The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-03-14
MUSIC AND MUSICIANS
POETIC IDEA OF SOUsA'S INFLUENCE,
on HIS ORCHESTRA.
NOrdica VIII Sing In DamrOsch's OPP
er:: Company This week i'm New
YOrk-Thc Music World.

man who was in feature and movement
himself living melody" With a care
less bow to the uninitiated who had as
sembled to witness the exhibition of his
powers, the master began. He waved
lightly toward the clarinets. and they
became little children weeping over fan
ciful sorrows. Another wave touched the
piccolos, and they, too. felt the sad
ness filling the earth. Then, half turn
ing. he caught the comets, and from them
broke forth a wall OF soul agony. The
next pass of the wand reached the from
bones and drums, and. 10. they were
horde of hooking devils who added their
curses and shrieks 10 the pitiful walls al
ready awakened. As this crash of passion
reached its height he touched another
group. The bass horns and deep-toned in
struments became priests and confessors.
For while the trombones and drums tried
to drown them, but it was useless. Steadily
and earnestly those solemn voices pro-
claimed love. forgiveness and peace. The
shrieking devils were quoted. the sob
bing sinners stifled their means. and then,
forgetting their former parts. the comets
and tromhones, caught by wave of the
master. were converted into thankful wor-
shippers, who chanted their rejocings in
union with their priestly basses The
clarirets wept on a while longer, then they,
too, caught the holy luence. and at first
half sobbing, joined them that gave thanks.
And so, the wand pointed out one after
another, the chorus swelled until every in
strument upon the s.age was rejoicing in
the righteous strength of the divine"
Nordicas engagement with Mr. Walter
Damrosch is an accomplished fact. After
all her recent tribuiations NOrdica is once
more happily housed, and with Mr.. Wal
ter Damrosch's German Opera Company,
and will be heard this week in New York,
''Lohengrin'' being the first opera in which
she will sing. The prima donna has some
cause for self-congra tulation. For
eral months past, largely through the me-
dunn of more or less unauthorized inter-
views. she has been held up to the public
gaze as having left the Metropolitan be-
cause they wouldn't pay her price there
the imported article-vocal being presumably
too expensive to permit of encouraging
home products in that line. BE all this
it may" says the Musical Age. Nine.
Nordica sits triumphant, with the light of
a self-satisfaction which perhaps a woman
can understand. irradlatlng her classic face.
Wei, she say TO herself have con-
quered, For has not Mr.. Damrosch. in the
face and teeth of her detractors engaged
her. and at her own much-talked-of figures.
to sing in 'Brunhilde. Isolde" and
Elsa" her triad of favorite Wagnerian
roles
Lilli Lehman has found treasure. Since
her advent in New York she has stopped at
the Netherland and has been waited on
most faithfully by Hungarian. who, as
soon as he could. asked her about her con-
servatOry in Berlin. She teaches you know
but only the favored ones-young people of
talent. of voice-so she smiled at the eager
ness of her attendant and asked him if he
10 W. N M and
in his affirmative that Lill told Ernst
CatenhuSen. the conductor and composer
and the waiter was asked to call and have
his voice tried. tie did, and night before
last he sang for Nine. Lehman and her
husband, Paul Kalisch, at the hotel Judge
of her establishment when the fellow poured
forth the Toreadors song with a voice as
rich as oil. as fragrant, as sweet as honey.
He has baritone of range and power and
season. Mr.. .Catenhusen has him in hand
now, and perhaps we may some day hear
this treasure trove in grand opera.
Pietro Mascagni, the composer of Cav
alleria Rusticana." and Rugero Leonca-
vallo. composer of Il Pagliacci" have each
recently produced a new opera. That of
the former is "Irlde." which is japanese in
character. and that of the latter is La vie
du Boheme. They are to be produced
within a short time and Venice and Milan
are struggling for the honor of first presen-
tation. Emil Durer has a plan on foot to
have both of the composers visit this cotin>
try next season with Italian opera COM
panies TO produce the operas and has
mapped out tour. which he mas taken to
Italy for their approval.
During the last ten years about ten of
Schubert's autographs were sold by auction
in Berlin. On May q. 1891. the music for
'Antigone. dated March. 1917. Frz. Schu-
| bert" consisting of seven and quarter
folio pages. was sold for $50 marks. One
of his longest Lieder compositions Elm
Samkeit. was disposed Of on Nov. u. 1851
for $50 marks. OF this work Schubert wrote
IN letter on Aug. 3. 1878: 1t is as | be-
lleVe the best that have done. for l was
| free from care Other MANUSCRIPTS
brought lOO to $50 marks 1t is not com
| monty known that ne wrote some music
| for a synagogue Tho text was the nine
| ty-second Psalm i'm Hebrew. and the work
| was written at the request of his friend
| Sulzer 1t has not. however. held it's ground
| IN the nagogUeS. it is not sufficiently
litursical in tonc.-Schubert's Autographs.
! Mr.. w. S. b. Matthews in the periodical
Music says that he looks for the time
| when some of the works of Beethoven
will stand nearly where those of Mozart do
now. Does any musician speak of Mozart
| i'm terms other than those OF reverence?
| Never. But do they play the Mozart works ?
| Never. Mr.. Thomas speaks of the finish of
| MoZarts symphonies. Yes they are fin
/ ished. very. Beautiful works they are de-
| lightfully spontaneous. But how often do
| we hear one? One symphony once "A year
| Why? Simply because, while the works are
! Dedutful and representative of a very
| nigh musical genius. they do not i'm equal
| degree represent human nature as it now
| Is. The inner disposition of man has
| changed. Mozart is not up To date
| Neither is Beethoven. 1t is not n question
whether later men have written better.
| broader, more beautifully: il is a question
| OF answering to the innermost heart of a
generation so that as in a mirror il realizes
| ltS own lnmOSt-itS struggles, its raDtureS
| It's aspirations" Mr.. Matthews is too pessi-
mistic in this regard. Let him have pa
thence and he will see this music which is
not up to date" and other music that
| preceded II experiencing an enthusiastic
| lease of life.
! The Dresden opera has already given
August Bungerts THE Return of Ulysses
| with great popular success. and the piece
| Is about TO so into the repertoire of the
| Royal Opera House at Berlin. There has
| been some hitch lin the production of the
| opera at Berlin, as the composer insists
| that the opera house officials promised Ia
| produce all of his six operas that comprise
| the series knOWn as THE HOmeric World -
| Herr Bungert wants them to do this or
| otherwise promise to produce the four
| other operas In the tetralogy called 'OdyS-
| Seus." These separate works are said Ia
| he too closely connected to admit of sonar
| ate performance when there is no proba bill
| ity that the rest of the series will be given.
| "circe' and 'Nausikaa' are two of the
other operas of the tetralogy
In the literary remains of Rubinstein
now in the course of publication in the
German paper Vom FelsZum Nicer. the fol-
! lowing anecdote appears: one meets with