The San Francisco call., 1898-01-27

nier'' of Guordano and in Puccini's La Boheme" she has sung recently with much praise. The range, purity, reso- nance and emotional quality of her voice fit her especially for the Wagnerian parts which she is taking in New York. Her debut last week was made as Venus in "Tannhauser."
 The subtitle given by Richard Wag- ner to his "Tannhauser," and which the bills of the National Academy of Music never reproduce. ''The Joust of the Singers at the Wartbourg." has just found a singular justification at the Opera in Vienna, where they were playing 'rannhauser" recently. Since the suppression of the official claque sev- eral artists of this theater have possessed private claque, composed of young en- thusiasts, whose manual labor Is not paid for. The tenor, Winklemann and the barytone, Reichmann, two celebrated Wagnerian singers, possess a very nu- merous and militant claque of this kind the members of which impose themselves upon the public more than the old official claque, without the director of the opera or the police being able to interfere in any way. Now, one night lately the "claqueS' of these two artists commenced battle against each other without as- signing any cause for this raising of shields. In the second act, after the allo- cution of Wolfram d Eschenbach very well sung by NJ. Reichmann, his claque applaunded vociferously for five minutes M. Winklemann's claQue got jealous and began to cry, Enough! enough!' and the plaudits were interrupted by misses. M. Reichmann let it be plainly seen that he was furious. Arrived at the third act and the famous song of the Evening Star" (the battle horse'' of NJ Reich- ma mn ha was reproduced. M. Reichmann then said some words to the conductor, which could not be heard, leaned his harp against the trunk of a tree and walked off. The director. M. Mahler, who had taken a vacation and was resting in the Alps, returned after the fetes and had a friendly explanation with M. Reichmann who still remains at the Imperial Opera On their side the director and the police are taking measures to prevent a repeti- ton of this scene in future. M Winkle- mann and M. Reichmann are the pillars of the Wagnerian repertory, and neither one nor the other can be duplicated in most of his roles.
 From the Menestrel: These Americans will never cease stupefying us with their inceSSant inventions. Here is one quite recent, introduced into the singing schools, and due to an "eminent" pro- lessor of New York. It Is besides very simple and entails no other expense than the purchase of an umbrella What to do with, you will ask, for what u11r- pose this engine dear to Robinson Crusoe in singing class? See. The professor places himself, armed with the instr11- ment in question, in an angle of the hall and all his pupils correctly ranged before him, commence to utter a sound in fol- lowing with attention all his movements a hx-
 and by the measure which he employs the sound of the voice ought to augment to attain Its full plenitude when the ob Ject IS entirely open. Afterward the contrary ought to take place; always slowly, poco poco, the umbrella shuts and the voices follow its evolution. di- minuendo. decrescendo, to arrive at pia- nisslmo the most perfect and to be ex- tinguished finally in a whisper when the umbrella Is completely folded. Is it not marvellous, and can one comprehend why neither Garcia nor Ponchard ever had the idea to adopt a proceeding so practical and so simple?
 The great Cinderella" performances. which took place last week at the Met ropolitan Opera House, for the benefit of three Roman Catholic charities, were a complete failure, so far as the financial results were concerned. All the follow ing day the stage door was besieged by applicants for money. A small percent age was forthcoming with promises of more. MT. Lummis, the representative or the institutions to be benefited said that there was more money coming in and the accounts were not yet audited. but that he thought all claims would be satisfied. Mrs. Barnes. who had nothing to do with tho business part of the un- oertaklng but superintended all the stage