The age-herald., 1901-10-27

metropolitan opera CoIHpany oA NV" York will give at the Auditorium next Wednesday night. Lohengrin is to be the opera and the curtain will rise promptly at o'clock. The performance will last fully three hours and half
 There is no overture, but in the place of 1t short vorspiel or prelude. in which the Holy Grail leit-motive or lead ing motive, comes first. Music-lovers may be thoroughly familiar with the Lohengrin score. but they will not fail to be in the Auditorium on time to hear this Holy Grail motive given out by those mysterious and solemn voices of the orchestra In other words no one who really wants to hear Lohengrin intelli- gently and commercially will miss the pre- Jude.
 There are some eight or nine leit-mo- tives in Lohengrin. After the Holy Grail them. comes the Elsa motive, then the Lohengrin motive. There is no leit-motive to prefgure ortrud and after the Lohen- grin theme the Glory motive is heard next the Judgment of God motive and next the Swan motive and so on to the Dark Plots and the Doubt motives
 Past Musical Attractions.
 Capt. Frank P. O,Brien, as proprietor of O'Brien's Opera House, brought some splendid musical attractions here in the way of operas, orchestras and violinists. The last big grand opera troupe at OBrien's was in the latter part of the eighties, when the National Company, backed by Mrs. Thurber and managed by Charles B. Locke, was here two nights. It gave Lucia di Lammamoor," and the Two Grenadiers." Emma Juch was the prima donna. and she was in her prime When the National started on the road Theodore Thomas was the conductor and he had an orchestra of nearly sixty pieces. The chorus numbered about 125 singers. .H
 "Lohengrin" was in the repertoire but it was not given in this part of the South. It will be presented Wednesday night for the first time in Alabama
 The National was on its way to Cali fornia- At St. Louis Thomas had a row with Miss Juch at rehearsal and left the company. Hinrich, a comparatively un- known conductor took his place. The s company was too expensive for the road in those days and heavy loss was in- cured every week. The orchestra was gradually cut down and so was the cho- rus. When the company reached Bir- mingham on its return East the or chestra numbered only twenty musicians and the chorus had been reduced to about sixty, which by the way taxed the stage capacity.
 Captain O'Brien says the largest orches- tra with an opera company that he re- calls had twenty-four pieces. It was a part of the old Mapleson concern. Ru- dolph Richter, the accomplished typani player of the Jefferson Theatre was & member of that orchestra
 Grau carries nearly two hundred people all told. He has chorus of hundred or moro and an orchestra of forty odd; prob ably forty-five. The Lohengrin score re- quires several extra reed instruments, family, and a third bassoon. There is also a third trumpet.
 Mime. Sembrich will have the role of Elsa. and Mime. Schumann-Hein the role of Ortrud. It is said that Bispham will sing Telramund. This is a difficult acting part and Bispham is great in the role.
 Boyle & Edwards of the Auditorium pay Grau S5000 for the performance They have sold enough tickets already to come out ahead. They are counting on $6500 house.
 Characters of the Drama. ..Lohengrin, Knight of the Holy Grail Tenor.
 Henry l., King of Germany-Bass.
  bant-Baritone.
 The Royal Herald-Bass
 Gottfried, Elsa's Brother, Mute Person age.
 Four Nobles of Brabant-Tenors and Basses.
 Elsa of Brabant-Soprano.
 Ortrud, Wife of Telramund-Mezzo-s prano.
 Four Pages-Soprano and Alto.
 Chorus of Saxon and Brabantian No- bles, Ladies, Pages, etc.
 Tho scene passes in Antwerp; period, the first half of the tenth century.
 The Story of Lohengrin.
 Act I-Henry ''the Fowler King of Germany, has come to Antwerp to sum- mon his lieges against the Hungarians, who threaten the eastern frontier; he finds the chiefs divided and without a leader-Gottfried, the young son of the late Duke, having mysteriously disap- peared, and Frederick Telramund, in vir- tue of his wife's royal descent, claiming the sovereignty of Brabant. Telramund openly accuses Elsa (Gottfrieds sister, of having murdered her brother to win the crown for herself; Elsa is summoned to appear and answer the charge; the King decrees that her cause shall be sub- mitted to ordeal of battle between Tel ramund and any champion Elsa may choose to defend her. She describes Knight whom she has seen In vision. and conjures him to fight for her. After repeated appeals, a skiff. drawn by swan. is seen to approach the shore; in 1t Is Lohengrfn, Elsas chosen Knight, who accepts Telramunds challenge. Be- fore they fight, Lohengrin betroths him. self to Elsa, first claiming her solemn promise never to question him as to his name or race, nor where he came to her; Telramund Is overcome in the com bat, and stripped of lands and honors
 Act 1I-Telramund and Ortrud (his wife) are watching outside the palace which resounds with mirth and revely; they are determined yet to accomplish the ruin of Elsa and Lohengrin and be reinstated in their former rank. Elsa appears on the balcony, and to her Or trud makes a piteous appeal, which so effectually moves Elsa to compassion. that she promises to obtain the reprieye of Telramund's sentence She offers to shelter Ortrud for the night who, amid false protestations of gratitude affects concern for the uncertainty of Elsa's future happiness. and contrives to insin- uate the first germs of suspicion in Elsa's mind. They enter the abode of Elsa. The retainers and vassals assemble to form the bridal procession. Ortrud appears in the train of Elsas ladies; arrived at the steps of the minister, she cannot restrain her naughty temper, and disputes Elsa's right of precedence; in the midst of the ensuing commontion the King and Lohen- grin enter. Lohengrjn reproves his bride for holding converse with the evil-minded woman; they are proceeding to the church when Telramund interposes and accuses Lohengrin of sorcery, alleging the strange manner of his coming amongst them, and