musical sentiment in New
York. 1 feel it a duty to do so. for
| work in the field of music. | gain my
living from it, and I feel certain pro-
fessional pride in raising the general
standard of taste. Sometimes I feel
discouraged, not In my own struggles
for [ have many pupils, and the morn
ing concerts, though not at all profit
able, pay for themselves; but mean in
the public display of Indifference at
times to the very best in music. [ was
thinking just then of the coldrcss of
the opera audiences this year. There
is not anywhere in the world this sea-
son such a collection of artists as is
in the Metropolitan Opera company
now, and yet evening after evening I
have noticed a difference from the en-
thusiasm Of last year. L do not under
stand it. The artists do not understand,
but they feel bitterly about it, and
their only explanation is the old one
fickleness Of the public. I have heard
another explanation, which is generally
accepted, that it is not considered good
form this season to applaud. I have
myself noticed the feebleness of it in
the boxes, and it is so silly. Why, in
Vienna the house rises at the beautiful
Beeth, and the same is true whenever
Melba and Calve and the others appear
on the European stage. And they are
all so charming personally one feels sad
that they have noticed our lack of
warmth. But how can they help? They
never sang better either alone or with
others. Well, we are hearing the best
that can be heard"
How about the enthusiasm of Yvette
Guilbert?' I asked.
"Oh, you cannot be in earnest about