New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1897-05-17
MUSICAL COMMENT.
MAX MARETZEK'S AUTOBlOHhArni
SOME ANECDOTES OF THE LATE
MANAGER AND CONDUCTOR
YOUNG COMPOSERS IN
BERLIN.


nation concerning him which the friend wisheo "
use In a historical sketch OF music In America ~
Is given exactly as written, without the h'e'"i'
furnishing to which Mr. Marezeks published writ
ings were subjected, for thus II VIII sounu ha'u,a
10 the many who knew the veteran manager WHO
in his old DAYS was as genial as he was garruious
when he got to fighting his old operate battles over
again:
My Dear Friend ..o. ,.o,,r ,e,,er
of Tune 20 sooner but having been out OF town
for little well-needed and well-earned te So Tsy
lected rather postponed my answer ro ,rg have
70 day The fact is that although ! may nav ,o q
great opinion Of myself keep also bottled up r 1r
my Ow@ hone S uss saf eG hUs @ That
accounts that am SO rich! ,rnbng and never
learned to blow my praise TiIi til her sn1m
UnacbabIe facts as you desire Am born In Br'inni
Austria on the 18th june. 1871 studied medicine s At
JeSaa Ritter Won seyfrcd ofkapemeister n
Vienna; Wrote an opera az eighles ai se hv myself
The words did not hurt the rsputaon Of enr' nn
hskeseeare in the least for ,ba music S Of that
Hamlet have after long years Of Go 6hon and and
Of s9 bs 6nsrS Wa in
Brnn NUREMBERG Bam6erg Asrcm ese, S %So
conducted Ia the above cities as kapellmeister AZ
the age of twenty years Since then | nave Ill
Quoted in various cities In France. England Amer
lea. West Indies and Mexico, composed many songs
overtures Ballots Several OF them performed az
and burIesaues etc., etc. In 1878 produced my opera
of SLEEPY Hollow" after Washington lrvlngs
a sFfnf Te sSdcess IN @ Banor
nor the music were of that kind of so-called Ameri;
can comic operas which pander to depraved
monies OF legs. allowance to topical songs. etc.
and as the opera has not been performed lIst III
the score for one dollar and have it orchestrated
by their first fiddler, the pecuniary success Oh
SLEEPY Hollow" not equal TO the artlstic one
You desire me to define my aims in my profes.
against the degradation OF the art against com IN
mon-pace music ana Tor tn ar e nv contempo
rares q fhe public could digest ana reusn n
! arrived in New-York in lS4S there were hardly
more than thirty able orchestra players IN New New
York Negro Ministries occupied the pIbiics mind
When l left conducting Mr.. seidl found the neces-
T Th9mas Mr. Carl Bergmann Mr. Neuendor Sig
nori Torriani, Muno and others began their careers
their talent intrusted them with conducting as my
alternates. only record positive facts when say
that introduced the operas Of Meyerb sfd ana
operas of Don Juan" "Zauberh6te," "Hochzeit of
been heard since Mabran's and Garcias time 1925
I introduced the best singers Of this century TO
ssn vd Koss rhps
Durand, Mccullough. etc. ETC.. etc, to make their
and managers OF this day You asked for unim-
peachable facts DO not take IT as a conceit on my
MAX MARETZEK
Maretzek took a happy view Of life. He fond
OF telling OF his acheSements In the early days of
opera In New-York. and his "reminiscences "Croch-
cts and Quavers." published In 1885, and "Sharps
and Flats" published in 1890, are exceedingly d.
verting. though little too one-sided to be ac-
cepted as history. II was seldom that his convic-
ton that he had been i-treated by the public
found more energetic expression than that which
may he found in the above letter. One Saturday
Oft In no NrSt poft ha Mat
opera House. thirteen years ago. the writer found
him standing In the foyer at a matinee and asked
him In TO occupy q vacant seat Between the acts
the conversation turned. naturally. on the new
venture.
why aren't you managing this house," he was
asked.
II don't know" he replied almost sadly 81
guess the public has forgotten me-" Then the Old
twinkle came back into his eyes, and he continued
When these rich peop.e got tired OF the Academy
and built opera house for themselves, did think
for a while that some OF them would come 10 me
and say: See here, Max, you're a good fellow and
used TO do good deal for Italian opera; We want
TO show appreciation. VIII you have the bar
privilege or be head usher? II they had given me
the bar I would probably have made more money
than made out OF italian opera, but OF
them thought OF Max"
Following Is the list OF operas which had their
first performance in New-York under Mr.. Maretzek's
management: "Trovatore," "Rigoletto," Fora del
Desno," 'Ione,' Carnival OF Venice" (Petrela),
Don Sebastiano," "Saffo," Peris Judith" Faust"
Qtaan version, Fra Davoo" new Italian
son). lie Prophetic" "LAfrcane." "Aroldo." Il
Masnadieri' WerdD, "Medea' PacinD 'Crisplno la
Comare" Ricci brothers. Romeo and Juliet" by
Gounod. with Minnie Hauk Juliet: The North
star" "Traviata," Tulsa Miller II Due Foscari,"
"Atta," Roberto" Anna Boena" "Poliuto"
Maria di Rohan," Linda" "Favorta." Don Pas
quale" Betty" "Lombardi" Macbeth" :Marno
Fa.iero," "Belgarlo," Don Bucefao" and william
Tell Gtallan version.
Apropos OF III Trovatore" Maretzek who never
became reconcled to German opera, used TO tell
story as follows: When Nine Pappenheim CIV
ing German opera at the Academy of Music, it was
decided TO try a out of town, and
gagged manager. We went 10 Boston with the
announced intention OF giving nothing but Wag-
merriam opera. 1t just the beginning OF the
craze. Every one pooh-poohing Italian opera,
saying that 1t dead and that nothing but Ger
man opera worthy Of public attention. After
one week OF Wagner in Boston there not
penny left in the treasury. I called the company to-
gether and timldly suggested it might be well 10
try III Trovatore.' Nine Pappenheim and Mr..
Adams the tenor, protested. but It was either 'Tro-
vatore' or the Sheriff, and Trovatore was given
with immense success and receipts amounting TO
more than $1,000 The morning after this turn In
the tide went around among the singers and got 81
from each one for a purpose which refused to dis
cose at the moment. With this money sent
cable dispatch 10 Verdi telling him that III Trova-
tore had saved company of Wagnerian singers
from starvation"
The newspapers of Berlin have recently paid
some pretty compliments to five OF Mr.. o. r. Bose's
pupils who gave a concert of their own compost
tions on April L. They called In the services Of
the Philharmonic Orchestra, with Dr. Muck as
conductor, and violin virtuoso named Franz Fink.
The pupils are described Americans by all the
newspa pers but only of them are natives OF
this country. These Ernst Carter, who pro-
duced an overture and Arthur Nevin. brother OF
Ethelbert Neyin who won much praise WIN suite
entitled Lorna Doom" very much TO the bewilder-
ment OF the German critics. The others were Otto
Floershen for some years a resident OF this city.
but a native of Aix-a -Chapellei Charles Hutton, am
EngIishman Edmund Hertz, Pole. Mr.
Floershem's composition, TO which the critics
with one accord award the palm, was a suite
miniature for orchestra entitled 'Lebesnoyee." a
second concert OF Mr.. Bosses pupils was announced