The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-05-17
FIRST ARTIST ARRIVES
MIR. FFRANGCON-DAVIEs THE MAY
FESTIVAL BARITONE, IN THE CITY.
Mr.. Van Der Stuc&en, He Says, Has No
Superior Among the COnduc-
tors of the World.

Mr.. David Ffrangcon-D Davies, the hand
some young baritone of the May Festival,
arrived in the city yesterday and is at the
Bates House. His name should not fright
en- people who are not familiar with the
pronunciation of Welsh names 1t might be
spelled Frankondavies and pronounced just
the same. The man who congresses his
lips, puffs out his cheeks and suddenly ex-
plodes with his idea of the pronunciation
of the singers name, is likely to excite the
singers risibilities.
Mr.: Ffrangcon-Davies is a blonde man of
the early thirties, of medium height, plainly
dressed and a most agreeable gentleman to
talk to. Having just closed another West
ern engagement, he preferred to come here
for few days of rest, rather than to re-
turn to New York and then come back.
He is one of the few really great baritones
of the English-speaking world and has
earned his prominence by hard study and
an earnest fight for his musical ideals. This
is his second American season and he has
fully justified the representation of great
ness made for him two years ago, when the
critic of the Musical Courier in London
said of him:
Il cannot find room for doubt that he will
reach the very highest point in his profess
sion; the more so because he has imagina-
ton and dramatic sense, ana Is not content
10 hide his own genius behind the reputa-
ton of past school. take him as an
example which should have a Salutary
effect on those who observe it. The secret
OF his success is that he has ideas; that he
regards his voice as mere instrument that
is quite profitless unless it be used for the
intelligent and clear expression OF a
thought or an emotion; and that he realizes
that he, too, has to be an interpreter, one
on whom a sacred duty is laid, by the pos
session of noble gift, to recreate for the
public the truth in the heart of the COM
poser | imagine that Mr.. tfrangconi- pa Pa.
novelty and independence are the worst
crimes in music, but he has persisted until
his recent remarkable triumph in King SauP
at birmingham, where he won the highest
admiration of our greatest composer, DIR.
G. II. H. Parry, has at length confirmed
him In the wisdom of his fa1th. lie mas,
of course, unusual advantages. He is d
Celt, and that means much. 1t gives him
passion and sentiment, 1t makes him dram
attic, it fires him to quick enthusiasm.
Then he has had an education such as lew
other singers can boast; he is an oxford
man, ana his mind if formed on liberal
models such as are likely to give him broad
ideas. An educated singer who is also a
man of emotional temperament should ma
victory easy. Perhaps, II convention ala not
blind our eyes so much, 1t would De so. we
need artists who can rouse our own teenngS
by frank usage of their own VINO can
stir ideas by ideas of their own in word,
who can represent in song, so that the
feebIest intelligence may have some gllm-
ance of the composer. There IS the more
need to welcome such great artist as Mr..
Ffangcon-DaVies, whose recent engage
ment for the Cardiff festival VIII oouptiesS
be the commencement of an era in his life
of still greater usefulness than that which
he has just completed. He cannot fail to
Justify himself and to add one more 70 the
scant roll of supreme English artists
Unlike most singers Mr.. tfrangcon-Da-
vies is a judge OF good cigars anu as o ne
smoked one with quiet enjoyment last even
ing he chatted very entertalnlngly ABOUT
music and musicians. have peen iooklhg
over your programme" said he, ana 1t
seems to me that you are going to have
remarkably interesting festival. 1t starts
out strong and there is ample room Tor
good work all the way through 1t.
Your own work has been largely in
oratorio and concert, ! understand, was
suggested.
FAVORS RETURN TO CLASSICS.
Eyes, though first began in opera and
created the part of Cedric in Sullivan's
Ivanhoe. L am fond of oratorio and 1t
seems to me from the experience of two
seasons that what is most wanted in this
country is something of a return to the old
classics to free US from the wave of pro-
gramme music that has been sweeping over
us. L revere Wagner in music as L do
Shakespeare in literature and am sensible of
his greatness, but a long run of Wagner
without an occasional return to Mozart,
for the musical digestion. We gave Elijah
at aCrnegie Hall six weeks ago and it
seemed to thrill the blase taste Of New
York The audience was wonderfully DEM
onstrative and the next day the papers
were full of it, pronouncing 1t Il rare in
tellectual treat and asking why it was not
possible to have more of that sort of thing.
The fact was mentioned that Mr.. Ftran-
gcon-Davies was much spoken of for the
dramatic force of his work and ne contln-
n.
SO, and, frankly, l am glad of 1t, for the
public seems fond of dramatic singers, and
yet do you know that the more delicate
effects that have required twelve years of
the hardest study of my life usually go for
naught,, though that study has doubtless
helped me to be more nearly right in the
heavier work. Too many of our profess
sion, unfortunately, in the effort to be
dramatic, become melodramatic and simply
The young Welshman has his own ideas
about musicians as we'll as about music.
When asked for his estimate OF CalYe ne
said: She does not follow the technique
of the composer and in this lacks perfec-
ton as a pure soprano, but she can simply
work miracles with her voice. 1t is her
wonderful power as a dramatic singer that
makes her popular. She has the most re-
markable faculty of coloring her tones to
suit the dramatic nature of the part she
is singing l have ever known. Now Mel
ba," he continued, when she was men
toned, sis not singer of music at all. She
sang in the Handel festival in London and
could not do the work. Nordica L regard
as the purest soprano in America to-day
though her voice is not competent for the
heaviest work L sang with Emma Juch
few weeks ago and she comes nearer sat
isfying my mind and my heart than any
one 1 have heard for long time. Ella
Russell, who sings with us here, is fin
ishsd singer and has been so recognized in
England for number of years."
The matter of conductors was mentioned
and Mr.. Ffrangcon-Dayies was asked for
an estimate of Mr.. Van. der Stucken
Taken from every point of view," said he.
Il doubt If he has a superior among the
great conductors of the world, and, as you
know, they are not by any means numer-
GUS You may find Seidl, who is temper
amentally better for Wagnerian music, or
another man who eXcels him in some par
ticular phase. but for patient care, for
depth of musical knowledge, for sympa-
thetic work and ability TO bring out the
best that is in the material at hand, doubt
if he has an equal l have sung under the
baton of Damrosch, of Seidl, of Theodore
Thomas and of Americans of lesser fame
and L have found all of them easy to go
through with, but l have known none
under whose direction / would rather sing
than that of Van der Stucken.
WEEK OF MUSIC.