Kansas City daily journal., 1897-02-10
MUSIC AND THE DRAMA.

Conductor John Philip Sousa has the sat
isfaction of finding himself the possessor
of city to which he has laid siege for
several years. He has added another
stronghold to the list of his conquests.
For two seasons his famous band of wood
and brass blowers and percussionists made
their assaults On Sunday, but he found
Kansas City puritanically opposed to any
thing that interfered with church service
or baseball on the Sabbath. Last season
he made a Friday stand and met with
mere encouragement, but still failed to
take the citadel.
Last night when he stepped to the
conductors stand at the Auditorium he
faced surrendered army. Every seat in
the great theater was taken: extra chairs
in the orchestra space were occupied;
scores of heads peered down upon him
from the dome above the gallery, and
i many people stood on the various floors.
1t was a good looking audience. too. The
few women who had not removed their
hats voluntarily Were shamed into obe-
dlence by an aggressive gallery that per-
sistently shouted Take off that hati'' This
splendid audience was rather eXacting in
its terms of capitulation, however, for it
made the band play everything it knew,
compelling not less than dozen encoFes
not to speak of the half dozen required
of the four soloists. There never was so
much music TO the minute, but the mu-
sicians were probably not more exhausted
| than those who played them as hard as
they played their instruments.
When Eduard Strauss toured this coun-
! try with his Vienna orchestra. and set
eVeryoneS feet ShuffiinS TO his waitZes,
someone rather appropriately remarked
! that he was not conductor. but a dare
| ing master. Without implying any diSpar-
| agement to Mr.. Sousa, it might be re-
drum major. If Strauss made US all I'M
pIisiveiy reach for our partners for the
waltz. Sousa makes us keep our eyes on
| fh.ah nf tklea rra 10 = ha moo
| pies conductor. His manner OF directing
\ is unique, but. strangely enough. he is al
| by his musicians. Every motion of hands
and arms is comprehensive to any Oh
server, and when he is in the glory of one
of his own stirring marches he is an abso-
| lutte physical reflection of the movement
suggested by the music He is graceful.
and has good taste. and while he abandons
| himself to rythm, he never subjects himself
| He understands the Office of band music.
| While he puts a few classics on his pro-
| gramme. these numbers are given for va
| riety sake and for the pleasure of those
| in music; but he has little respect for
| Wagnerites when he plunges from the
! Grail music of "Lohengrin' to the hurrah
measures of one of his own marches
Sousa holds his musicians we'll another
! evidence of his breadth as conductor.
! He knows the value Of unities. HIS band
| dividual excellence. In addition to the solo
work done by Mr.. Pryor and Mr., Hell.
| well known artlStS, trombone ana HueSei-
| horn respectively. both of whom had num-
| bers on the programme. the first clarinets.
| oboe flutes. pccolo and several other in
| struments gave evidence of high attain
ment When band plays twenty numbers
| in an evening and plays all OF them Wei.
| it is unnecessary to particu,arize. Suffice
| it to say that Mr. Sousa knows how TO
| please the people, and he sacrifices less
| for that purpose than any other American
! conductor that ever attained great popu-
| larity.
Two new soloists with the Sousa band
! are Miss Elizabeth Northup. soprano, and
| Miss Martina Johnstone, violinist. Both
| are acceptable artists, Miss Johnstone's
| DIaying being especially fine in technical
| form AUSTIN IATCHAW.
| The sale of seats for the Davenport en-
| gagement at the Auditorium next week will
open this morning. The repertory will be
| as follows: Monday night and Saturday
| matinee Fedora" Tuesday and Saturday
nights. La Tosca." and Wednesday. Thurs
| H. ight