The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1900-10-08
TWO VIEWS.
The Chorus as Seen by Those In the
Audience.

Audience.
A living mountain rising from the
level plain Ct the platform at it's base
nearly to the crescent moon and stars
shining above it, mountain with slopes
made gay to the eye by all the colors of
the rainbow, and swept By waves OF
melody borne in sweet cadence to the
listeners in the great valley below. That
is picture suggested by the view OF the
chorus OF the Music Festival as seen
from the audience. On those mountain
GUS seats are hundreds of singers, They
it tier above tier, reaching away up
nearly to the steel trusses of the roof
where hang the electric lights In stars,
and crescent and other designs, That
mountain OF song makes stage setting
and background for the great soloists
such as was never painted By the brush
OF the scenic artist, and the living noun
tain seems enveIoped in a sudden snow
squau when the handkerchief wave aftsr
some one of the triumphs of the princl-
pals. AS the observer in the valley looks
up to the far heights of the mountain he
soon becomes used to the ways of the cho-
rus. He finds it interesting to watch the
young women over on the left, who have
the seats from which they are able to look
down on the stairs by which the soloists
ascend to the platform, He gets SO that
he can tell when the great singer is ape
preaching by the move nent on those left
hand seats Then he let's his attention
fix itself on the pretty girl in the fourth
row, who is trying with music books and
eyes and hands to attract the attention
Of some one OF her-four thousand fellows
n the valley. After the chorus has risen
at the bidding of the conductor, and be
gun to sing. If the person in the valley is
not so musical that everything else is
driven from his mind by the waves of
harmony, he finds himself amused by
the different ways in which those ohoris-
tiers sing There is Prof. Chapman Of
BowdoIn college, prominent among the
Brunswick contingent, and singing as il
his life and the future Of Main5's chief
institution OF learning. depended on the
vigor with which he added to the vol
ume of sound. Professor Chapman is
pro minent among the singers who never
take eyes from book except to catch the
| movement of the leaders, baton. Others
seem to be able to glance n0Wssand then
down at the multitude in the valley. All
professions are represented by the men
on the mountain Clergymen, lawyers,
merchants and bankers sing side by side.
In the Portland chorus the Rev. Dean
SiIIs sits near the Rev. Mr.. Worcester
and other we'll known Maine clergymen
are on the benches.
But perhaps the observer in the au-
dience watches more closely the singing
Of the women. Here he notices the same
dt ference in manner, There is the
young contraltO whose hands are clasped
behind her back as she sings the music
with which she is evidently 50 familiar
as to require no reference to the notes
The performance of the orchestral num-
bers gives opportunity for studying the
chorus as it sits at it's ease, becoming for
the time being part of the audience
There is the attempt of every one of the
hundreds of singers to watch the must
oian who Is using some instrument
strange to the ordinary observer, and
producing Herewith 1.-THE sounds OF the
mill in the forest, There is above all the
enthusiasm of the chorus which breaks
out again and again after the singing OF
the great artists and eliminates in cheers
from the men and the waving Of the
handkerchiefs of the ladies All in all,
the person whose musical education is
not SO complete that 1T entirely blinds
him to this side of the festival, finds
much in the study Of human nature to
interest him, Perhaps he shouldn't adj
NIT that he has time in the midst OF such
a wealth of the best of music to give at
tention to aught else, but then there are
probably others who have found similar
div 4rslon, and have appreciated the
music atsthe same time.