The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1899-10-03
FESTIVAL BEGINS
Opened AuSpiciOuSIy Last
Evening.
City Filled With Must
cal People.
Largest First Night Audience in
Festivals History.
Splendid Concert Last
Evening.
Public Rehearsal and Two Con-
certs Today.

The Maine Music festival began for
the third year in this city last evening
and from the moment that MIR. Chap
ann lifted his baton for the opening
chorus its artistic success was assured.
How delightfully."- the soloists. the chorus
and the orchestra did their parts 10 told
elsewhere. In this opening concert they
placed the standard of exoellen0s on a
high plane. indeed II the remaining
concerts are equally successful, and there
is no reason to suppcss that they will not
be, the third festival viii rank as the
best yet given. 1t would be difficult to
say more In its praise. The three years
Of hard work MIR. Chapman has devoted
to the enterprise are bearing fruit in In
creased ability on the part of the singers
Of the State, and greater appreciation
of their efforts on the part of the public.
The festival orchestra shares with the
chorus this growth in musical skill and
has reached a stage of development where
its playing surprised the veteran mem
bers of the Boston symphony who come
here to I'LL the ranks. This years list of
thuse who will appear as soloists is one of
the sti ongest which could we'll DO ar
ranged for such an event. First, of
course, comes Mime. Sembrich, the
worlds sweetest singer, who appears here
after wonderful triumph At the
Worcester festival, Worthy associates Of
this great artist ara Mines. Charlotte Ma.
conGa ard hva Gardner Coleman, So
prani; Misses Carrie Briuewell and Bertha
Gushing, coutraltl; NessFs. Frank V.
Pollock and Harry Pepper, tenori; ard
Aessrs. Gwilym Miles and Julian Walker.
bassi MIR. Richard Burmeister, the oon-
cert pianist. is an additional attraction
and his appearance before Maine audi
enoes has long been awaited with pleas
ure by lovers OF the plano. Portland 10
well represented in the list of soloists.
Mrs. Florencs Knight Palmer. DIR. H.
Nj. Sickerson, Mr.. Harry f. Merrill,
Mr.. ii. W. Barnard, Jr., and Mr.. Frank
Ii. Pierce are too we'll known to need
words of introd uetion here. The Bangor
soloists are Mrs. Annie wasgatt Wit
tredge. Miss Mabelle Monaghan, Mr..
Harry W. Libby, Mr.. X. B. Hall and
Mr.. l.. B. Cain. Then there is the Was
gait string quartette composed of four
talented Maine Music ans, Messrs. Os.
car K. Wasgatt, Fl. G. Sawyer, Roland
j. Sawyer and Ralph p. Preble. With
the chorus of nearly 1000 voices and the
festival orchestra of rs pieces, it would
he a oaptious critic who would find fault
in the selection Of the exponents Of the
musical numbers Oh the programme.
The beginning of the festival was her.
aided by the arrival Of the soloists most
of whom were in the city by Sunday.
Sembrieh, the peerless, has already en-
deared herself by her gracious manner to
those Portlanders who were privileged
to see her at the serenade rendered her
at the Falmouth. Saturday evening. Ma
conda comes as an old friend who needs
no word of Introduction and the same
may be said of Gwilym Miles, while the
others are so well known, by reputation,
at least, that their success in Portland is
assured. 1t was early on yesterday fore
noon that the streets In the vicinity of
the Auditorium put ON their festival sp-
pearancs. Young women with music
rolls under their arms made their way
early to the auditorium for the first of
the rshearsAls and by ten O'Clock the
scene in the great building was an an
mated one. The great stage at
shs rear of the hall with the tiers of seats
rising one above another, way up to the
iron roof tFusses, SO that one thousand