The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1901-12-12
LECTURE ON "LOHENGRlN"
PRELIMINARY TO ITS PERFORMANCES
BY THE GRAU COMPANY.
Oliver willard Pierce Explains This
Music Drama and Wagner's
Method Generally.

Richard Wagner's "Lohengrin,' which
will be sung in Tomlinson Hall Saturday
night by the Grau Opera Company, was
described to a large assemblage of seat
holders last night in the Starr piano store.
In the course of his lecture Mr.. Pierce re-
produced principal phrases Of the opera on
the piano.
Wagner" said Mr.. Pierce, conceived
simultaneously the music and words of his
music dramas. Whenever his creative mind
fastened on a particular character it i'm
medlately attached to that character GER
tin descriptive music, which followed 1t
throughout the drama, explaining as it was
absolutely impossible for the human voice
to explain the purpose and spirit of the
man or woman created. Certain ideas and
situations were cOlored by Wagner's mu-
sic in the same manner, so that his au-
diences were perfectly able to comprehend
his meaning from the orchestration without
seeing movement of the drama or listen
ing to word from the singers. Wherever
the man or woman or the idea appeared in
the drama sounded also from the orches-
ira the motive connected. Wagner found
that the human voice could not express
many things it was necessary to picture.
1t could not sing the horrible, the unpleas-
ant. the Vengeful."
The first strongly marked leading mo-
tive in ''Lohengrin, the Grail motive, was
played by Mr.. Pierce as musical repro
duction of Elsas description OF LOhen-
grin, Knight of the Holy Grail. Wherever
LOhengrin appears in the music drama
runs also that triumphant, knighty lead
ing motive. Connected with LOhengr1n
also is the motive picturing him Elsa s
defender and wherever Lohengrin stands
in that relation TO Elsa the leading motive
of prOtectorship stands out clearly. Then
comes, in the first act, the motive OF FL
sa's need" when she awaits a defender to
/ prove her innocence, in the ordeal by pat
/ tie, of the murder of her brother. There fol-
/ lows the swan motive, after Lohengrin
| appears, describing his farewell to his white
| companion. The motive of admiration,
when the assembled cOurtiers see the beau
/ ty of the golden knight and change In a
/ moment their attitude toward Elsa, needs
/ no words to explain its meaning 10 an au-
! dience Lohengrins warning to Elsa never
/ to question his identity is accompanied by
| the motive Of warning, and in all or the
/ opera its rendition by the orchestra tells
/ the audience that the triumph of Frederick
/ and Ortrud hinges on the ability or the
/ two to influence Elsa to put the fatal
question. There is the motive of the de-
| fiance of Frederick. when, feeling himself
/ involved in hopeless cause, he yet with
true Teutonic grit goes stubbornly into
/ battle. There is the motive of the ordeal
and the motive of rejoicing over the vic
tory of Lohengrin, telling as the voice
/ 800
In the second act Mr. Pierce played the
leading motives, which, in the first sixteen
bars of the music, tell the entire story OF
! the drama. The act opens with Frederick
| and Ortrud sitting dejectedly on the steps
| of the cathedral, and il takes nothing more
| than the melancholy motive of Frederick S
| hate and detection TO picture the condition
they are in. Mr.. Pierce illustrated how the
| motive of Ortrud's treachery Writhes IN
| and out of the drama, and how clearly the
I 0ellneate0 the
| music. Again in the second act the motive
of the warning sounds like peal of thun-
/ der. When LOhengrin, forced by the ques-
ton of Elsa 10 disclose his identity, tells
King Henry and the court that he is a
Knight of the Grail, the motive of Lohen-
grin's declaration leaves nothing more tC
be desired by the listener.
AN ESTIMATE OF WAGNER.
Mr. Pierce said that the value of the
leading motive in furnishing the key to the
story and spirit Of Wagner's music dramas
is only obtained by the most perfect or
chestration, and of that. he said. Wagner
was the most perfect master the world has
ever seen.
At the beginning of his lecture Mr.
Pierce, taking up the genesis of Wagner:
musical career, showed step by step the
progress made by him in developing opera
music. Wagner" he said lat times was
weak. He was fallaciOus, he was theatre
cal" At the beginning of his career h'
was influenced by his environment, which
happened at times to breathe a spirit 81
bitterly antagOniSttc to the old classica
art forms that it was filled with grossness
| Wagner wrote THE Novice of Palermo
under that influence, and it was so full o
salacious details that theater would
take it,
But Wagner had his fling, Mr.. Pierre
said. and after a time was stirred by
soul-moving desire 10 do something for tn
| German theater that would utterly eliml
nate the Italian operas then so admired
which he so heartily detested. He lOoke
10 France for inspira ton, as the rest O
the world looked He found MeyerbeeI
, | who wrote grandly, enthusiastically. Wag
/ ner determined TO write even more bonn
bastically, but with dramatic force. ri
| enZa' was the result. He then did a thln
characteristic of Wagner, who was no
afraid OF man or devil, and went to Pari
and failed to get his opera staged II
shaved for three years and came out OF tn
ordeal a new Wagner, divorced from al
inspiration but his own. He broke ava
from the older form of opera, and his mu
sic-drama was the result Its first expires
sion was in THE Flying Dutchman.' FO
the first time the star was subOrdinateC
and the other singers were given stron
parts. "Tannhaus -r' followed, a decide
advance upon The Flying Dutchman,
but still lacking in the strength he devel
oped later.
In Dresden the success of "Rienza" CAV
him courage, which the failure of 9Th
dampened again. He retired for white
| and ''IOhengrn" was the result Of his quie
labors. In "LOhengrin" he came out {
his former sensuality into fairy world c
grandeur and purity. Lohengrin'" sal
MIR Pierce, is worthy of the most earneS
study, although Wagner himself took /
7 perhaps, too seriously, and considered tha
the tragedy in it for him existed for a