El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1897-04-07

|
| Ter.
The need of concert grand piano in
this city is very much felt, and there
is more or less local modification when
the admission is made to visiting ar
lists that we have no such thing here.
Chopin hall did have baby Mason &,
Hamlin grand, but it was taken back
to Boston after Professor Dewey left.
There is a concert grand over the river,
| but it is strictly private property and
not for public use. There is not even
an upright concert grand within reach,
and ordinary parlor stock have to be
| offered on concert occasions There is
the three corpered grand in the opera
house that went through the fire and
had the hose turned on it, but Mr..
test so well that 800 would restore it
to fine condition. Some way ought to
be found to do this as the cheapest way
out of the difficulty.
| A movement is on foot to have Wal
ter Damrosch placed at the head of
Yale's department of music. and it is
| believed in n. Y. that he would accept
the position. He would certainly find it
more profitable than giving Wagnerian
opera in New YorK.
Melba, who is in the south OF France,
| is reported to be temporarily disabled
by severe rapture of one of the vocal
Brunnhilde attempt made in New York
last year.
Xaver Scharwenka has written new
opera, Matas wintha, with plot cast in
the middle ages, and dealing with the
final Gothic struggles in the sixth CEN
fury. The work was presented in New
York last week. 7Mataswintha is the
last descendant of King Theodore and
about to be welded to King Witichis,
the ruler of another Gothic tribe, when
wife, and only consented to a formal
union with her for political reasons.
The story of her revenge and final self
destruction form the most thrilling in
cidents of the opera. The score
| thoroughly appeals to the lovers OF
modern music drama, but the librettO
is decidedly cold blooded.
A ST. Louis dispatch says
Maurice Grau left St. Louis very
angry man. The grand opera perform
ances here proved failure and the
losses amount to $4,000. Mr.. Bal
mer, of Balmer & Weber, Grau's fiuan-
cial agent, said that for the five per-
formances the gross receipts were a
little less than $4,000. It cost
$40. 900 to put on the five operas, and
other expenses swelled the total to
S24, 600. Mr.. Balmer said Mr.. Grau
was compelled to telegraph to New
York for money to take the company
to Louisville. Mr.. Grau said: 1 was
led to expect support when we came
here, but ST. Louis people do not want
grand opera. If an attempt is made
to include ST. Louis in our circuit next
year 1 shall oppose it,
ST. Clements choir will sing the
Psalter in full on Easter Sunday, under
the direction of Prof. Smith. There
will also be special music at all the
Catholic churches as is customary on
that day, so that there will be great
feast of devotional music.
Johan Brahms, the noted German
musician and composer has died at
Vienna at the age of sixty-four. A
more extended notice of Brahms will
appear next week.
The "Whistling MINSTREL played by
the McGinty band last summer, and
later by Prof. Smith at one of his organ
concerts, was written by the composer
for Prof. Smith, his friend, and dedi
Gated to him. At the time there was
no name given it, beyond "Allegretto
in B fat" But it SEEMS to have been
appropriated by concert music publish
ers, and the above name given to it.
England's composers are all up and
doing to celebrate the Diamond Jubi-
S,,11 Rid NV Do
raft, Martin and others, have written
special hymns. Prof. Stanford has
penned a work for the occasion and Mr..
Eaton flaming has written the music
to poem Of Sir Edwin Arnold. Cowen,
Edward Elgar, M. B Foster, DR.. Brad
ford and hundreds Of unknown men
who send in hymns by every post, have
all turned their talents to account.
Antoine Sporl, a Kansas City violin
soloist and graduate of the Royal con-
sorvatory at Vienna, is thinking of To-
eating in this city; also soprano
singer who was a pupil of the celebrat-
ed Vanuchini of Florence, Italy, the
instructor of Patti Scslchi, Myron w.
Whitney, and other great vocalists.
This talented duo are not in the best
Of health and believe that a year or so
spent in this climate would be of last
Ing Dene1U TO tnem. lney nave Deen
recommended to make arrangements
with the Ell Paso conservatory, so that
their names may appear on the faculty
of that institution.
A feature of the musical department
of this paper will be sketches from
photographs, mostly of local musicians
with occasional sketches of great or
gans aud celebrates elsewhere. This
| week, the mandolin quartet appear.
Next week, there will be given cut of
Professor Smith, the organist of St.
Clements church, and the greatest or
gan in the world, that in tue town hall
of Sydney, N. S. w. A cut of the finest
pianist in the state of Texas, Mrs.
joseph Goodman, will appear the week
following, so that feature of much
| interest will be added to the music de-
}partment' general attractions.