The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-06-30

steadfaSt when urged to return to klth
and kin, but Ulana feels that his heart
Is drawing him to the freedom of former
days and builds her hopes now more than
ever on Uroks love philter. Having OBJ
tanned it from him she gives it to Manru
to drink, and then follows the culminat-
ing scene Of the love duet, which con-
tains the most beautiful music in the
entire score, and which deserves to rank
among the most inspired pages that
other composers have formed for a
similar situation.
Unlike the first and second acts, which
are ushered in by only a few bars Of
prelude the third has an eloquent in
PRODUCTION Of considerable length, which,
after short monologue for Manru, "a
followed by an fntermezzo, intended
unsteady to set forth the inner conflict
I in the Gypsy's heart between his affection
for wife and child and his irresistible I'M
pulse to wander. Weary and exhausted,
Manru at last falls by the way, and is
found by his Gypsy comrades, who hap
pen to pass through the forest. Tempta-
ton in the form of Asa, his old love-
and of his former companions assaiIs
him once more. AS in the first act we
were introduced to the Polish strains Of
the dance measures, in the last Pad
erewski has used, with the happiest eff
feet, Hungarian coIoring both in his
melodies and instrumentation The music
assumes, as it were, a new character
and the danger of monotony from a too
persistent use of certain national rhv-
thnic pecuHarities is happily avoided
The Hungarian element in the score har-
monies we'll with the Polish impress
that Paderewski has so pre-eainently re-
slowed on his work. OF the action little
remains to be told Manru no longer
withstands the temptation to resume once
more his rowing life; his love Of Asa is
reawakened, and when she urges him to
follow her and to assume the cheftainey
over them all in place of Oros, to whom
her heart had hitherto sworn allegiance,
he consents. Ulana, who has been seek
ing Manru in the forest, arrives to see
him starting off with mis- Gypsy train,
and in despair browns herself. Manru.
on the other hand, pursues his way to-
ward the mountains, which leads by
preetpltous path, and here, hidden be-
hind a rock, Oros awaits him. AS he ap-
proaches he comes forth, a hand-to- hand
conflict ensueS, and Manru is hurled
| headlong into the lake below It is q
form of condign punishment that seems
effective enough from a purely theatrical
point of view, though it would have been
more in the spirit of the work to have
had the restless Gypsy follow his own
bent and depart without so sudden an
end to his wanderings
In the opportunities it has offered
Paderewsii for musical Illustrations Of
an essentially congenian character. the
lfbretto is unquestionably to be COM
mended; but in the unsatisfactory story
developed, the characters that inspire
but little interest or sympathy and above
all in the thoughts, phraseology and
versification that nowhere take more
than the most poetic flights, the Hbret-
fist, DR.. Alfred Nossig, has proved him
self a tyro at his task
The success that the work achieved at
its first presentation must be ascribed
to Paderewski, and Paderewski alone
He who is so staunch a patriot has writ
ten a work that rebounds to the glory of
his Country; he has created a Polish
opera, that must be ranked far higher
than the few that have hitherto existed
and has composed a score of which it is
no overstStement to say that it does not
contain a bar that is trivial
"Manru'' is a promise of much that IS
valuable to come, and the eulogies this
maiden work has called forth on all
sides cannot but act as an incentive to
further productivity.
The performance in Dresden was
worthy of all praise. Long ago the
Saxon capital has placed its opera on a
plane of excellence that Is eQualed 49,