The herald., 1897-07-25

adopted the policy, about six months
ago, of incorporating musical turns"
into their bills they builded even better,
perhaps, than they knew. At all events
1t has served a double purpose, for 1t
has drawn a better class Of people to
the vaudeville houses and has familiar
ixed the masses with good music at the
same time. Very many people who would
never have crossed the threshold to lis
ten to or see the class of entertainment
offered before have been drawn there by
Guile and other world famous artists
that they could not otherwise hear, since
grand opera is, or seems to be. thing of
the past on the Pacific coast; and having
gone once and found the rest of the bill
supportable, the better class go again
and again as new musical attractions
are offered from week to week.
On the other hand the masses, those
whose chief delight has been, and still
is, a pair of nimble feet, trapeze or
acrobatic performance, or whose musical
horizon was bounded by the regulation
song and dance artist, have, for the sake
of seeing all these, endured the higher
grade of music which has been sand
WICKED in; a pill judicously and dis
creetly sugar-coated, to be sure, but new
ertheless absorbed into the system, and
itsbeneficial effect is bound to be observ-
able later on.
So long as the government of this
country fails to encourage its native or
other talent by supporting bands, or
chestras, the opera, or musical institu-
tions, just so long will the masses of the
people remain in ignorance regarding
things musical If the natural love of
music in people is to be educated they
must be surrounded by a musical at
mosphere; that is a truism long since
established and proved in every Euro
peap country. Music is luxury and an
expensive one everywhere in America,
only to be enjoyed by the comparatively
few. Cheap or free high-clasS music is
an unknown quantity everywhere, and it
is therefore a long step in the right di-
rection when the theaters where only
moderate price Of admission is charged
put on really first-class musical produc-
lions in whatever form.
1t is generally conceded that the Tivoli
in San Francisco has done more for the
musical education of the masses there
than any other one factor, in presen ting,
as it has, good, legitimate music for it's
patrons. The Orpheum was the next to
fall in line, and for six months the man
agement has persisted in feeding the
habitues of the place, and they number
many hundreds nightly, with thoroughly
first-class musical turns. The gallery
has been inclined to take the measure
as a personal affront, has groaned and
Kissed and cat-called but the rest of
the house has in each instance risen to
the occasion and promptly and effectu-
ally drowned them out with vociferous
applause; few extra able bodied po
licemen have been put in with the tough
er element upstairs to quell any incipi-
ent riot, and although the end is not
yet the management are to be COM
mended most highly for having taken a
step that promises to be rich in it's re-
ward, in that it is educational and ele-
waiting, as well as remunerative from a
box office standpoint
At Keith's, the Boston vaudeville
show house, Scalchi, the great contralto,
Is doing her nightly turn, and twelve of
the Boston Symphony men are playing
a summer engagement there of fourteen
weeks; at Proctors, the Olympia and
Roster & Balls in New York the same
policy has been inaugurated and sue
cessfully carried on, and the Orpheum
management, which has its houses in all
the principal cities on this coast and
some further east are doing the same
good work A few weeks ago we had
Guile, then Albert and Orlando and for
couple of weeks Alex Heindl a Boston
violoncellist and a member of the Bos-
g ton Symphony orchestra, has been Civ
ing all who love cello music, or good
music, a delightful enjoyment. Mr..
HeindPs cello is a genuine Nicholas
Amati, made previous to 1928. He IS an
American, has received his musical edu-
cation in America under that prince of
'cellists, Fritz Giese, and although he
is hardly more than boy in years, he
has already attained a very enviable de-
gree of virtuosity, and his handling of his
instrument is mastery. His choice of
numbers has of necessity been popular
rather than severely classical, but it has
all been good music and his treatment of
even these has shown him to be a schol-
arly artist as well as a thorough must
clan.
#. W. Eckert is also a seasoned must
cian and his singing with Miss Berg, as
we'll as that of Charles White, the Aus
tralian baritone, is all in line with the
general tendency to familiarize the pub
lie with reasonably good music as an
entering wedge to better things. All
honor to the management for having
taken the step and set the pace. Let the
good work go on. E. M. c.
y =
Mr.. Frederick Stevenson has received
his second anthem in the series he is
cornnosiup from the nuh1iShers Hear